@Felthry it's kind of running away from the thing, but if I can find a book or a game or something that takes enough just cognitive effort to keep me distracted, that works sometimes
besides that… practice? at letting the thoughts happen without getting involved in them (besides maybe acknowledging they exist) & letting them go just as they came. like if you can go +1 meta level to "I am thinking unpleasant thoughts" vs thinking about the bad stuff directly.
re: mh - (not now), asking for help
@Felthry 1st part definitely seems unhealthy, yeah.
2nd part is like… there's a ladder from
* burying bad stuff
* pretending bad stuff doesn't exist
* keeping bad stuff separate from yourself
* aware of bad stuff, but not standing in its path / letting it pass you by
* there's bad stuff sometimes and it can be a part of you and that's okay
search term might be "vipassana meditation"