Paranoid Thoughts Taking Up Your Day? How To Stop Paranoia And Anxiety

Medically reviewed by Melissa Guarnaccia, LCSW

Updated March 13, 2024by BetterHelp Editorial Team

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Are you experiencing paranoid feelings or thoughts and are wondering how to stop them from affecting your daily life? If so, you’re not alone. Many people experience some form of feeling paranoiad or suspicious at some point in life. Some researchers believe that paranoia is an evolutionary trait that arose from the pressures of social interactions to survive in an unpredictable environment. Thus, paranoid thought might be seen as a human characteristic that serves to defend us from threat and other forms of imminent danger. However, when paranoia starts to take over a person’s entire thought process, it can lead to emotional and neurological challenges.

Below, we’ll explore paranoia, anxious thought, and tools to help you skillfully manage challenging thoughts and emotions.

Anxiety and paranoid thoughts

Anxiety is something that most people experience at one time or another. It can sometimes be a natural response to normal, everyday situations. Fear and worry, along with paranoid thoughts, may serve as survival traits; if we do not perceive stressful situations or danger and respond with fear or concern, we are probably much less likely to avoid it.

However, paranoia can be an extreme form of anxious thought that focuses on the perception that other people have malintent focused in their direction. However, you can learn how to stop irrational thoughts, paranoia, and anxiety with the right tools.

How to stop anxiety and paranoia

Sometimes paranoia can become challenging to the point that it interrupts your physical health and mental wellbeing. The following suggestions may help you work through the moments that you notice that paranoid thoughts are affecting your ability to function with ease.

Breathe

One of the first lines of defense in the management of paranoid thinking patterns might be to breathe. Deep breathing can serve as a highly effective relaxation technique for anxiety attacks, stress, and other mental illnesses. You can practice deep breathing anywhere and at any time regardless of if you feel suspicious or have paranoia symptoms. It can be performed alone or in combination with other types of relaxation techniques, such as meditation or aromatherapy. Deep breathing exercises are often best practiced while you’re sitting up in a straight posture where you can take slow, cleansing, deep breaths.

You may find that deep-breathing exercises and meditation can help slow down any racing thoughts you’re experiencing and reduce stress. This may help you feel more capable of thinking clearly and rationally about what is causing your fear and anxiety.

Ask questions

Once you have calmed your breath and your mind to the point where you can think clearly, you might ask yourself if you are reacting rationally or in a way that is helpful. Is what you are facing insurmountable? Is this something you can deal with, small step by small step? Is there someone you can ask for help? These questions may help you determine if you are thinking reasonably or if your emotions are getting the better of you.

If you can, consider also asking these questions to someone else. Peer support groups, a best friend or a family member may be able to help you understand that your paranoid concern is not really happening. Saying it out loud may help you to see possible misperceptions, which may, in turn, reduce your anxiety.

Plan

You may benefit from planning and figuring out what will be most helpful for you when you start to sense paranoid thoughts emerging. Symptoms of anxiety may suddenly present themselves instead of slowly emerging. If you spend time creating a plan of action ahead of time, you may be able to have tools ready to manage the paranoid thoughts and even release them from your consciousness.

Developing a plan of action that helps disrupt the pattern of thinking might involve anything that you find helpful or anxiety-reducing. For example, calling a friend that you trust, making fun of the situation, making a detailed to-do list, or taking a walk around the block may reduce intrusive thoughts.

You might include several strategies in your plan in case one is not enough. Sometimes, simply knowing that you have a plan of action that you can utilize when symptoms arise may help you get to a place of calm.

Strategies for management of paranoid thinking

Paranoia can be similar to anxiety, but with some possible differences. People experiencing anxiety are often irrationally worried about things that are likely to happen, but people experiencing paranoia are often worried about things that are unlikely to happen. For example, they may create false conclusions about others intentions, worrying that others are going to hurt them or frame them for a crime.

It is common to have general concerns in life, but when they get in the way of your daily functioning, it can become problematic or be symptomatic of a mental illness. When you start to worry excessively, you can try a few strategies to keep paranoia from taking over your life.

