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random thoughts and music repeating over in my mind

Hi, i keep hearing random thoughts that dont make any sense things what i have seen on tv or read in the newspaper, things what people have said to me. The last song i listen to sticks in my head and plays for hours and hours, i feel weird and really different i get paronoid when im talking to people. and im not liking it at all. i keep thinking that im losing my mind so to speak.
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Avatar universal
I hadn't checked this site for awhile but an email was sent to me by someone else, which prompted me to follow up.  Following is my response, which includes your suggestion...which I will pass on to my friend also: I saw the wife of the person I had written about yesterday to catch up.  A few more details of his journey....He was basically given a diagnosis of OCD, which I see is common of others who have posted. He was given fairly large doses of Ativan, which helped to stop the repeating thoughts, but he had a terrible reaction to the medication, to the point where he could hardly walk, so he had to stop it.  He went to various doctors, even going to the Mayo clinic, where he was told some doctors do a surgery on the brain for this, but he wasn't a candidate due to his age (upper 70s).  They did suggest two other meds to try, one of which has been working...Anafranil (I don't know the name of the other).  He started on a very low dose, due to the side effects of the previous medication, and whatever dosage he's taking now seems to be a sweet spot for him....helping the problem without causing more.  He also takes a very low dosage of Ativan at night now, which he seems to tolerate.  He used to keep music playing in his ears with earphones to try to override the repeating thoughts, but he doesn't need to use them anymore.  His wife says she doesn't know for sure if the medication is working, or if God got tired of her begging for healing so often that He finally did so. :)  At any rate, he is doing better, so there is hope.  The answer is possibly getting just the right dosage of just the right medication for your body.  In case you didn't see, someone also posted that inositol powder (a kind of vitamin B) has worked for them, so it may be worth trying.  Don't give up!
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1 Comments
ı have the same problem.İt is driving me insane.What dose is he taking?
Avatar universal
I have the same thing.  Im also bi-polar, I don't know if that has anything to do with it. I have sentences or song lyrics play over and over. I didn't fall asleep for 12 hours the other night because of it. I feel like I'm losing my mind as well. Ive been this way along time. I can't work, haven't been able to in years. I need help, with disability at least.  Im already in meds. I don't know what to do anymore.
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Avatar universal
I forgot to include ocd is related to brain inflammation, maybe findings a substance that reduces inflammation could work ? It’s all guess work at the moment. If ppl want to connect to find a solution that will be amazing.
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Avatar universal
I recently too a stimulant to help keep me awake to do some work. During that night  I woke up in with extreme anxiety, my head And neck was tense including racing thoughts, it felt like my subconscious mind had entered my conscious mind. I have never experienced anything like that. It was like my mind was trying to connect dots that never existed.it was the scariest couple of months for me. The intrusive thoughts have for the majority have disappeared  except for when I am going to sleep. I don’t feel like I’m getting deep sleep like used to anymore, I used to sleep like a baby. Now I just can hear my subconscious entering just before I go to sleep and it won’t shut up. A few weeks later I started hearing intrusive music, I love music I had “ear worms” because I used to enjoy them but not like this. It’s like little segment of lyric stuck on repeating it’s not enjoyable. For the majority of the time I try to ignore it. Lately it has silent been playing in the background. I’m really getting anxious that I will have this forever . I feel like the stimulant pushed my anxiety past a line that I’m not sure my mind can return from. Overall, it looks like my mind is improving day by day I hope it keeps improving. I was think of taking high CBD doseage to slow My subconscious mind from racing, I don’t know if that is a good idea yet. I read some where that depression/anxiety can lead to ocd like symptoms. It’s called “pure-o” a form of ocd with the compulsions. Apparently if you end up getting ocd with depression/anxiety it’s unlikely it will disappear for ever. It can reappear if you end up getting very depressed/anxious again. Take ever advice with a grain of salt. I will go to my local doctor to ask to be referred to a psychiatrist. I hope there is a solution. Good luck to everyone suffering.
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Avatar universal
Has this gotten better for you? I’m going through it now and am miserable
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Avatar universal
I have this and can't stand it anymore.Did you find a solution?
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Avatar universal
The simple solution to this problem is that you stop listening to those songs that repeat in your mind constantly. Its the era of commercialization and musicians know what kind of song will keep everyone possessed. They want more sale of their music and make money. Believe me, you will be free!
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Avatar universal
I do have numerous repeated thoughts in my mind all day long. It can often be a song that I think of out of nowhere. It can also be negative thoughts. However, I have never had this interfere or influence my speech. If you're suddenly verbally repeating things like the previous comment says I highly recommend seeing a doctor. There are times I think I hear someone talking (words not understood) but I think it is because my hearing is very good and I may hear a tv elsewhere in the house.

