Hi everyone this is my first time seeking help for OCD or even talking about My OCD. I have intrusive thoughts about harm which has affected every aspect of myself as well as being a mother and wife that I wanna be. My thoughts are so real and so vivid in my mind that it stomachs me even though I have no evil bones in my body and I couldn’t even hurt a fly my mind tends to tell me that I’m not to be trusted that I can hurt someone and my OCD always goes after my kids which I hate the most because it makes me stay away from them doesn’t even let me hug them or bond with them I feel my OCD has taken a lot from me as far as being a mother. Even taking them to school is a challenge or staying along with them is even a harder challenge I’ve literally been dealing with this all by myself for years and years and I feel that at this point my kids might think I’m cold or uninterested in them and possibly don’t even love them which breaks my heart because all I wanna do is be close to them and love them but my thoughts don’t let me do that I’m so gentle with my kids and I try to be there with them in every aspect that I possibly can but as soon as I leave I’m panic with anxiety and worry and there’s a lot of What Ifs in my mind which makes me stay home and miss out on all the great things that my kids are accomplishing. The shame and guilt for having the thought that’s really kills me too I’m in this crazy cycle all I want is to be an involved mom I wanna be without having to worry or stay away or keep myself in a room. I recently told my husband all my thoughts and it was the hardest thing I had to do was be vulnerable and open I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I was gonna get I literally thought that he was gonna pack up the kids and leave me or even worse lock me up in a loony bin somewhere. But when I told him it was the exact opposite reaction he was so understanding and told me that he couldn’t believe I was going through this all alone and he hugged me and embraced me he doesn’t understand my thoughts but he knows they make me scared and he knows I’m in fear 90% of my day he also told me that I’m a great mom and to remind myself that they’re just thoughts I am more defined by my actions not what I’m thinking. I haven’t done any therapy or any counseling but I do a lot of research about OCD I keep a journal and I try to live in this moment forget about yesterday and not worry about tomorrow. My husband also has OCD which was hard for me to tell him my OCD because I didn’t want to trigger his OCD his OCD is with compulsions and rituals and mine is harm OCD with obsession thinking so let me tell you were always in some crazy cycle loop trying to help each other out. It is it easy For us. But we take it as we’re in this together The reason why I downloaded this app and wanted to join the NOCD community was because I want to bring awareness to other moms who might feel like I feel and I want to break the stigma that there’s something wrong with us I want Mom‘s to be open with their thoughts and break the stigma that we’re bad moms because of our thoughts which is so far from the truth. I had to learn how to be more compassionate with my self which is still a work in progress and finding tools that work for me which changes all the time I’m always looking for a better way for a better outlook to enjoy my day a little bit more than I did yesterday. I have bad days and I have good days when the bad days come along I remind myself that it’s just for the moment and this too shall pass . When I have flares I have to remind myself to love myself more that day take it easy and it’s OK if I have to be alone that day when I have a great day I really try to enjoy me as much as I can and hold my kids closer that day. I also informed my kids what was going on with me and my husband and there was a great video that I watched which was called unstuck it’s mostly about kids with OCD so I thought that was the best way to explain it to them so they can get a better understanding of what mommy and daddy go through on a daily basis because we know that OCD is here to stay we just gotta find better ways for the days. I’m always up open for tips and if anybody just needs to chat this is what I signed on for

My struggles with OCD began in childhood, but it wasn’t until after giving birth to my first child at 30 that I finally received a diagnosis. For years, I suffered in silence with intense anxiety, insomnia, and intrusive thoughts, but because my compulsions were mostly mental—constant rumination, reassurance-seeking, and avoidance—I didn’t realize I had OCD. I experienced Pure O, where my mind would latch onto terrifying thoughts, convincing me something was deeply wrong with me. After my son was born, I was consumed by intrusive fears of harming him, even though I loved him more than anything. Seven weeks into postpartum, I hit a breaking point and ended up in the emergency room, where I was finally diagnosed. For the first time, everything made sense. I didn’t discover exposure and response prevention (ERP) until years later when my son developed Germ OCD during COVID. I went through the program myself first, and it completely changed my life. ERP helped me sit with my intrusive thoughts instead of reacting to them, breaking the cycle that had controlled me for so long. Life isn’t perfect, but it’s so much better than before. I can finally be present instead of trapped in my head. Now, I’m working on trusting myself more and handling challenges without fear of “losing control.” As I prepare to help my daughter start therapy, I feel empowered knowing I’m giving my children the support I never had. If you know you have OCD but haven’t started therapy yet, what’s holding you back?

