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Thought loops are defined as an entrapping pattern of thought which is repeated in a cyclical loop. Thought loops can range anywhere from a few seconds in length upwards to multiple hours, though they typically last between a few seconds and a few minutes.

Thought loops can stem from a wide range of circumstances, such as mental illnesses like anxiety and depression, as well as drug induced states such as while being high on drugs such as LSD (or other psychedelics) and certain types of mentally stimulating Cannabis.

Drugs
Some substances which can induce stats of thought loops include but are not limited to:

LSD
During an LSD experience, mental activity is increased as more parts of the brain are active and responding to each new stimuli. This increased mental activity also results in connections within and communication between areas of the brain which are normally segregated, leading to new thoughts and often a very overwhelming amount of thoughts. This change in mental state can leave people overwhelmed or confused, causing them to get caught in these thought loops where they become stuck on a singular thought for a period of time.

MK Ultra
MK Ultra was the code name given to a program of experiments on human subjects that were undertaken by the United States CIA which primarily aimed to develop drugs and methods to be used in interrogation in order to weaken the individual and force confession through mental manipulation and mind control. In early times of the program, the main drug of focus used was LSD. The drug was often administered without the subjects knowledge or consent and was chosen as the main drug of the program with the aim of bringing out deep confessions through the increased mental activity the drug brings on. In one such experiment trail, subjects were given LSD without their knowledge and held under bright lights. They were interrogated and told that the interrogators would extend their ‘trips’ if they refused to reveal secrets. LSD was a reasonable choice for experiments of such nature, as one such listed effect is suggestibility enhancement, in which a person has increased tendency to accept or act upon the ideas of others. Effects speaking, this suggestibility and cognition change brought on by LSD would trap people in thought loops of fear of continued scrutiny and induced anxiety which can be quite overwhelming and taxing experiences, and out of hope to make these persisting feelings end, would be more open to revealing the desired information. As the program carried on, LSD was dropped as the main substance of the program due to it becoming noted as too unpredictable in it’s desired effects to be used as a consistent interrogation method. Other drugs tested in the program included heroin, mescaline, psilocybin, cannabis, and alcohol.

Cannabis
Cannabis is another substance which is capable of inducing thought loops. Overall, cannabis is characterized by Raphael Mechoulam and Lumir Hanuš as causing mental changes which cause manifestations of mental illness when intoxicated with hashish, ‘from simple manic excitement to frenzied delirium’. One such manifestation reported is anxiety and thought loops while high on marijuana. While not as common in the indica type of cannabis due to its often sedating and relaxing effects, manifestations of thought loops would more commonly occur in Sativa-type strains of marijuana, which are typically known for their mentally awakening and energizing highs. These thought loops manifest from the increased mental activity as with psychedelic substances, where a person cannot control themselves and get caught on a single thought which they can’t get out of their mind, causing them to become stuck in a thought loop.

Anxiety
Anxiety is defined by Michael W. Eysenck as “consciously perceived feelings of tension and apprehension, and heightened autonomic nervous response activity”. Anxiety episodes are often considered a disorder, and is a mental state which is intrusive by nature. The mental state of anxiety (in some cases) can be persistent and occur in a cyclical pattern where after the person realizes they are being irrational, their unconscious makes them question this realization, and loops them back into a state of anxiety all over again.

Insomnia
Insomnia is another disorder which can be attributed to intrusive thought loops. Insomnia is characterized as an inability to fall asleep. First done in the 1980s by Borkoveck, an observation of those suffering from insomnia noted that those suffering were generally unable to fall asleep due to unwanted thoughts and worries. These thoughts come to the forefront as the person is trying to fall asleep and, in a similar manner to anxiety, occur in a cyclical pattern. These thoughts are often intrusive in nature and remain persistent for some time even when the sufferer is aware they are capable of dealing with their worry in the morning. Despite the knowledge, the thought persists, and keeps the person awake as they cannot calm down to fall asleep.

Cognitive Distortions
Cognitive distortion is an irrational thought pattern which is intrusive in nature, and occurs in a thought loop. Generally brought on by primary disorders such as anxiety or depression, these cognitive distortions are altered perceptions of events which happen to the subject. Some common distortions can include ‘Magnification’; where the subject will consider a minor event to be far more impactful than it is, attributed to the saying “making a mountain out of a molehill”. Another common distortion is ‘arbitrary inference’; which is where a subject will draw conclusions that they consider wholly truthful on the basis of little to no evidence. These thoughts are intrusive in nature as they are generated subconsciously, and are a form of thought loop as even when the sufferer knows these thoughts are irrational, similar to anxiety and insomnia, they cannot force the thought out of their head until the loop fades away.