Basically, my mind races.
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12902694 tn?1427722405
Hi. I am under the influence of the same condition, the recurring thoughts, but with a little more challenging perception attached to it: that other people can hear my thoughts and these thoughts make them uncomfortable and/or damage my relationship with them. My mind constantly drives me away from facing other people by accompanying words to their names and creating (usually two worded) associations. At the same time I seem to hear lots of other thoughts on my mind with other people's voices etc, a part of my perception which seemed to have eased my mind a little with the use of Depakine and Risperdal. Still, I can't seem to overcome these two word associations, usually a word and a person's name. I repeat and repeat the words over and over maybe 10s 100s times a day. I constantly feel the urge to either watch movies recurrently, or work on something interesting, a paper or so (that could at the same time answer the thoughts in my mind etc.) Does anyone have the same symptoms, and has anyone have developed a solution for it?
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Avatar universal
Hello!
I also have those exact problems! I got goosebumps reading your description because the mirror thing especially, is what happens to me and it has been happening to me since I was about 9 when my parents got divorced. It's nice to know I'm not the only one!

Thank for sharing
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Avatar universal
I have the same thing. I find that taking inositol powder (it's a kind of vitamin B) every day helps with this and also with OCD in general. I take about one heaping tablespoon of inositol powder in my oatmeal every morning (I use Jarrow but have also used NOW). It has a pleasantly sweet taste, so you can use it in tea or anything you like. If you google Inositol you will see that one can take this large of an amount with no side effects. You have to give it a chance to work. I think that when I first started taking it, it may have been 3 weeks to a month before it started working. It's a relief, and if I ever get out of the habit of taking the inositol, the repeated music/words come back (and the OCD behavior as well). I'm NOT a doctor. Good luck to you all and let us all know if the Inositol works for you, too.
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Avatar universal
Hi. I have the same thing going on...I also have difficulty sleeping and i wake up all hours of the night i think it is because we have a lot on our minds and also not getting a restful sleep try taking melatonin it might relax your mind..
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2098326 tn?1333326364
I have experienced this the doctor says i am hearing voices i kept on hearing a phrase say to me "an erection can occur through positive emotions such as excitement the smell" over and over again which didn't make any sense it was a load of mambo jumbo. The music that got stuck in my head was the spongebob squarepants theme tune. i was very confused and i wondered what was wrong now i am in supportive housing for people with mental health problems or learning disabilities and doc has put me on aripiprazole a medication. But i did have depression in my past which don't help me at all.
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Avatar universal
I have had these exact same problems. I have been frusterated many a night with random song lyrics or jingles from commercials endlessly repeating in my head when i'm trying to sleep and even when I am awake. I have recently had the worst batch of these "repetitions" last week (2-5 thru 2-10) with five nights in a row where i did not get any sleep due to these thoughts. I got some sort of rest, but it was not proper sleep and I felt really exhausted and frusterated by day five. I literally lay in my bed with my mind racing, unable to shut it up, exhausted because I cannot sleep. It is extremely frusterating.

It only seems to happen to me on nights where I have something important to do the next day. Never happens friday night!!! EVER.... This "repetition" almost always happens the night before a job interview, or before my first day at a new job, or my first day at school, or anything important. Which is always when you need a good night's sleep the most.......

I tend to agree with the idea that this "repetition" my be some sort of screensaver mode your mind goes into to keep busy. I have a lot of repetition in my daily life, I spend as much time as I can at a computer. Playing games, or watching movies. In the last few years, I have not really challanged my mind too much on a daily basis... I would not be surprised to hear that my mind has created this "repetition" to keep itself busy. I believe the solution for me, may be, to have as little repetition as possible in my life. But I'm not sure if I can break out of my old habits......

