can we put “intrusive thoughts” on the ever-crowded shelf of “words the internet can’t use until they learn what they actually mean” please? because it is genuinely INFURIATING to see tiktokkers be like “oop shaved my head, the intrusive thoughts won!!” or “my intrusive thoughts are telling me to call my ex a cunt and tbh they a point”
but then when people talk about intrusive thoughts that involve violence to themselves or others, sexual assault, bigotry, animal cruelty, abuse, or any other genuinely horrifying thing, then suddenly it’s all “omg if you even have that thought you’re disgusting!” and “you wouldn’t think it if you didn’t mean it on some level!” and “ok FINE maybe you can’t help THINKING it but do you HAVE to post about it?” (and i’ve seen that last one commented on videos where people simply mentioned HAVING intrusive thoughts about the topics i just listed. not describing the thoughts in detail or saying what they entailed! just mentioning “i have intrusive thoughts about [x topic]” and suddenly everyone in their comment is jumping down their throat for making them uncomfortable.)
the point of intrusive thoughts is that they are thoughts you do not like, do not want to have, and do not believe in your logical, thinking brain. “swerve into traffic” “you could stab them” “what if you poisoned the coffee you just gave them and somehow repressed the memory” “what if you secretly want to hurt them, so secretly even YOU don’t know it” “what if you ran someone over and didn’t notice” “what if you don’t actually love your mom you’ve just fooled yourself into thinking you’re capable of love but really you’re just faking it”
intrusive thoughts are upsetting, scary, and often objectively ridiculous.
(on a similar note, it is genuinely creepy to realize how many people believe in thoughtcrime, even if they don’t realize it.)