# thinking in the 3rd person???



## kev (Jan 28, 2005)

That's really weird, isn't it? Sometimes I find myself doing it. I was just wondering if I was alone on this. If I am, it's okay. I already know I'm insane so it won't be a shock or anything. :lol


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## colonelpoop (Jun 18, 2008)

You're definitely alone on this one.


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## kev (Jan 28, 2005)

Lol, thanks for your reassurance, colonel.

Let me be clearer, I'm hoping to draw some more people in: very often (like most people with SA) I think about what other people are thinking about me. So when I think about what they're thinking about me, I'll say to myself (often aloud, if I'm alone): "oh, he's not doing so well" for example. So it makes a little more sense if you imagine someone else saying it. But I'm obsessive about it. I find myself doing it all the time and when I'm alone I say it aloud. It almost to the point where it makes up the majority of my inner dialogue, especially if I am alone. So if anyone saw me on camera, they would likely think I was out of mind (and maybe rightfully so).

Some people have got to do that, right? It seems almost natural to me. Maybe it is a way of distancing myself from my emotions, or maybe it is just a compulsion, or maybe I am just nuts.

I realize even if other people do this, it's not the sort of thing most people would want to admit. So I'm not exactly expecting many replies.


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## kennyrich (Jul 24, 2008)

Hey Kev,

I do this one all the time. Albeit just a little bit differently. Here how: When I'm alone, in my mind, I start seeing myself as someone would see me if they were watching me on TV. It becomes almost like my life is sitcom and I'm being watched by the world, cept the difference is this: I am in the heads of everyone watching me. So if I trip while walking in a mall, I dont feel embarrased because I tripped, I feel embarassed because I'm thinking of myself as an idiot like all the people who must have just seen me.

I know it's crazy (and might not make sense), but it's how my mind operates. It's like I have no concept of myself, just the opinions of everyone around me. Weird, yes, but I figured I should share.


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## nu shoez (Dec 13, 2006)

i must say i really only think this way if i've just read a book, then i'll think like this for a couple days or so, it's really verrrrrrrrrrry dorky. It'll be like my own little narrative such as: "As she brushed the lipgloss on her lips, she looked in the mirror for the umpteenth time sweeping a strand out of her eye. She was depressed that she had to go to work for 8 hours that day knowing it was going to be a busy day. She sighed, took out her keys, and started her car..." so on and so forth....lol.


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## katelyn (Jul 11, 2006)

blah8705 said:


> i must say i really only think this way if i've just read a book, then i'll think like this for a couple days or so, it's really verrrrrrrrrrry dorky. It'll be like my own little narrative such as: "As she brushed the lipgloss on her lips, she looked in the mirror for the umpteenth time sweeping a strand out of her eye. She was depressed that she had to go to work for 8 hours that day knowing it was going to be a busy day. She sighed, took out her keys, and started her car..." so on and so forth....lol.


Wow, this exact thing happens to me too! I thought I was weird for doing this, it's so nice to know it happens to someone else too. At least we might be good at writing because of this :lol


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## briabrow (Jan 24, 2008)

I do this, too. I think people say things about me and I imagine of the things they might say in 3rd person, "like, wow she's crazy" or something along those lines and I do this quite frequently..Im so hard on myself, but I cant help it..I just do it.


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## jellyfish (Jul 3, 2008)

I read this thread before, and thought, "This is silly. I don't do this." But since reading it, I've caught myself thinking this way. I suspect I've been doing it all along and just hadn't noticed. :um


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## Slim Shady (Jun 24, 2008)

Happens to me too. Somewhat like kennyrich described.


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## whatev133 (Aug 9, 2008)

I do this all the time. It's one of those things that I'll do throughout the day and not even realize that I'm doing it.


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## Eilicea (Jun 15, 2008)

I do this on occasion. But I also write. :lol


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## Mr. Orange (Apr 20, 2008)

colonelpoop said:


> You're definitely alone on this one.


Good call...just for future reference, just because you don't do something, doesn't mean no one else does it.

And to the OP...I do it sometimes myself.


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## Snickersnack (Jun 21, 2008)

Yeah, I do it fairly often. I used to worry I was becoming schizophrenic, because I thought only cartoon characters thought in third person (in cloud-shaped thought baloons). I worried about a lot of stupid crap back then.


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## kev (Jan 28, 2005)

Man, I thought I was right. I knew I wasn't alone. :lol 

People are crazy.


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## emandem (Sep 2, 2007)

I do do that thing, where I think of myself as some book character, like blah said . Its really stupid. I also hold conversations in my head where i 'play' the part of both me and another person... crazy
But not too often


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## Squizzy (Dec 21, 2004)

I refer to myself as "we" a lot in my head. I'm not sure why. Sometimes I'll think, "we better pick up this mess" when I'm just reffering to myself. I have been doing this all my life and a few years ago I noticed it and wondered who in the world "we" was exactly. I don't have multiple personalities or anything :um


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## R (Jun 13, 2006)

I don't but it sounds more like a habit then cazyness


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## pita (Jan 17, 2004)

When I was a kid I couldn't stop narrating my life. As I've gotten older, I don't have so much of that nonstop "chatter" in my head anymore.


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## aniakbaker (May 16, 2011)

i feel this way too, differently however. I will assess whats going on in my life, ill point it out to myself then allow it to influence my choices. i can do this in a matter of moments or ponder at length for several hours, no real set time. this is very useful as i find it, but i do have Social Anxiety which can take over my thinking quality, bias it, then turn my life and mentality upside down. i do have an anger management counselor and in our first session i brought this up and we've been talking about it for several months now. i have the AM for the fact that i DO over-assess my situation and it drives me crazy to think whats going on, ill think "why am i in this" "this is going to go well, he cant do anything to me" "what if he has a weapon" etc. this makes me think something is wrong with me so i lash out to get the thoughts out of my head. but the third person mentality can help me in certain situations, for example i never need to study for exams because its like i have 2 memories. or if i need to make a decision with my girlfriend who is the most important person in my life, i can think things over without becoming obsessive, aggressive, or compulsive. either way im thankful and hate it so im kinda stuck with it and makes me feel like i dont belong anywhere. anyone feel this way?


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## rainbowOne (Sep 26, 2010)

I tend to speak in the 2nd person in my head.


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## ifeelcrazy (Jun 14, 2012)

*words songs conversations repeating in my head*

I am finding that I feel like Im loosing it completely and really hope that someone can come back to me with this if anyone suffers with any of these symptoms too.
I have just been out walking and my thought patterns are just frightening me. I too am thinking in 2nd and 3rd person. Like 'you should be walking in this direction' and 'she has a mental health problem'. Im constantly imagining conversations between people. But its obsessive like I cant really control it. I also have earworm or musical imagery repitition which is where songs repeat in your head without your control.
The music thing started up a year ago and when it started i remember crying because i knew it wouldnt go away and hasnt since. The conversations in my mind and strange distanced thinking has started within the past 6-7 months. I am trying to recover from alcoholism and am unsure if this has anything to do with it. Im frightened of drinking again but that doesnt stop me. Everytime I drink my mental state gets worse and worse. Please can someone tell me what is going on. Thanks.


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