Had my first NOCD therapist meeting today. He said the ERP normally only results in 35% reduction in symptoms or whatever. I feel like that seems a little low compared to what I’ve read. Also there are some therapist like Ali Greymond that say 100% recover is possible. I think that’s a little unrealistic as well, but I would hope it’s more than 35%

emmy sue

Date posted: 3y

I think the percentage thing is innacurate. The goal is to learn to live with the thoughts, and just not pay attention to them as much as you would before therapy.

emmy sue

Date posted: 3y

Try not to compare yourself with anyone else either. I have gone years with little anxiety from my thoughts, then I’m triggered and fall back into engaging with them for a month or so. Then repeat. You will learn at your own pace:)

Dre83

Date posted: 3y

@emmy sue I’m bad about comparing myself. It’s hard and then I’m like I don’t have ocd 🤷🏽‍♂️

Ocdislame

Date posted: 3y

@emmy sue Thank you. Yeah I don’t expect the thoughts to go away. When I have moments of clarity and my ocd isn’t bothering me, I still have the thoughts but my brain doesn’t see them as a threat. It’s weird how that works

Dre83

Date posted: 3y

Yeah we can’t make thoughts disappear and recovery doesn’t mean that the thoughts will disappear. I had the misunderstanding that they would disappear because I wanted them to so badly

Ocdislame

Date posted: 3y

Yeah I just want the anxiety to go away really. But even when the anxiety is gone there’s just some thing about the OCD that causes discomfort. I have a lot of moments every now and then for a few days at a time where my head is clear and while I still have the thoughts during that time they just don’t bother me at all

Dre83

Date posted: 3y

@Ocdislame Yeah I totally feel that cause I’m the same way bro.

unknown

Date posted: 3y

I like to think of it as “how life is managable with them”. That bit of u is still going to be there, but learning how to be unfazed is the goal

Nica

Date posted: 3y

Everyone’s percentages are different. Mine was a big reduction but I also had other intense therapy for childhood trauma, so I learned even more coping mechanisms too. You can’t get rid of OCD and its symptoms. You can’t control or stop your thoughts but they don’t matter. What matters is your REACTION. And that’s the key to ERP and coping mechanisms for when intrusive thoughts come back up.

Ocdislame

Date posted: 3y

For me it’s just so crazy when I have these days where nothing seems to bother me. I still have the thoughts but the thoughts don’t trigger any sort of anxiety. I guess that’s what I’m aiming for

rabbitleaf

Date posted: 3y

Like other comments say, yes it depends on the individual and I think the intensity of therapy affects too. Doing intensive erp therapy dramatically decreased my symptoms, but I don’t think it ever does 100% as I have come to accept that Ocd will always be the natural bend of my brain. But now instead of having control of my life, taking care of it feels more like maintainence and is very manageable, with small relapses, but never even half as bad as how I was before.

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