Part A — Thought process (HOW)
Picture thoughts moving along a road:
- Normal: A → B → C. Logical, and it answers your question.
- Circumstantiality: a long, winding detour — but it eventually arrives.
- Tangentiality: it drives off the road and never comes back to the point.
- Flight of ideas: the car races from topic to topic (often seen when someone's mood is very "high").
- Loosening of associations: the links between ideas break down; it becomes hard to follow.
- Thought blocking: the road suddenly ends — "I was going to say… it's gone."
| Process (the HOW) | What it looks like | Memory hook |
|---|---|---|
| Circumstantial | long detour, but arrives | takes the scenic route |
| Tangential | wanders off, never arrives | leaves the road |
| Flight of ideas | races topic to topic (links visible) | a fast train |
| Loosening | links break down, hard to follow | derailed |
| Thought blocking | flow suddenly stops | "…it's gone" |
Part B — Thought content (WHAT)
Now: what is the person actually thinking about? The big one here is a delusion.
- Suspicion: "I wonder if my neighbour dislikes me." (uncertain — normal)
- Delusion: "My neighbour has installed a machine to control my thoughts." (fixed, unshakeable)
Common flavours: persecutory ("people want to harm me"), grandiose ("I have special powers"), referential ("the TV is talking to me").
The strangest, most important group: losing ownership of your thoughts
Some experiences are about whose thoughts these even are:
- Thought insertion: "Thoughts are being put into my mind from outside."
- Thought withdrawal: "Someone is taking my thoughts away."
- Thought broadcasting: "Other people can hear my thoughts."
| Passivity experience | The feeling |
|---|---|
| Thought insertion | thoughts put in from outside |
| Thought withdrawal | thoughts taken away |
| Thought broadcasting | others can hear my thoughts |
The heart of all three: a disturbed sense of owning and controlling your own mind. These matter a lot when we reach schizophrenia.
A picture for your mind 🚂
- Process = the train's movement (fast, off‑track, stalled).
- Content = the cargo it's carrying (the actual beliefs).
Quick check ✅
- A patient answers only after a long, detailed detour. Which process word?
- "The government put a device in my brain to insert thoughts." Which two thought areas does this touch?
- In one line: delusion vs ordinary suspicion?
Remember this 🌟
Where we're going next → When thought and perception lose touch with reality together, we call it psychosis — Concept 7.