
So let’s take an example and look at how confused thoughts could play out, pending the mental health issue.Ī woman is getting married, and finds out her dress is going to be ready the morning of the wedding instead of the day before. Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that involves psychosis, but can also include things like depression, social difficulties, and unpredictable behaviours. Psychosis is a mental health symptom that can involve confused thinking, delusions (beliefs things are real that aren’t, like thinking you have special powers or someone is spying on you) and hallucinations (sensing things that aren’t actually there, such as hearing voices). Have you also seen, heard, or felt things that other people say aren’t true, either?.Has someone told you that what you think is not at all true?.Are you worried someone is out to get you? Or think you have special powers?.Have your thoughts made you want to avoid other people more?.Or you can’t seem to speak clearly anymore?.Do you find your thoughts are so strange and jumbled you aren’t sure they are your own?.For example, if you have an intrusive thought that someone you love will be murdered in a horrific way, you can feel you have to tap everything you pass twice to stop this from happening. They often then lead to ‘compulsions’, where you feel compelled to do something. Then you have to think or do something to ‘fix’ the fact you had that thought?Īlso called ‘ intrusive thoughts’, obsessive thoughts are often of things you feel ashamed to think about.Do dark, twisted, or even sexual and violent things seem to jump into your mind from nowhere?.

Your disorganised thinking can be caused by depression. Are there are also thoughts against yourself? Putting you down?.And the thoughts you are having are very negative, doom and gloom?.Feel spacey and exhausted, as if your head is filled with sand?.But in general, anxious thoughts are not impossible or ‘unreal’, just unlikely and ‘worst case scenario’. It can seem close to delusions as your thoughts might start to be quite illogic. Are your thoughts mostly about a possible terrible future?Īnxiety is when our mind engages in negative, future-based thought loops.Solve one problem, only to start to have negative thoughts about something else?.If someone helps you with the problem, and a solution is found, then your thoughts should return to normal. There are several things that can cause confused thinking, including a head injury, infection, a reaction to medication, and of course things like recreational drugs, alcohol abuse, or not sleeping for several days.

What are confused thoughts a symptom of?įirst and foremost check that it’s not a physical health issue, particularly if it comes with other medical symptoms. Research from the University of California, for example, found that those with schizophrenia have an impaired ability to relate their memories to themselves.

You might find it hard to have a clear enough line of thought to make a decision, struggle to speak and socialise, or start acting in ways that aren’t usual for you.Īt it’s extreme, confused thinking leads to a break from reality, where you believe things to be real that actually aren’t, and you aren’t sure who you are. When disorganised thoughts are part of a mental health issue, they start to adversely affect your daily life. If you recognise that your strange or confused thoughts are just thoughts, and if they don’t affect your identity or ability to cope, then it’s not likely an issue. Research now shows that confusion is, for example, part of the brain’s way of learning. We all at some point have an overly busy mind. Do you have confused thoughts lately? Worried about what it might mean for your mental health? What is confused thinking?