I also wonder if this lack of mental challange has played a role in my memory going down the tubes like it has. I'm 27 and my memory is terrible.

I would just like to add - I have tried every sleeping pill I can get my hands on, and nothing has worked. Well, alcohol has worked.... but that has it's own set of demons, and I can't afford to be hungover every day..... So I solder on, in the hopes that there is an answer out there somewhere.....
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1 Comments
I cant sleep for 12 hours because of the lyrics or just random sentences that make no sense. I haven't been able to work in 9 years and im on plenty if meds that only worked for a little while. My bi polar has always been bad, and sometimes I feel like I'm gonna crawl out of my own skin.  Sometimes I wish I could just die. My memory is terrible too, alcohol has helped me some. But I agree it has its own demons. I can't handle this anymore.  I wish there was a specific diagnosis for this!
Avatar universal
I have had these symptoms for a while and have no idea how to stop them.  I just try to ignore them and I seem to function well by doing so.  It can be very frustrating sometimes much like putting up with a constant winging child in your head.

Through personal experience I have come to realise that the actual quality and content of these constant random thoughts is irrelevant.  Some people will advise you to delve into the nature of these thoughts and deal with a hidden source or driver.  To me this is just plain quackery.  Would you diagnose an interference problem with tv reception by studying the fuzzy pictures? (I hope that analogy works)

Has anyone who has experienced this problem found a way to stop it?  
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Avatar universal
i have this problem. I have for about 8 years. it began after they took me off prozac due to wierd reactions and physical problems while on it...odd...prozac was good,,,then awful...terrrifying...then the weekly was ok...then it got bad and eventually I could not walk. Anyway I have tried antipsychotics...crap...sometimes ativan helps...pain is in my mouth too. I can't get help either and I don't appreciate the doctor's comment because a doctor made me sick giving me medicine...dropping me when i went bad on it...and doctors have not been helpful.
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Avatar universal
I'm no neurologist, but my guess is that this random phrase repetition is going on constantly in the brain as different neurons are fired. Some people can actually hear it however when certain "wires" get crossed somewhere.

I get these symptoms a lot myself, particularly when I've just woken up. It's like I "catch" my brain doing it's sorting algorithms, and the feeling I get is that it's trying to figure out if certain random thoughts make any sense when paired together. Sometimes the thoughts are so silly, I just laught out loud in the morning or after a nap.

My guess is that it's a type of attention deficit disorder, resulting from too much screen time, or repetition of daily tasks. When a person is bombarded with too much repetition, the brain eventually goes into a kind of screensaver mode, where it just keeps itself busy with pointless tasks, ie. connecting random thoughts. Repetition is something that humans have used to brainwash people for milenia. Eventually, after so much repetition the brain goes passive and accepts all external suggestions. Advertisers use this technique deliberately to get us to buy, buy, buy. Religions as well when they're trying to convince us of something "unbelievable".

Combine repetition with the constant bombardment of bad, worse, and horrible news we're subjected to from day to day, and it's no wonder the brain goes into "screensaver" mode now and then.

My advice is to limit your screen time, or eliminate it altogether. Take up a hobby instead. Do something that engages your critical thinking skills, puzzles, art, poetry, creative writing, acting classes, music lessons, or just plain reading. Pick up a science book, learn a new language, refresh yourself on history, study psychology. The more your deliberately using your own mind, the fewer of these external influences will be able to do your thinking for you. And the less you'll be so stressed out you'll wake up to hearing your brain frantically connecting dots that make no sense at all.

As I said, I'm not doctor, but I've thought a lot about these things and that's my theory. Good luck.
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Avatar universal
It's okay to think strange thoughts and be frightened by stuff  you're not used to.  These things happen.  See, the human psyche is a complex thing and it takes a professional to deal with it.  So, look and see can you find a group of psychiatrists and psychologists in your area, and make an appointment to see one, so they can help unravel all this stuff for you, and they can also diminish the fears you have over the loss of a dear friend.  They may even want to prescribe a mild tranquilizer as you talk through this thing, might take a couple months to straighten it out.  

