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Can You Overthink Positive Thinking? The Hidden Dangers of the Law of Attraction and OCD

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People have been turning to positive thinking advice for ages to feel empowered.  But is it possible to overdo it?  Can the idea that we attract good things with our positive thoughts go wrong?  All wrong?

Absolutely.

When we struggle with mental health, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) in particular, positive thinking advice and believing in the law of attraction can lead to unhealthy levels of anxiety.

Here’s what you need to know about positive thinking advice and the law of attraction to determine if it’s healthy for you.

What is Positive Thinking and the Law of Attraction?

Positive thinking is the idea that positive thoughts create positive outcomes via the law of attraction (LOA).  The LOA is not an actual law, but the belief that we attract things into our lives, either good or bad, depending on our thoughts and our energy or vibration. The LOA involves a variety of practices such as reciting affirmations, visualizing, setting intentions, and making vision boards.  Historically, the LOA has been linked to the New Thought spiritual movement in the nineteenth century.  Around 2006, it entered the mainstream lexicon due to the success of the movie and bestselling book The Secret.

While both positive thinking and the LOA are meant to be empowering, there are some potential downsides.  One downside is that it can result in a rigid adherence to positive thinking at the expense of our mental health.  This is especially the case when we try to control our thoughts because we’re afraid of what will happen if we have negative thoughts.

Can We Really Control Our Thoughts?

Research shows that when we try to suppress an unwanted thought, we end up thinking about it more frequently.  This is called the rebound effect.

For example, one study showed that people who were instructed not to think about chocolate thought about it more frequently than the other subjects.  Moreover, the subjects who were trying to suppress thoughts about chocolate ended up eating more of it.

In other words, keeping tabs on how successful we are at suppressing a thought requires thinking about the unwanted thought.  When we do that, it is more likely to result in a preoccupation with the thought and counter-productive behaviors.

Trying to suppress unwanted thoughts is an example of experiential avoidance.  Experiential avoidance is when we try to suppress or control unwanted thoughts, emotions, or bodily sensations.  While this is an attempt to feel better, it’s not a very effective or sustainable strategy.  In fact, it has been linked to self-harm, substance abuse, maintaining PTSD symptoms, OCD, Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder, depression and anxiety.

Let’s look at how experiential avoidance shows up when we try too hard to avoid negative thoughts because of our spiritual beliefs.

Spiritual OCD

OCD is one of the most misunderstood disorders.  It doesn’t necessarily mean that someone is tidy or that they wash their hands compulsively.  There are a variety of obsessions and compulsions that people experience.

When the focus of obsessions or compulsions in OCD is spiritual in nature, it is called Spiritual OCD, Religious OCD, or scrupulosity.

According to Dr. Belinda Seiger, Director of the Anxiety and OCD Treatment Center of Princeton, trying to have purely positive or 100% good thoughts is usually a compulsion seen in scrupulosity.  She states, “Underlying the rituals is a core fear such as going to hell, causing harm to others, attracting evil, or attracting bad karma.”

Dr. Seiger explains how this differs from a normal spiritual or religious belief system: “People with OCD attempt to do the ritual much more often, or try to get it perfectly; and they repeat it over and over until it feels just right or seems perfect.  Furthermore, unlike other people with similar beliefs, they do the ritual to ward off or manage anxiety about the feared consequences of not doing it.”

Do Thoughts Become Things?

For someone with Spiritual OCD, the popular manifestation idea that our thoughts are powerful and magnetic – that our thoughts become things – can lead to significant anxiety.

This idea is actually an example of a cognitive distortion – a pattern of thinking that leads us to have irrational beliefs about the world – called thought-action fusion.

Thought-action fusion is the assumption that thinking about a negative event increases its likelihood of actually happening, and/or that thoughts are equivalent to actions.  Cognitive distortions such as thought-action fusion can turn intrusive, negative thoughts into obsessions.

If your spiritual belief is that your thoughts affect outcomes, don’t worry.  This can be a healthy belief as long as it doesn’t lead to distress, obsessions, or mental compulsions such as trying to “cancel” or “delete” negative thoughts in your mind all day long.

The reality is that we all have intrusive, negative thoughts.  The problem isn’t negative thoughts, but that we give an inflated meaning to thoughts and are then terrified of the consequences of them.  In other words, we need to be careful about overestimating the importance and threat of our thoughts.

Spiritual OCD Treatment

The most widely used treatments for OCD are Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

1. Exposure and Response Prevention

In ERP, you engage in an obsessive thought without performing the compulsive behavior or ritual.  Simply put, you expose yourself to the thought and prevent your usual compulsive response.

For example, in scrupulosity, you might allow negative thoughts to be there without trying to cancel them out or change them to positive thoughts.  Research confirms that the emotional discomfort associated with obsessions goes away on its own and that the compulsion is not necessary.

2. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

ACT is an empirically-validated mindfulness-based therapy that focuses on the process of thinking rather than the product of it.  It encourages an accepting attitude toward thoughts in order to improve psychological flexibility and reduce experiential avoidance.

In ACT, you would work on changing your relationship to thoughts so that you can unhook from them.  This is called defusion.  One example of a thought defusion practice involves imagining that your thoughts are like leaves on a stream or clouds in the sky.  You can see them go by one by one without judging them or trying to engage them.

Will I Lose My Faith if I Treat Spiritual OCD?

According to a study, getting treatment for scrupulosity doesn’t mean that you have to lose your faith.  In my clinical experience, addressing spiritual problems in therapy can actually lead to a deeper faith.

For example, my psychotherapy clients who struggle with scrupulosity and believe in the law of attraction typically retain their spirituality.  During the course of treatment, however, their spirituality starts to look less like mental discipline and internal vigilance and more like peace, self-compassion, and trust in the Divine.

Spiritual OCD and Spiritual Abuse

If you struggle with overthinking positive thinking or worrying about the consequences of your negative thoughts, therapy can help.  If you know someone who is struggling, sensitivity is important.

Unfortunately, many of my clients who struggle with Spiritual OCD and other anxiety disorders have been told by spiritual leaders and communities that the LOA can’t be escaped and that negative thoughts inevitably lead to negative things manifesting in your life.  Not only is this an oversimplified understanding of spiritual teachings, but pushing it on others can also be a form of spiritual abuse.

If you’re a spiritual leader or community member, remember to empower others and give them a sense of agency.  The LOA is a spiritual belief, just like the belief in karma, sin, and hell.  We are free to choose our beliefs and we need to respect other people’s choices.

For those of us who have been harmed by the belief in the LOA, we also need to be careful not to shame people for their beliefs.  Some people feel supported by their belief in the LOA.  If they are trying to spiritually gaslight you or force the belief on you, however, boundaries and maybe even outside help would be in order.

Spiritual Wellness and Mental Health

Here are some simple questions to consider when evaluating the impact that a spiritual belief or practice has on your mental health:

  • Is this belief or practice helpful?
  • Am I worried that if I don’t do this practice just right, something bad will happen?
  • Is this belief or practice making me feel more anxious?
  • Does this belief or practice contribute to my wellbeing, healing, or inner peace?
  • Have I seen positive changes in my life as a result of this belief or practice?

After asking these types of questions, you might discover that a belief in the LOA isn’t for you or that you simply need to take a break from it.  You might even find that it doesn’t impact you in a negative way.  That’s entirely possible, too.  We can interpret the belief in a balanced way (for example, we can believe that the Divine knows our true intentions despite our thoughts and that we attract our heart’s desire) and have a variety of additional spiritual beliefs that invite feelings of peace, trust, support, and safety.

After all, we can’t build an entire spiritual life on one belief alone.  If modern spirituality truly is a buffet, make sure that you fill up on plenty of colorful veggies and, by all means, please don’t skimp on the desert.  Your spirituality can absolutely reflect your complexity.  Your richness.  Your beauty.

Above all, make sure that it isn’t just the sum of your fears.

If you’re interested in healing fears related to manifesting, I created a course called Healing from Negative Manifestation Experiences.

I’d love to hear from you: Do you think that believing in the law of attraction can be helpful, hurtful, or both?

 

*Recommended Reading: Freedom from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Personalized Recovery Program for Living with Uncertainty (Updated Edition) by Jonathan Grayson, Ph.D.

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Thank you so much. Recently, I was starting to worry and obsess over a thought manifesting, specifically a health concern because I remember seeing a video of a really popular and well respected manifestation-content creator saying that she manifested scoliosis. So I believed my thought was going to come true as I had been given it power and allowing it to cause me stress, things she said would only attract it more. My fear has been disrupting my daily life and has become a burden. I don’t believe that it will happen but it just stays in my brain. This article has given me so much clarity and helpful information. (Off Topic). I even shared another one of your other articles on Twitter. Your words are life changing. I now realized that I should seek therapy. What you are doing with your platform is amazing and so incredibly freeing. We are lucky to be able to have this. Thank you so much. Forever Grateful.

I am so happy that you found the article helpful! Thank you for your kind and thoughtful message. I am currently writing a book on the topic and hope to share more soon! I wish you the best and hope you continue to feel free from manifestation fears.

Hi Shorena. Thanks for your question. Any therapist would tell you that unwanted thoughts do not manifest into things, however, I do realize that there are some spiritual/metaphysical books that suggest otherwise. If someone who has OCD chooses to believe in the law of attraction, there are some books and teachers who have an approach that is more sensitive to mental health. One author who comes to mind is Tosha Silver. Her books tend to be balanced, but see what works for you. Some metaphysical books also suggest that your soul protects you from negative thoughts becoming a reality or that positive thoughts are far more powerful than negative ones. It’s good to use discernment and see if a law of attraction book or teacher makes you feel better or worse. If it’s worse, then usually it’s good to take a break from it, try something different, and focus on mental health treatment. In either case, our mental health is important and spiritual/metaphysical beliefs and practices should ideally support it.

