From Intrusive to Oscillating Thoughts

This paper focused on the possibility that intrusive thoughts (ITs) are a form of an evolutionary, adaptive, and complex strategy to prepare for and resolve stressful life events through schema formation. Intrusive thoughts have been studied in relation to individual conditions, such as traumatic stress disorder and obsessive–compulsive disorder. They have also been documented in the average person experiencing everyday stress. In many descriptions of thought intrusion, it is accompanied by thought suppression. Several theories have been put forth to describe ITs, although none provides a satisfactory explanation as to whether ITs are a normal process, a normal process gone astray, or a sign of pathology. There is also no consistent view of the role that thought suppression plays in the process. I propose that thought intrusion and thought suppression may be better understood by examining them together as a complex and adaptive mechanism capable of escalating in times of need. The ability of a biological mechanism to scale up in times of need is one hallmark of a complex and adaptive system. Other hallmarks of complexity, including self-similarity across scales, sensitivity to initial conditions, presence of feedback loops, and system oscillation, are also discussed in this article. Finally, I propose that thought intrusion and thought suppression are better described together as an oscillatory cycle.