Posted by noa on March 1, 2003, at 14:58:59
In reply to Re: My literal mind can't grasp this. » Dinah, posted by IsoM on March 1, 2003, at 12:59:36
Yes--I guess my post before might have seemed too dismissive of the idea of thoughts causing feelings. If so, I didn't mean for it to be. I do think that y'all are right about it. For example, as you mentioned--attitude, which makes us have preconcieved anticipatory thoughts--can actually "cause" bad feelings by influencing how we interpret things we encounter. OR better thoughts can act as a screen to prevent the strong negative reactions, etc. You know the old saying to ASS/U/ME makes an ass out of you and me, and I guess there are so many moments in life when we assume things about what people mean, how something will go, whether we'll succeed or fail, etc. So in that way, thoughts most definitly have a strong causal effect.
I guess I am having difficulty with the thoughts causing feelings model because of what I said in previous post about instantaneous brain reactions. I think that especially with people like me who sometimes get flooded with strong feelings, thoughts never even have a chance to get in gear--it is a much more basic physiological reaction that triggers the feelings, and so strong (the flaming amygdala) that the thinking part of the brain cannot get into gear to think and interpret logically. Still, learning to use better thinking can help to manage the flaming amygdala problem.
I guess both can be true.
poster:noa
thread:204842
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20030203/msgs/205058.html