- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
Yeah totally. Thanks so much for sharing, I really appreciate your response. Have a great day!
- Date posted
- 6y
Yea I know that what I said has flaws in logic (it was for a school assignment lol), just trying to offer another way of viewing things
- Date posted
- 6y
For me whenever I thought about death and the uncertainty of what happens in the afterlife I would panic and start thinking what if this is all a dream.. thinking of scenarios from the matrix .. it’s ridiculous what the OCD mind will do. I totally understand the need to feel in control and I think OCD has a lot to do with feeling out of control. For example I was OCD free for 3 years (my first scare was obsessions with being sick with any and every disease I would google all day and compare my symptoms- I also had MRIS and saw specialists) I just had a son who’s 2 months- I had high blood pressure and they had to induce me which ultimately made me feel Totally out of control and terrified and my son came 3 weeks early! I ended up having harm thoughts that sent me into full panic mode. I’m on Prozac again and getting better each day but I’m constantly convincing myself that it is ocd and checking my thoughts- I feel you! What works for me is exercise, nature, being around loved ones, Netflix, meditation, Prozac and therapy. Unfortunately I feel ocd you have to face your triggers and keep yourself busy.
- Date posted
- 6y
I made a poem about free will once, it was called the paradox of choice. It talked about how people are told they can do whatever they want with their life, you choose your job, you pick your poisons, but you don’t pick your desires. Essentially, while it’s true that you don’t have the ability to chose what you like and dislike, you do have the choice in how you will act on your passions. So while you don’t have complete “free will,” you do have it in the sense that you choose how you act, similar to how we get intrusives thoughts that we don’t choose, but we have the ability to decide on how we respond to these thoughts (I wrote the poem before I was diagnosed with ocd, then later found some good parallels)
- Date posted
- 6y
@MichaelK Although I may disagree with the idea that we don’t get to choose what we like and dislike (we definitely have the power to change those things as well), I appreciate you trying to help. Have a great day.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 24w
I started dealing with OCD when I became fixated on health issues, particularly the fear of contracting a life-threatening disease. If I experienced any kind of medical symptom, no matter how small, that even remotely hinted at something potentially fatal, it would drive me crazy, and I couldn’t stop obsessing over it. Then one day, I started having intrusive thoughts about accidentally hitting someone with my car, and I would end up driving in circles to check if I had. Eventually, I found myself overwhelmed by a flood of new obsessive thoughts and compulsions. One day, while I was at the park, a squirrel came near me, and for some reason, I felt like it attacked me. I Googled it and learned that squirrels could carry rabies, which spiraled me into a deep fear of rabies. I became consumed with the thought I received a bite from a squirrel, raccoon, or bat any time I’m in areas that trigger me. It started off only being inside then transferred to even being in my own home. This made me obsess over every physical sensation in my body, compulsively checking to make sure nothing was wrong. One compulsion that I hated the most would to be putting rubbing alcohol on me to make sure that I had no open wounds. Every day feels like I’m walking around in a fog of anxiety, constantly worrying that I won’t even make it to old age. Sometimes, it gets so overwhelming that I just want it all to end. It stresses me so bad at times to where my brain feels like I’ve been studying all day.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 18w
I used to get caught in a loop with existential thoughts very frequently. Every question made my stomach drop: (TW: existential questions) … … ... "Why does anything exist at all? What will death be like? Is anything even real? Is there any meaning to this? Is the universe infinitely big, and if not, what's beyond it? Are there multiverses? Has the universe been around forever? Will the universe end for good, or will it keep going forever? What is forever like? What even IS reality?" It would get so overwhelming that I remember lying on the floor in a fetal position for hours because I felt like there was no escape. I spent most of my days reading articles and watching videos about theoretical astrophysics and philosophy in a desperate attempt to "figure it all out." Of course that only made me more anxious, raised more questions, and kept me trapped in the cycle. Things started to improve once I learned to turn TOWARD reality, rather than away from it, and ERP really helped me do that. I learned that these questions weren't the problem. I learned that I can actually handle the anxiety that arises when exposed to these ideas and concepts. I don't have to figure anything out to make the anxiety go away; it arises and passes away on its own. Ironically, bringing myself into the present moment and becoming more aware of reality helped me escape the cycle of existential dread. Because of that, this topic no longer takes over my life. If I'm triggered by something I see, hear, or think, I may still feel a little twang of anxiety, but then it just goes away. "Maybe, maybe not" has been the single most useful phrase of my life. Do you ever get trapped in a cycle of existential questions? Are you worried that the ERP approach would be too scary to handle? If so, I'm happy to give my advice.
- Date posted
- 10w
I’ve never been diagnosed with OCD, but I relate so much to what people here are going through. I used to think it was just anxiety, and I felt like I could handle that. But lately I’ve been spiraling—constantly afraid that what I’m feeling is something worse, like psychosis or losing control of my mind. I feel so detached and scared, and I just want peace again. I have anxiety doing the smallest things, like the thought of waking up everyday and even eating give me straight up panic. I am afraid all the time, it’s paralyzing. And a lot of people say someone with psychosis wouldn’t worry that they’re in it, but then I convince myself I’ve been in it this whole time, and haven’t known, and that maybe I’ve been doing weird stuff. Idk. I also get really scared of labels. Even the idea of OCD makes me feel like I’ll never get better or like I’ll be stuck like this forever. I just want to be okay. If anyone has felt this way—confused, overwhelmed, or scared of what’s happening in their mind—I’d really appreciate any support or encouragement.
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