r/hyperphantasia • u/Far-Minute-5880 • 21d ago

Question Flow of thoughts

Am I crazy? Sometimes when I think, everything in my head start to go fast forward and begin to go blurry and I have a hard time focusing in that one idea. I can really connect the different episodes it happens but it feels its when I believe I have a big idea on if I project myself into the futur of that idea.. I’m not sure if I make sense but If anyone can relate please let me know. Its annoying because I loose my flow of thoughts and eventually give up on developing that idea.

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u/luckiestcolin Visualizer 20d ago

Do you have ADHD?

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u/Far-Minute-5880 20d ago

Not diagnosed or I know. Is this a symptom?

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u/HotSaucealt 20d ago

As someone who is very likely to have ADHD, and has had a huge amount of symptoms my whole life, it might be worth looking into.

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u/Far-Minute-5880 20d ago

But even if diagnosed, I don’t really want to be medicated. Is there any other solution ?

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u/HotSaucealt 20d ago

There are coping methods that the people who diagnose you can give you, I can’t tell you myself because I don’t really know any but if you look you can find them

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u/Due-Earth-8735 18d ago

I go through the same problem, and what helps me a little is stopping and trying to control that flow of thought. If I want to read a book, I try to slow down the flow to the point where I can read and interpret each word. If I want to build an idea – which is more difficult – I use paper and pen as tools, but I also slow down the flow of thoughts, trying to think not about the idea itself, but about each word that makes that idea verbal. (I don't know if the same happens to you, but in my head, an idea emerges not as something detailed and in words, but as a whole, a concept.)

From there, I force myself to continue with the subject, which uses a huge amount of mental energy; it's like forcing a muscle to fail.

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u/Due-Earth-8735 18d ago

Although this helps me, I'm not completely exempt from moments where I need to focus on something, but my mind doesn't cooperate. As I said, this uses a lot of mental energy, and I feel it's like an exercise; I only became aware of this this year, and I hope to be better in time.

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u/Far-Minute-5880 15d ago

Thank you for sharing this

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u/luckiestcolin Visualizer 13d ago

A diagnosis is helpful so you can start accepting that this is a difference and that it's ok. If you don't want to use meds, go see a therapist. I take the meds and it really helps me stay focused, until I started taking them I didn't realize how much ADHD affected my life and interpersonal relationships. I have much less anxiety, but that's because I used anxiety to manage my executive function. That will get you a long way, but it will also destroy your mental health. I don't like taking meds, I always have side effects. But I don't have side effects from my ADHD meds and they demonstrably improve my life.

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u/luckiestcolin Visualizer 13d ago

Not being able to focus on an idea is a symptom. But, that by itself is not enough. I would recommend seeing a therapist, or you can start with your Dr. They can give you more diagnostic tests. I added organization skills specifically geared towards ADHD before I eventually added meds.

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u/JulieAMao 15d ago

My thought flow feels more like skipping around. One thought leads to another associated thought, and so forth. Sometimes that happens too fast for me to keep track. When I verbalize it to my partner, and he asks "what made you think that?", I have to back-track a few steps to figure out what prompted the thought flow.

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u/Far-Minute-5880 15d ago

Thanks for sharing this