"Extinction Burst"

[Charmbracelet81]

Ok, so I had a phone session between regular sessions with my therapist about my intense attack of losing my mind out of nowhere, and she said since my heart fear went waaayyy down and I am not letting the lung fear get as intense as the heart one (ie, going to Dr.. over and over ect.) and in general I have felt so much better, so out of nowhere, I had the thoughts that anxiety is gone and now I have alzheimers/demensia, ect. and my therapist says there is a phase called "extinction burst" where my old behaviors to the thoughts start becoming "re-trained" and that this means I am improving.
She says, it's like if a rat is used to pushing a certain button and receiving food then all of a sudden they push the button and no food comes, the rat becomes temporarily highly distressed; this is what I went through.
I told her that while I didn't want to search for reassurance, I did need answers for this one since it was so new and literally out of nowhere.
So, although very uncomfortable, I am glad that this really can be good as far as my treatment goes.
What do you guys think? Has anyone heard of the "extinction burst"?

[forwells]

Hi Charm :D

It sort of makes sence .

See as we recover we also go though a stage which i called a feeling strange from feeling normal .

I guess because we have had so much worry on our minds for so long we feel that it is a strange thing to have no chatter going on in the back ground .

I am not sure if this is what you have or in fact you have just moved on from one fear to the next . Do you find yourself still question weather or not it is something else or is it just a strange feeling going on .

I guess that as i have always said anxiety is a addiction and as with all addiction once that thing is stopped you will always feel a loss at it not being there . It could be as simply as this and as long as you tell yourself that is all it is then it with fade over time .

cheers kev :D

[Itzomi]

I guess the mind needs to find another way to occupy itself, and since it's been trained to focus on the negative, that's where it wants to go next. Kind of like someone who gives up cigarettes, then finds herself indulging in food.

Interesting, though, about the mind being distressed during the healing process. Good to know!

[Charmbracelet81]

Kev,
yes, you are exactly right! I don't feel as though I have a new issue, I just feel "strange." Can't really describe it. Not like panicky, but just strange.

Itzomi,
I never would have thought this about our minds either, but it does make sence. Like it's weaning off the anxiety LOL