Chain of Intrusive Thoughts

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I often experience a chain reaction of intrusive thoughts. One bad thought leads to another, and then another, etc. etc., and the process repeats. It's quite frustrating.

It is like trying to submerge a large inflated beach ball in water. The act of submerging the beach ball under water is analogous to trying to ignore intrusive thoughts. If you push the beach ball under the water (attempt to suppress the thoughts), it will naturally try to reach the surface again. So it requires a lot of energy to submerge and keep it submerged under the water. Such a task can be exhausting.

Can anybody else relate to this? Do you experience intrusive thoughts in a repetitive sequence, or are your intrusive thoughts generally the same single thought over and over?

I can relate to both situations. Sometimes I dwell on the same negative thought over and over again. At other times, if I get rid of one negative thought another one pops up. It reminds me of those games you play in the arcade, when you hit one alligator with a hammer and another one pops up.
So far I haven't been able to get rid of the situation completely but I think I might have had times where I've been able to lesson it. I try meditation and mindfulness but the effect seems to be like covering a sprinkler that's turned on in a sense that if I succeed I'll have another day in which my thoughts will start racing. Sometimes when I get to writing my story, my thoughts become preoccupied with the story instead. Maybe, during the times I have been able to just accept all aspects of myself unconditionally, and focus my attention on positive things to think about, I might have had the most success.