Kingdom of Knuffel

What do you do when you really need to avoid your own thoughts for a while but you don't want to do that by binge-watching, instead something healthier. To be clear, I do go to therapy and I don't avoid my thoughts entirely, I journal them out but after that I don't want to spiral the same bad thoughts over and over all day. I read, write, watch my comfort youtubers but I need more things. It sucks cause even if I have a bath or take a walk, which are healthy activities in themselves, I'm left to my own thoughts while doing them, my brain isn't being filled up by something. And so I find that during those activities where my brain isn't fully occupied, my mental health suffers.

I've found that talking to someone who is completely nonjudgmental of your thoughts helps. A therapist like you have can help. I have a few friends who are also neuro divergent and have anxiety/depression like I do and we have a group chat that we can talk about stuff with zero judgement.

Thank you! I have a group chat with two of my friends where we talk about what we're going through emotionally, and it does help.

No problem! There's also a chat in the life issues section that's just for venting. Most of write whatever and just cover it with a spoiler.

I think I should post more in Life Issues actually, thank you for reminding me of the existence and purpose of that subforum. It would be nice to post about what I'm going through there, when I'm especially in need of support from online friends.

Life Issues area of the chat is a useful tool, yeah.

Personally, my brain is always very active so it's less a matter of trying to get it to quiet down (impossible) as it is occupying it so thoroughly that there's no room for it to hare off somewhere on its ownsome.
Which is also a challenge.

Attempting to learn a new language is a useful method for me, and so is picking up a new form of skill of any other type (I once stumbled over an estate sale where they were selling a laundry basket full of random instruments. I have no idea what that person did while they were alive, but I bargained the sellers down to a price I could afford, took them all home, and have been slowly turning the neighbors deaf with caterwauling as I try them all out).
Puzzles and riddles and games are also sometimes useful.

None of this is actually avoiding my own thoughts, though, it's just trying to direct them down specific channels.

Also, I regulate my moods via the books I read (and I read a lot, because frankly I'm a mess). Because, for whatever reason, I tend to be easily emotionally influenced by books, if I find ones that evoke certain emotions in me, I can revisit the book to bring back that specific mood.
If I've reread a book often enough, sometimes I can even shortcut the process by going straight to the specific chapter, or even passage, that did it for me, and just rereading that.
I tend to gravitate towards young-adult novels, as with some obvious exceptions they tend to be more optimistic in their worldview, and be self-empowering (coming-of-age is all about finding one's own power, after all, so it's a good one to reach for when I feel powerless).

Anyhow, that's how I try to cope with life. Maybe it can be of some help to you.

I paint or draw. I wish I could call it a hobby but it's 100% my job these days. Marketing is hard and discouraging but my friend just recently commissioned me for the fools card from tarot. She owns like five ferrets so the fool in the illustration is a ferret lol.

That sounds like it will be an interesting deck when it's done. Is she getting a different artist for every card?

@Akili Li Those are great tips. I am studying Korean, and that's helping, especially with the cognitive decline/dysfunction that accompanies depression. I'm going to Kathak classes but it's only eight classes and I'll have to look into something more regular. But it is interesting in that it's given me something new for my brain to chew on re: rhythm. My usual workout, twice a week, is poledancing, and that works wonderfully because there's no space for thoughts, I have to focus on what each part of my body is doing.

For a long time I couldn't read at all because the trigger for this spiral was losing a dream job in the literary arts, but I'm getting better now and I'm able to read. It ebbs and flows a little, though, and while it's not the joyous activity it used to be, choosing books based on the mood I want to evoke is such a smart idea and definitely doable for me. Do you have a goodreads, storygraph or something similar where you recommend or record your reading? I would love to get book recs from you.

@Outline the fool card being a ferret reminds me of the Hush Tarot! I have this deck, I love tarot and I collect decks (although I can't afford many of them). I'd love to see your art of the card once it's done.

Listening to music? Playing games? (I know of one I find fun and it's free, but limited and on browser, kingdom of loathing....unless they changed it)