Do you think a lot?

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99.9% of the time yes. . .

I often think of my special interest or things that have happened to me in the past or things that are happening currently.

This. I'd love to know the answer too.

Even when I'm reading posts on WP I've still got the narrators voice in my head, and in the back of my brain I'm thinking of a reply.

My impression is that NT's are better able to control the direction of their thoughts rather than having periods of no thinking (although I wonder if some people think at all).

+1

When I hear people saying things like "quiet your mind", it's like they're telling me to "just hold your breath" - like that's going to work for very long... Heck, I can hold my breath longer than I can stop thinking, in fact. I'll even wake up, and my mind will be churning over whatever it was I dreamed about...

I used to be able to before I had a child. (I am NT, she is not.) If I did something that was very noisy and especially if it was very crowded I could "lose myself" and let my brain rest as it turned outward and started just experiencing without also consciously analyzing. Concerts and loud, crowded parties were good for this. Since having a child I default to worrying about her if I'm not actively thinking about something else.

I think for my work project as developer and fear with my overbearing clients as my bosses scolding me for some deadline lates

That's really interesting to me, and it helps me to understand how people can enjoy things like noise, crowds, parties, etc. Things that I typically can't stand to be around. If I were able to "lose myself" in those types of things, I think I would enjoy them much more. I never really understood before...but than again, I'm only just now coming to the realization that I'm not an NT. I figured that I was just introverted. Thanks for the response

I think a lot, too, and not just about my special interests...sometimes about things I'd rather not think about. And sometimes when I have to go to sleep, it is almost impossible to turn all the thinking off. Argh.

I think too much, which causes anxiety. There's the big thoughts that cause anxiety for most people (''will I lose my job?'', ''the bills are too high this month!'', et cetera), and there's the medium thoughts that NTs can relate to but don't always worry about (''will the bus come on time?'', ''will the jobcentre be OK with my job search?'', et cetera). Then there's the thoughts that I can't stop thinking about what other people would just tut and go, ''you're worrying about THAT? What the hell for? That's not much to even think of worrying about! Jesus, lighten up, mate!'' For example these thoughts:-

''What if I get stared at today?''
Oh my God, a person is coming towards me, where do I look? If I look at them I might catch them staring back at me, worrying that they're staring to judge me. If I look down I then look nervous, making them stare even more. If I smile at them they might not smile back, which people normally don't bother to do. Oh, do I have to walk past this stupid critical-likely person?!

''What if I can't get across this road?''
Oh my God, this road is very awkward, there's loads of cars and I'm so scared I might walk across when I'm not supposed to because I'm no good with judging distances, and then most drivers are aggressive these days and so one might bib his horn at me, making me feel like an idiot, I can't bear it, please let me across this road right now!

''What if I don't get a seat on the bus?''
Oh my God, all 32 seats are filled, now I've got to stand in a crush at the front, having to step out of the way every time somebody comes on, I just want to sit comfortably and listen to my iPod. Nobody seems to be getting off, will I have to stand up here the whole way? Why don't they run bigger buses?!

''What if I get in somebody's way in the supermarket?''
Oh my God, the supermarket looks crowded already and I'm only at the door, and people are pushing past and staring at me already. And oh I can't concentrate with trying to look what I need to get because other people keep wanting to get to where I'm standing, and women keep snapping '' 'scuse me!'' and making me feel like a ret*d that always obliviously gets in everyone's way, let me out of here, these people are standing too close to me, can't they wait their turn?!

''What if a toddler starts screaming near me?''
Oh my God, a mother is standing next to me with a whiny toddler in the pushchair, oh does she have to get it out, now it's going to be running around my feet, looks like a miserable baby that might have a tantrum over something ridiculous at any moment now, uh it's looking up at me, get it away! Oh my God, now the mother is making it get back into it's pushchair but it doesn't want to and so decides to kick and scream, oh get me away from this horrible monster, it's too overwhelming!

''What if some random stranger greets my mum, making me feel obliged to look at them and speak too?''
Oh my God, here's someone coming, my mum is gawping at them wanting them to say hello when she doesn't even know them, trust me to have an over-friendly mum! Now if I don't also look up at them and speak too, I feel ignored, but at the same time I find it intimidating to look up, I'd rather look down and avoid all eye contact with stupid strangers! For Christ sake, I hate this life!

''What if immature boys on bikes humiliate me when passing me, like shouting in my face?''
Oh my God, here comes a couple of 12/13-year-old boys on their bikes, and they sound obnoxious from the way they're singing loud and showing off, I know what's coming - they're going to scream in my face and startle me as they whizz by, I know it, please make them go another way, I hate teenagers I hate them!



It all comes from thinking too much.

Tell me about it. And it gets worse each time you replay a scene.

Yes they do. Conversation with my NT boyfriend:

Me: (Just trying to start a conversation) What are you thinking about right this moment?
BF: Nothing.
Me: You must be thinking of something.
BF: I'm not.
Me: How can that be? Everyone is thinking something all the time. Our brains don't stop working.
BF: Of course they do. I'm resting my brain.
Me: How do you rest your brain?
BF: You just turn off and not think anything and rest.
Me: ???

And LOL to narrators voice. My narrator is on practically 24/7. Sometimes I hate her so much and tell her to shut up but she won't.

lol me too. Sometimes my brain churns so much even during sleep that I wake up with my brain feeling like it's going to explode from too much activity.

And I've tried meditation before and it just DOES. NOT. WORK. so I don't know how people can "quiet their minds".

OMG that's just like me, all your "oh my god" thoughts. I say omg in my head probably 200 times a day at everything, even at mundane daily life things, like, "omg what is wrong with this jacket zipper it's gone wonky arrgh."

I wonder why our brains seem to do that... When I try to go to sleep, I don't want to be thinking about philosophy or religion all night long! Sometimes I remember unpleasant memories and begin thinking about those instead. That is way less pleasant than thinking about my former example. It also seems that during the night time when trying to sleep, my mind is a lot more active than during the day, not sure why, but that is how it is sometimes.

Constantly and obsessively, sometimes to my detriment.

Yes. Whenever I am bored, which can be quite often, I turn to introspection and sometimes imagine what it might feel like to be 'normal'. This can also keep me from sleeping if my brain is especially active. Sometimes I am thinking so much and I don't notice a significant change in my surroundings.