Racing thoughts
A flood of fast, hard-to-slow thoughts.
Racing thoughts are thoughts arriving faster than you can finish them — several streams at once, none of them reaching an end. It is a private experience. Nobody can see it, and a clinician only finds out by asking.
In bipolar disorder they show up in hypomania and mania, and in mixed states too, where they arrive with low mood instead of a high. That is an exhausting combination. They are not unique to bipolar either — anxiety and depression produce them as well.
They are often confused with flight of ideas, which is the part other people can hear: the jumping from topic to topic in speech. You can have racing thoughts without it. At night they are usually what is actually keeping you awake, which is why many people find that writing them down helps more than lying there trying to sleep.
See also
If you’re in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, you’re not alone and help is available right now. In the US & Canada call or text 988. In the UK & Ireland call 116 123 (Samaritans). Elsewhere, contact your local emergency services — Get Help Now lists lines by country.
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