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Recognize the "what-if" game

Many people play a game called the what-if game in their minds, possibly without knowing it. It occurs when you worry about a situation in the future, something that has not happened. Instead of visualizing yourself succeeding or having a positive outcome, you may start to think about all the negative scenarios that could happen.

Another word for this is “catastrophizing,” which means that you are playing out a worst-case scenario in your head with no concrete evidence that this will happen. The American Psychological Association describes catastrophizing in the following way: “People are said to be catastrophizing when they think that the worst possible outcome will occur from a particular action or in a particular situation or when they feel as if they are in the midst of a catastrophe in situations that may be serious and upsetting but are not necessarily disastrous.”

If you can recognize that you sometimes tend to see the worst-case scenario, then you may be aware of when you are playing this game with yourself. When you catch yourself playing this game, you might try to pause, take a deep breath, and remind yourself that there is no logical reason that the worst case would happen over other more positive outcomes.

Practice positive visualizations

Additionally, you might consider a practice called visualization, which is recommended by the National Institute of Mental Health. You can choose a time when you are not experiencing anxiety or paranoia and practice consciously putting positive images in your head. You might think about your favorite place or a place you want to visit. If you do not know what it looks like yet, you can search on the internet or look through a photography book. While visualizing this place, try to take slow, deep breaths in a comfortable position.

As you begin your visualization practice, consider starting small with a situation that does not typically cause you to worry excessively. You can play through the situation in your mind, imagining how well you accomplish each step of navigating the process.

Recognize self-conscious thinking

If your paranoia is rooted in social anxiety and the worry that others will not accept you, then you might practice letting go of caring about what others think.

This may be challenging at first, but it may help to remember that you don’t have to please everyone. Spending time guessing what someone else wants from you may leave you feeling emotionally drained. Sometimes the assumptions that we have about what others think about us are related to our insecurities rather than facts or evidence that someone does not like us.

If you work on being content with yourself instead, you may find that you can avoid projecting negative thoughts about yourself onto others. Also, even if someone does not like you, you can develop resilience that helps you avoid intense anxiety due to their opinion. You may even learn to accept criticisim from colleagues, friends, and peers, which can be a great tool for growth in your personal or work life.

How to stop being paranoid?

If you are paranoid, it may be difficult to control those feelings, especially if your paranoia is more severe or if it is caused by psychiatric disorders like borderline personality disorder. However there are steps you can take to address feelings of paranoia:

Talk to mental health services about your paranoia and why you believe you feel this way. A therapist may be able to help you identify the causes of your paranoia and give advice on some ways that you can address it.

Stay in good health. Taking care of your body may help with your feelings of paranoia, so you might try to eat well, exercise regularly, and focus on how much sleep you get. Also, drug abuse and mental health are sometimes related, so if you use recreational drugs or alcohol, it may help to reduce or eliminate your consumption.

Practice mindfulness. Mindfulness may help with your symptoms of paranoia by allowing you to look at your thoughts and discard any that are unhealthy. Write down some possible reasons for your paranoia and figure out how you can avoid them. This is a strategy that you can discuss with your therapist. You two can work together to identify triggers and possibly prevent episodes of paranoia.

While this may not help with extreme cases, you might consider looking at statistics and content that disproves your paranoid thoughts. This strategy may help to slowly reshape your beliefs and reduce your anxiety.

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Do you have paranoid personality disorder?

Having slight paranoia about something can be normal and may not be a sign of a mental health condition, especially if you can identify a rational reason behind it. However, in more severe cases, paranoia may be a product of another mental health condition, such as depression, schizophrenia or paranoid personality disorder.

Clinical paranoia is often characterized by persistent paranoid thoughts that you are in danger of a situation or person. These thoughts may last for weeks or months. A person with a clinical form of paranoia may also have fixed beliefs that are not based on reality and that cannot be changed with evidence to the contrary. They may also experience significant disruptions to everyday life, whether at work or in social situations.