A time ago I read the book : the power of the subconscious mind by joseph murphy, this is a bestseller for years now, and its same like ( the secret ) but was written in the 1950 (part of the new thought movement) like napoleon hill etc (think and grow rich). The idea here that you have to think positive, and these thoughts will sink into your subconscious and manifest what you think, so don’t think negative, because the subconscious is only a servant, and will carry out what you think, indifferent to whether it is positive or negative. 

After reading this, I wonder if this is possible or not. I have negative thoughts about sickness and possible accidents that can happen to me, so when I read this example I was thinking can it happen to me. I keep thinking about this horrible example. I formed a thought about it, that is coming back like an obsession. Now I am afraid that negative thoughts etc will sink into my subconscious, and manifest the things don’t want. It’s still confusing me, because I don’t have 100 % certainty that it is all BS… 

What do you think about this?

Hi Roland. Learning about positive thinking and the law of attraction can sometimes trigger more anxiety. If fears around negative thoughts manifesting into things become difficult, people often find it helpful to seek therapy to address the issue. After all, our self-help/spiritual beliefs should help us to feel better, not fill us with fear. Some people also find it helpful to try different self-help/spiritual beliefs and practices to see if they are more supportive. Hope that helps.

I’ve been dealing with OCD since I learned about the law of attraction. It’s better now because my therapist caught it early. She helped me understand that not everything I think will come true and that I’m not responsible for bad things that happen to people just because I have negative thoughts about them. It seems almost silly to me now but at the time I was so scared of my thoughts coming true. I’m just glad I caught it early. An antidepressant and my good therapist helped me. Thanks for spreading the message to others.

Hi Karen, I’m sorry that you had that experience. It’s great that you had a good therapist catch the symptoms early and were able to get help. Thank you for sharing your story. I’m sure that it can inspire others to seek help if they need to.

OMG ! I have to have to thank you for this blog! I have been struggling with the fear that I will manifest my intrusive thoughts while dealing with clinical anxiety! THIS IS A HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF! THANK YOU. More people need to address this. I have barely found Youtube videos about this, so started looking for blogs :) Big hugs to you again.

I’m so glad that you found the blog helpful! The fear of intrusive thoughts isn’t addressed from a mental health perspective in manifestation teachings and it’s such a shame. Thanks you for writing in and I hope that you continue to feel relief!

Loa I have found to be so toxic that I have actually developed ocd becoming obsessed with cancelling out thoughts. My anxiety levels went through the roof and I am now having to get ERP to reverse the damage.

I’m so sorry to hear that, Victoria. It is true that many people have adverse reactions to learning about the law of attraction. One of the most common reactions I see is the development of OCD or an increase in its symptoms. Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP) is a good therapy for OCD and treating any anxiety around negative thoughts. Thanks for sharing your story and I wish you all the best with your healing journey.

Fantastic article. Much needed. Every time we open a youtube video which starts with ‘every thought you think brings your reality close to you’, that works brilliantly with the psyche when we are the ones purposely thinking the thoughts. When thoughts are fed to us, then we start worrying about how we can negate these thoughts and what if they come true because we didnt mean to be thinking them, they are just appearing disobediently in our head! Thanks for this article, it really helped

So glad you found the article helpful Ishan! People rarely talk about positive thinking and the law of attraction from this perspective and it’s a shame. It can be so hard for people to keep hearing the idea that their thoughts create their reality when they have intrusive negative thoughts! Like you said, the belief can be empowering for some people, but very harmful and disempowering for others.

I am very grateful that I found this website .I used to fear that I will manifest everything that I will think. This created a lot of trouble for me and I had to suffer from the anxiety disorder.I am quite encouraged after seeing this blog and hope that you will post similar kind of blogs.Love from India.

Thank you so much for sharing! I’m so glad that you found the information about popular manifesting advice and anxiety helpful. There isn’t enough information about the topic out there, so I will continue to share helpful resources. Hope it provides some relief for you!

Thank you so much for sharing this. I am going through these exact issues. I know the law of attraction is supposed to be inspiring but it has only caused my life hell so far, constantly living in fear that I will manifest an extremely terrifying unwanted thought that keeps haunting me no matter how much I try not to think about it. It’s been a struggle. After reading this I think it’s time to put down the law of attraction book I’ve been reading and take a much needed break.

Hi Ana. Thank you for sharing your story. I’m so happy that you found the post and that it was helpful. Many people are suffering in silence after reading law of attraction books that don’t address this issue. A break from reading the material is often a start to reducing the anxiety. I wish you all the best.