Visiting a psych doc is really no different from visiting a regular doc, it's just they work on the human mind, which as anybody knows can play funny tricks on a person, practically no one in the world goes around without unusual thoughts every now and then.  The trick is when they overwhelm a person, you need help in letting it all go, and it takes a mental health doctor to help you do this.  I DO think that lack of good sleep is not helping your situation, which is common with people who have disturbing thoughts, and as you work with the psych doc, and you begin to get a grip on what has happened, your sleep will improve, and thus the mental annoyances you are experiences will also lessen.

On the mirror thing, for some reason they DO intensify anxiety in an already pretty frightened person.  Just take some deep breaths if you get that strange feeling around them, and turn on some extra lights, or if there's only a ceiling fixture, put a brighter bulb in there.
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Avatar universal
This is me to a T! My mind gets caught on a phrase and plays it on repeat. If I'm underslept or stressed it's more sever. This is the first time I've heard of it happening to someone else... I know that suffers of OCD often have distressing thought loops, but the phrases I end up repeating in my head aren't usually horrible - the aren't usually anything, there doesn't seem to be a pattern.

I also have what seem to be intrusive thoughts, of a very specific genre... if I'm waiting for someone and they are late, I can't help but imagine that terrible things have happened to them. The images in my mind are very vivid and very distressing. I don't think I used to have these thoughts before I lost someone close to me a few years ago, so I guess it makes sense that there would be a link there. But is this a normal part of mourning? It makes me feel deeply unsettled. I know that horrible things really can happen to anyone at any time, but everyone knows that... how do I find a way of not being paralysed by that knowledge now that it has been made real in my life?

I'm also scared of looking in mirrors when it's dark... I'm scared that my face isn't going to be me, or that someone (specifically, someone dead, or a ghost - I don't believe in ghosts, but that doesn't make any difference!) is going to be behind me. This also only started with the death of my friend, and the correlation seems obvious, but that was a couple of years ago now, so I'm wondering if it will go away?

I wonder if the repeating thoughts are related to the intrusive thoughts and the fear of mirrors?

Writing this down makes me realise that I should probably be seeing someone or something... hmmm...

Would love any imput. Sorry this is a bit heavy.
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Avatar universal
Ash,
I posted over in the other thread on this issue.  Forgot to mention that could be if a neuro could hook you up to a brain wave machine and see where that activity is coming from, might be a way to figure it out.  Also, look up online what parts of the brain do the music for us.  And could be that all this is coming from a lack of good deep sleep or REM sleep, which a sleep test could check out.
GG
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1 Comments
Has this gotten any better for you?
Avatar universal
I posted this on another page:

I recently have not been able to stop repeating music/lyrics in my head. Whenever I wake up, I'll notice I am still repeating certain songs/lyrics before I even get my first thought in. I have also realized that at the same time that this has happened, I have developed symptoms of OCD. Is it possible that this inability for us to stop repeating music OCD? Because it certainly isn't getting a song stuck in your head, I used to have that and be normal, this is something much more severe. I mean, waking up in the middle of the night and still repeating music? Come on, thats strange...any info much appreciated.

Does this sound like what your friend might have? Thanks.
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This is me right now and I’m depressed do to it. I just want to know if it has gotten better because I need some advice, please respond thanks.
Avatar universal
Hi,

How are you?
These symptoms could be due to anxiety, stress, sleep deprivation or depression. Please try and focus on your work and do not pay too much attention to these symptoms. Hopefully these symptoms will resolve by themselves.
Breathing exercises and meditation will also help. Take care!
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Avatar universal
I have a friend who has been suffering with this same thing.  It's been happening about 3 years now.  He's gone to just about every kind of doctor possible to check everything from his brain to his heart, and nothing unusual has been found.  Taking an antidepressant actually helped a fair amount, but he had terrible side effects from them and had to discontinue taking them.  He has also gone to a holistic nutritionist, who sent hair and saliva samples somewhere to be checked.  These tests indicated extremely high levels of toxic chemicals in his body, probably from years and years of contact with items in his construction job.  He has been placed on various natural detox "pills" and was told it could take up to a year before he notices improvement.  It's been 3 months now, and he's actually worse...not knowing if he has to get worse before he gets better.  The only thing that allows him to be able to keep his sanity is to listen to music on an ipod almost constantly.  He does seem to be able to override it when he's having a conversation with people.  If anyone has ANY help for this, please respond.  He also feels like he's losing his mind!
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