Dear miyoid:

After submitting the post above yesterday, I realized that there is a lot more to the question you brought up: Do “thoughts shape the reality”?

1. Superstitions and OCD: you mentioned “superstitious thoughts“. A superstition is an irrational belief (no evidence to back it up) that an object or an activity can shape reality. An example of believing that an object can shape reality is hanging a horseshoe on the door of one’s house so to attract good luck and wealth. An examples of believing that an action can shape reality is crossing fingers so to attract good luck, or scare away bad luck.

Superstitions are often motivated by fear that in reality, something bad is about to happen. The objects and activities are supposed to protect the person from bad-things-happening aka bad luck (and to make good things happen, aka good luck).

Problem is that Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is about taking superstitions too far. For example, every time a person sees a horseshoe, or imagines it, he or she HAS TO TOUCH IT (or an object that represents it), or touch it in a certain way, or do something with it (ex., turn around 3 times while holding it), otherwise- so it feels- something bad will happen.  As a person who suffered from OCD myself, I remember that when I had a thought of something bad (ex. that my mother will die), I was afraid that the bad thing will happen because I thought it. Therefore, I lived in terror of…my own thoughts.

Superstitions and OCD obsessions, compulsions and rituals do not shape reality in the ways the sufferer fears (ex., my mother did not die), but the fear driving the OCD shapes the reality of the sufferer and of the people around who are affected by the sufferer’s condition.

2. Thoughts and Actions: actions (facial and bodily physical expressions, tone and volume of voice, words articulated, physical actions) when done to another person or in the presence of another person communicate things to the other person, and that communication can shape the reality of that other person. Examples: if I hit someone, the person I hit will feel physical pain. If I yell and articulate abusive words to a person, the person will feel emotional pain.

But thoughts by themselves, when you think them when you are alone, or when you think them but do not communicate them in certain ways to another person-  still have power because overall, our thinking habits do get communicated. For example, if a person is habitually angry, it will show in the person’s face and attitudes, and it will affect some other people’s realities, as well as the angry person’s own reality. Basically, we do affect other people and we do shape reality every day, in some ways.

Key is to FIT our thinking to reality so that there is a match. The greater the fit between my thinking and reality, the better my mental health and the better I affect other people/ shape their reality and mine. Thing to remember though is that another person with a poor fit (between his/ her thinking  and reality) may perceive me not in the way that I am and therefore be affected not by me, but by his/ her distorted view of me.

Does any of this helps you in any way, miyoid?

anita