- Date posted
- 3y
- Date posted
- 3y
I have the book. I highly reccomend that you read it. It teaches you skills that are essential to managing OCD. The main takeaway from the book in my opinion is when the author states that "while OCD might mimic reality, reality never mimics OCD". In saying this, I think he is highlighting the importance of realizing that the sensations that we experience are false messages, and have no place in reality.
- Date posted
- 3y
Yes!! I totally highlighted that sentence in my copy.
- Date posted
- 3y
@Jon w/ OCD That sentiment is essential to recovery.
- Date posted
- 3y
@adhd&autism Essentially, OCD tries to make you feel like what you are thinking is reality, or what is ‘actually’ happening, but it’s just a feeling and not real. Reality will never mimic symptoms of OCD
- Date posted
- 3y
Just bought it and want to read it soon.
- Date posted
- 3y
Oh my goodness yes! Taught me so much on how to sit with uncertainty and continue on with my day. How to recognize intrusive thoughts for what they are.
- Date posted
- 3y
I haven’t I’ll check it out
- Date posted
- 3y
I bought it a couple years ago but never read it. I'm going through a really hard time with my ocd right now and actually just tried to read it 30 minutes ago. However my mind is so all over the place I can't focus enough to take anything away from it right now :(
- Date posted
- 3y
I started it years ago, but still haven’t finished..
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
Hi there! I have never read that, but from the comments, it sounds amazing! I will definitely be adding this to my Amazon cart. That "reality" statement is so powerful. Thank you so much for sharing!
- Date posted
- 3y
The book has helped me immensely!! I hope you enjoy it
- Date posted
- 3y
Yes, it’s AMAZING. Started me on ERP and changed my life. My therapist loves it!
- Date posted
- 3y
Perhaps I should mention that I learned that it’s possible to learn negative behaviors from others, as my therapist at the time suggested that I put the book down for a bit…which is why I have yet to finish it.
Related posts
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 24w
Looking back, I realize I’ve had OCD since I was 7. though I wasn’t diagnosed until I was 30. As a kid, I was consumed by fears I couldn’t explain: "What if God isn’t real? What happens when we die? How do I know I’m real?" These existential thoughts terrified me, and while everyone has them from time to time, I felt like they were consuming my life. By 12, I was having daily panic attacks about death and war, feeling untethered from reality as depersonalization and derealization set in. At 15, I turned to drinking, spending the next 15 years drunk, trying to escape my mind. I hated myself, struggled with my body, and my intrusive thoughts. Sobriety forced me to face it all head-on. In May 2022, I finally learned I had OCD. I remember the exact date: May 10th. Reading about it, I thought, "Oh my God, this is it. This explains everything." My main themes were existential OCD and self-harm intrusive thoughts. The self-harm fears were the hardest: "What if I kill myself? What if I lose control?" These thoughts terrified me because I didn’t want to die. ERP changed everything. At first, I thought, "You want me to confront my worst fears? Are you kidding me?" But ERP is gradual and done at your pace. My therapist taught me to lean into uncertainty instead of fighting it. She’d say, "Maybe you’ll kill yourself—who knows?" At first, it felt scary, but for OCD, it was freeing. Slowly, I realized my thoughts were just thoughts. ERP gave me my life back. I’m working again, I’m sober, and for the first time, I can imagine a future. If you’re scared to try ERP, I get it. But if you’re already living in fear, why not try a set of tools that can give you hope?
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 22w
Looking for inspiration
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 21w
Hi everyone, I’m Andrea and I am a member of the Intake Team here at NOCD. In junior high, I was known as the “aneurysm girl” because I was convinced any small headache meant I was dying. At just 12 years old, I read something that triggered my OCD, and from that moment on, my brain latched onto catastrophic health fears. Any strange sensation in my body felt like proof that something was seriously wrong. I constantly sought reassurance, avoided being alone, and felt trapped in an endless cycle of fear. Over time, my OCD shifted themes, but health anxiety was always there, lurking in the background. I turned to drinking to numb my mind, trying to escape the fear that never let up. Then, in 2016, everything spiraled. I was sitting at work, feeling completely fine, when suddenly my vision felt strange—something was “off.” My mind convinced me I was having a stroke. I called an ambulance, launching myself into one of the darkest periods of my life. I visited doctors multiple times a week, terrified I was dying, yet every test came back normal. The fear never loosened its grip. For years, I cycled in and out of therapy, desperately trying to find answers, but no one recognized what was really happening. I was always told I had anxiety or depression, but OCD was never mentioned. I was suicidal, believing I would never escape the torment of my mind. It wasn’t until 2022—after years of struggling, hitting rock bottom, and finally seeking specialized OCD treatment—that I got the right diagnosis. ERP therapy at NOCD was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but it saved my life. Today, I’m 34, sober, and living a life I never thought was possible. Do I still have hard days? Absolutely. But I am no longer a prisoner to my fears. The thoughts still come, but they don’t control me anymore. They don’t dictate my every move. Life isn’t perfect, but it no longer knocks me off my feet. If you’re struggling with health OCD or somatic OCD, I see you. I know how terrifying and isolating it can be. But I also know that it can get better. If you have any questions about health & somatic OCD, ERP, and breaking the OCD cycle, I’d love to tell you what I’ve learned first hand. Drop your questions below, and I’ll answer all of them!
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