If you are concerned you are experiencing clinical paranoia, consider making an appointment with a mental health professional. If you don’t feel well enough to leave home due to your symptoms of paranoia, you can speak with a licensed counselor online.

Signs and symptoms of paranoia

The symptoms of paranoia tend to be more than just thinking that someone or something is out to get you. Here are some possible symptoms to look out for:

You have a mistrust of everyone or many people. This mistrust tends to be irrational and can lead to intense emotions.
You have a hard time forgiving someone, even if they show that they know they were in the wrong.
You become extremely defensive with any criticism. You may even imagine the criticism.
You believe that someone has a hidden motive. For example, you may think that a person is being nice for selfish reasons and that they want to take advantage of you in some way.
You are argumentative, even when there is no reason to be.
You have a difficult time relaxing, possibly as a result of anxiety. You may also have a hard time falling asleep, which can increase symptoms of paranoia.

These are just a few symptoms, and they may manifest in different ways in different people. It may help to explore your symptoms with a licensed therapist who has experience helping people with paranoid thoughts.

Possible causes of paranoia

Paranoia can have several causes, including drug use and a few types of mental health challenges. Here are a few of the most common causes of paranoia:

Sometimes, paranoia may stem from something that happened to you in the past, and this can make it feel even more logical. For example, if you had a car crash, you may feel paranoid that you will have another one. However, being cautious can turn into extreme paranoia. If people have betrayed your trust before, this can lead to paranoia as well. These experiences can come from childhood experiences, but events or relationships in adulthood can also cause a paranoid episode.
You live in a large city. Being in a large city with constant stimulation may make you feel especially on edge and can lead to paranoia.
Certain mental health disorders may have symptoms of paranoia. Primary psychotic disorders, such as delusional disorder, schizophrenia, and paranoid personality disorder, can cause symptoms of paranoia.
Certain diseases which lead to memory loss like Alzheimer’s disease can be linked with paranoia, since a person may become paranoid if they forget something.
Cognitive disorders can lead to paranoic episodes. For example, people with may experience delusions, strongly held false beliefs that can manifest as paranoia.
Certain drugs and alcohol can lead to paranoid thoughts. For example, smoking too much cannabis in an uncomfortable environment can cause paranoia, as can drinking too much alcohol. Any drug, illegal or legal, could have paranoia as a side effect.

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Moving on from paranoia and anxiety with a mental health professional

Not everyone who experiences occasional anxiety has to seek help from a mental health professional. However, if feelings of anxiety or paranoia are preventing you from leading a happy and fulfilling life, you don’t have to face these feelings alone. A doctor with a license in therapy can guide you toward new research on how to avoid paranoia and anxiety from taking over your life, teaching you to identify and change unhelpful thinking patterns.

There are effective treatments available for people who are managing paranoid thoughts. Treatment may include psychotherapy, medication, self-help techniques, or some combination of these modalities.

If feelings of paranoia make you feel nervous about visiting a therapist’s office, you might consider online therapy, which research has shown to be just as effective as in-office therapy. You can participate in online therapy at BetterHelp via texting, audio chat, or videoconferencing—or a combination of all three modalities.

Takeaway

Paranoid thoughts can be normal from time to time and don’t always signal a mental health condition. However, for some people, paranoid thoughts can lead to significant distress that affects their everyday functioning. If you are experiencing paranoia or anxiety, know that there is help available. With BetterHelp, you can be matched with a licensed therapist with experience helping people manage paranoid thoughts. Take the first step toward freedom from paranoid thoughts and reach out to BetterHelp today.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Is paranoia the same as anxiety?

Paranoia and anxiety are not the same, but there can be some overlap and they sometimes go together.

Anxiety is a blanket term that can encompass several mental health challenges, and paranoia can be a part of it. Someone who is anxious may excessively worry or experience panic attacks for no apparent reason. Paranoia tends to be more about feeling like someone or something is out to get you, which can create anxiety. However, someone with anxiety may not necessarily be paranoid.