Not sure what to say. Just that I am so tired of dealing with OCD - I’ve had it for most of my life and as a 40 something woman, I’m exhausted. I’m tired of being misunderstood and mistreated. I’m tired of seeing relationships that I have dwindle bc my friends and family are overwhelmed with my ruminations and reassurance. I’m embarrassed bc I overwhelm my friends and family with whom I’ve trusted my personal thoughts with and I keep thinking that they can help me through stuff only to be let down. I’ve yet to meet another mind like mines who is complicated but trying to survive because I have children and want to see them grow. I’m tired of feeling defeated because someone took advantage of me and my thoughts. It’s so exhausting but I’m ready to try this because I know I need help. Not sure if this is triggering I’m just ranting bc I’m so lost.

This is my first post on this app, though I made this account back in late September of 2021. I grew up in a toxic environment, and was mentally abused by my parents, included being taken advantage of because of my autism. I’ve been suffering from OCD as long as I can remember. Ever since I was a child, I’ve sometimes had thoughts that scared me, and I’d often try to find ways to calm myself down. I’ve had thoughts over the smallest and silliest of things, but as time went on, these thoughts suddenly became more violent, like wanting to step in front of moving car while waiting for the bus, or grabbing a knife on the dinner table and using it to stab a family member. Even thoughts of death and what happens afterwards scared me. Aside from being afraid of a kids horror show for a while, OCD did bother me at points in my life, but they never severely crippled me… until my teenage years. Throughout my teen hood, I would very occasionally suddenly imagine fictional child characters being SA’d. I would also sometimes imagine children getting injured while noticing them sometimes. I didn’t know why those thoughts popped up into my head and they would weird me out, but I would be able to usually push them aside and not think about them too much… but it got worse after I was dropped out of high school without my consent by my parents. In March of 2017, I was at a gas station when I saw a child and imagined doing a disgusting action with them. It freaked me out immensely and sent me into a panic attack. I was able to calm down from it shortly after, but I think it planted a seed into my brain, and it would launch a horrific attack on me the very next month. Me and my family were driving around a town for a special occasion when I had the worst OCD attack I’ve ever had. Every child I saw, I imagined doing something disgusting to them. I was having a full blown panic attack and it honestly felt like my mind itself was being sexually assaulted by this horrifying thoughts. This incident scarred me mentally, and to this day, I’m still afraid of being around anyone younger than me. I tried researching what these thoughts could mean, and I found out about these being symptoms of OCD. After talking with a psychiatrist a month later, I was diagnosed with OCD. For a while, I thought I’d be okay from that point. I thought I could conquer this on my own… but by early 2018, I was still struggling. I eventually came out to my older sibling and parents about what I was dealing with. They thankfully didn’t ridicule me, and did help me with getting a therapist. The first visit with my therapist went alright, but I was an emotional mess after finishing the session. The next time I went in however, I was seen by someone else because my therapist was out. The man I saw honestly felt condescending, and he basically made go to a group therapy session. The group therapy didn’t help in the slightest, and with more toxicity developing in my family afterwards, I stopped going after the group therapy. I did see my therapist at least once I think, but that was it. Ever since 2018, I was silent about my OCD. I was just hoping that someday I’d be free of my shackles both from my mental illness and my toxic environment. Two years later though, a friend (now partner) of mine heard about my family’s living situation and wanted to help get me out of there. I first visited them in 2021, and thankfully I stay with them for the most part. That being said, I was still worried about opening up to them about my OCD. I did talk with them about general OCD from time to time, but never got into P OCD… until last year finally. I opened up them fully about it, and both they and their mother told me that they weren’t upset, and that they understood where I was coming from. I think that genuinely helped me out, and I don’t feel as anxious as I did before. Just yesterday, I finally talked about my OCD to my older sibling (they’re super supportive and understand our parents toxicity). I was genuinely nervous about telling them for a while out of fear of them either abandoning me or ratting me out… but they understood. They were accepting and didn’t ridicule me at all. It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders… and honestly, I think I might have the courage to speak up on this app finally and hopefully find a therapist who can help me. I’ve been suffering with P OCD for over 8 years now ever since I was 18. I just recently turned 27 a few days ago. I’ve been suffering in silence for so long due to trauma, fear, and PTSD. But now, I think I want to take a step forward and get onto the road to recovery. It most likely won’t be easy and it won’t happen overnight, but I feel relieved knowing I have people who love and support me, now that I’m in a better environment.