Former Neo-Nazis/members of hate groups, what was your “I need to get the hell out of here” moment?

Did you know that this is not just you being raised as a racist? Many people, including me, have weird intrusive thoughts that aren't from ourselves but are mean or weirdly prejudicial. We often only notice the ones we think about others, and forget about all the mean things we say to ourselves.

Google 'intrusive thoughts' - it's a common human experience, like waking just before you fall in your dreams. This happens randomly to many people, and I feel it's like a sort of mental Tourettes Syndrome, only we aren't in the group that just shouts that stuff out loud.

Don't go thinking it's just you that has these weird thoughts - I've read so many posts from so many people who are wondering why the heck they sometimes almost want to say something awful, and feel that they must be terrible people. You don't need to be a cult baby or a neo nazi to suffer from intrusive thoughts - it's really common.

Example: Have you ever stood near a train platform or a cliff, and, although you have absolutely no intention of ever jumping under a train/ off a cliff, and are actually in a great mood that day and everything is normal, you have a flash of a moment in which you want to hurl yourself off the edge just... for no reason? It's an intrusive thought. And they can be really powerful.

Again, you're going to be fine and you're not a bigot just because random horrible thoughts pop into your brain.

/r/AskReddit Thread Parent