At what age does paranoia develop?

Symptoms of paranoia can occur at any age, but with paranoid personality disorder, many cases often start in the late teens or early in adulthood. Some disorders that are common with age can also cause paranoia. For example, Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia can lead to paranoia.

What does paranoia feel like?

Paranoia can feel different for each person. You may feel intense emotions or anxiety whenever someone or something makes you paranoid, which may lead to feelings of extreme anger or fear. Your mind may obsess over these people or things, and you may find it difficult to change your train of thought.

How do you overcome paranoia in a relationship?

Paranoia in a relationship, especially a new one, can be common, particularly if one of the people in the relationship has had a negative relationship experience in the past. For some, there is a bit of paranoia about whether the relationship will last, and some people may worry that their partner is cheating on them, even if there is no evidence.

Regadless of whether the paranoia is due to a mental health condition or negative relationship experiences in the past, you may benefit from speaking with a licenseed therapist or relationship counselor. A therapist can allow you to communicate your feelings without making accusations. It can be difficult to express feelings of paranoia without making your partner upset. A therapist may be able to help you identify your feelings in a helpful way.

You might also try a couple of strategies to reduce paranoia in the relationship on your own:

Be communicative with your partner. You might consider expressing your worries and your concerns without outright accusing them of something they are not doing.
Try not to jump to the worst conclusion if something happens. For example, if your partner is not responding right away, there may be many rational explanations for this that do not involve cheating. It can be hard to do, but with a bit of mindfulness, you can learn how to avoid catastrophizing in a relationship.

What is a paranoid thought?

Paranoid thoughts are frightening, often reoccurring thoughts, that are unlikely to occur in real life.

Most people have paranoid thoughts from time to time, however it can also be a symptom of mental health disorders including borderline personality disorders, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and anxiety disorders. For some people, paranoid thoughts can also be caused or worsened by alcohol and drug abuse.

Is paranoia a symptom of anxiety?

Paranoid thoughts can be a symptom of anxiety and other mental health conditions. It may help to speak with a licensed mental health professional who can assess your symptoms in the overall context of your physical and mental health.

What are the signs and symptoms of paranoia?

The signs and symptoms of clinical paranoia may include:

Persistent paranoid thoughts (for weeks or months) that you are in danger of a person or a situation
Fixed beliefs that are not based on reality and that cannot be changed with evidence to the contrary
Significant disruptions to daily living, whether at work or in social situations

What causes paranoia?

What causes paranoia depends on the individual and on the mental health disorder causing the paranoia—if there is one.

For many individuals, paranoid thoughts can be caused by anxiety rooted in everyday stress. Some people can work through these feelings and manage them in healthy and responsible ways.

However, some people experience clinical paranoia as a result of a mental health condition, such as delusional disorder, schizophrenia, or paranoid personality disorder. Alcohol and drug use can also cause paranoia in some people.

Why do I think everyone is out to get me?

Thinking that everyone is out to get you may be a sign of paranoia, which can be the result of a traumatic event or a mental health condition. A mental health professional can assess the persistence of your thoughts and other factors to help determine what may be causing your paranoia.

How do you stop paranoia thoughts?

To put an end to paranoid thoughts, it may help to speak with a mental health professional to identify the cause of your thoughts. If you have a mental health condition, they may be able to help you work through your thoughts through therapy. If you need medication, they may refer you to a psychiatrist who can evaluate your symptoms and prescribe medication as needed.

Can paranoia be cured?

Psychiatrists may treat paranoia with therapy, medication, or both. If they recommend therapy, a licensed therapist may provide cognitive-behavioral therapy to help the individual identify and challenge their thoughts and beliefs. If someone has a mental health condition like paranoid schizophrenia, a psychiatrist may prescribe antipsychotic medications. For a condition like anxiety or depression with paranoid thoughts, a doctor may prescribe antidepressants.

Further, if someone’s paranoia is caused or aggravated by alcohol and drug abuse, quitting these habits may be enough to reduce their paranoia.

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