Problems With Thinking Speed and Content

Reader’s Question

Hi there…I have a quick question…I have recently had a relaspe in my depression/anxiety that I had about 12 yrs ago. I won’t go into details about it too much. My concern is part of my symptoms: if I “think” too much, too in-depth, I can make myself get anxiety, and I feel as though I am losing touch with what’s real..like I’m going to go insane or something. I fight it all the time. It’s best described by saying that I feel like I’m disconnecting… Is this part of anxiety?

Our Clinical Psychologist’s Reply

In mental health issues, we always examine several aspects of thinking. Two of the basic issues are thought speed and thought content. When we are free of emotional difficulties, our brain should think at a normal speed — let’s use 55 mile per hour (mph) as an example. At normal thought speed, we can pay attention to our surroundings, think logically about things, and solve problems at a good pace. If thought speed is too slow (25 mph) we can’t react quickly to our environment, think too slowly to problem solve, and can’t pull memories to help us in situations. This typically happens when we are sedated with medications.

When thought speed is too high (75 mph) our brain is running too fast to play close attention to our environment, we miss details, and we become distractible. Increased thinking speed is common in several psychiatric conditions including ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, etc.

Thought content is another matter. Imagine plugging your brain to a computer monitor and watching your thoughts on the screen as you think. Is there a theme to your thoughts — all depressive content? All fret and worry? No theme at all? Wild ideas about getting rich? The content tells us which disorder is most likely, as in:

1. ADHD folks have nonconnected, random thoughts on multiple topics,
2. Bipolar Manic folks have grand ideas and thoughts of fame and fortune,
3. Depressed folks have thoughts of gloom, death, and doom, and
4. Anxious folks are fretting about the future.

Using thought content we can identify the condition, while using thought speed tells us the severity of the problem. In your case, it’s clear that your depression has returned, with some anxiety, and the “thinking too much” tells us that a return to an antidepressant medication is your best treatment option. Medications are designed to slow the thinking process, allowing more reasoning when it comes to content. When depressed, for example, your brain is full of thoughts that won’t stop, keeping you awake at night. Antidepressant medications improve those symptoms.

In the future, keep in mind that any time your brain/mind races for a prolonged period of time, it’s a sign your brain chemistry has changed to some degree. You’re not going insane…just returning to the depression as you suspected. I’d recommend consulting with a psychiatrist and returning to treatment. Keep in mind that your brain will also be returning to those old thoughts in an effort to torment you. Additional information on this type of depression can be found on this website or on my website at www.drjoecarver.com.