How would you describe the OCD cycle to someone who doesn't understand/has never talked about it before? Let us know in the comments!⁠

I'd describe the thoughts as ALL of your children screaming for your attention at once, over stimulating your system with cortisone because you can't calm them down, and you can't hide because it's your brain. For the compulsions, the best thing I've heard is like taking a drug to numb the pain, but it only lasts for a little bit and over time you need a higher and higher dose to give a smaller and smaller amount of relief.

The majority of my OCD is exactly above but now it's changed and the compulsion is mental checking which can't be resolved which then leads to no relief just more anxiety. So thought/doubt -anxiety - mental compulsion - anxiety then repeat.

I also do avoiding for the compulsion

Worrys then planning then relax then worry 😟

I think this is somewhat oversimplified. You’re missing the point where OCD comes up with new themes to get you into reaction. So, I would have this circle listed under ORIGINAL THEME and then new circles labels with SUPPLANTED THEME. This shows that OCD isn’t about a specific worry; it’s about the underlying thought process. With this diagram, I just get the sense that it’s about solving my worry (which isn’t good or sustainable for OCD treatment), as opposed to addressing the broader OCD issue.

To me It's like being held captive at gun point in your own mind, to free yourself you have to do what your brain tells you to do (compulsions). But it's never enough, so it starts demanding you to do more and more. You are exhausted but you also have the urge to do the compulsions, thinking this time it may be different, this time maybe you can actually be free (from anxiety) but it never happens. ¿?Idk if that makes sense¿?

Literally on point! I can’t believe the doubt I have with everyday activities that I know how to do. I do them, then my OCD makes me check that I did it and I guess that’s an obsession, so then my compulsions are to stand there and make sure it’s done. Total doubt and hard to stop and move on!

My son has thoughts that causes anxiety, his compulsion is to tell me (his mom). As a parent, I need to have a lot of patience with him because he is only eight and he has a very hard time explaining to me his thoughts. He tries to explain to me that he feels as if his brain is disconnected from his body and these thoughts are popping up in his head. He doesn’t know if he is thinking it himself or his brain is thinking it. His brain is disconnected from his body.

A cycle that never ends for me there is always something old or new I constantly obsessed about or fear. This cycle is so exhausting. I only hope for the day that I will feel some relief from my mind.

A vicious cycle is all I can say.

I might say, I would love to explain this to you however when I try I have loads of other thoughts all at once. I analyze your every move to make sure I am safe or don't sound stupid, fear I will say something I don't mean to say, believe you will think I am lying, have many urges and thoughts to do things I don't really want to do and all while saying this I was also analyzing every word and terrified that saying this to you makes it more dangerous and now I have to figure out how to protect myself or not spin out of control that terrible very specific things are going to happen and that some person my mind is convinced is after me and watching me sees this and now I have put myself in danger. And thoughts about wanting to die, taking pills and a million other things will intensify. I am terrified to actually post this because of some of those things. I even feel like I did something terrible typing it because I believe someone already knows what I typed without ever sending it.

Yeah,I say it every day .this is the last time,okay but by the end of the day it comes back.

For me it was (thought/doubt>>anxiety>>compulsion>>hell broke loose) relief wasn't a thing in my theme

I love this image - it explains how my mind works perfectly! I am going to have to steal this as it is so simple compared to me trying to explain the actual thoughts and actions. For me it is often surrounding things that are inconsequential to other people but 99% of the time I just *can't* move on from the thoughts/anxiety keeps increasing until I act (aka give in to the compulsion). They don't get it, I get told 'just leave it, it doesn't matter' I *know* it doesn't matter.... but it does, it really does, and I don't know why!

It’s like having a broken record in your head. Thoughts randomly pop in your head. Once they start, they don’t stop. Then you start thinking that you want to act on the thought or that you secretly agree with the thought. The anxiety builds until you do a compulsion. A compulsion can be mental or behavioral. You feel better for a brief moment. But no matter how many compulsions you do, OCD is never satisfied. It wants more and more. More compulsions leads to more intrusive thoughts which leads to more anxiety, which leads to more compulsions. You end up feeling completely trapped and like OCD is controlling your life.

Unwanted thoughts then anxiety then depression

I always say it’s kind of like a drug dealer. OCD says hey, this thing is gonna make you feel better so you do it and feel good for a while a new compulsion arises again and you feel stuck in a loop of doing the “feel good” thing that in the end makes you feel bad.

:(

Nice

For me the ocd cycle looks like… I have an Intrusive thought or Feeling. Then I feel an overwhelming need to figure it out. Why the thought happened, what the thought means, what having the thought saus about me & how not to have the thought happen again. With the having to figure the thought out comes the anxiety & usually for me some kind of intense sad feeling. Since I am feeling so overwhelmed & out of control I usually seek out some kind of reassurance from another person in the way of some kind of written communication. Texts, messaging, email. After I push send I feel a relief of some kind. Sometimes it is a great relief & other times it is a smaller relief. No matter, it is all the same. I feel a little better by seeking out the reassurance. But it doesn’t last long term & I find myself having to do this process over & over again, & sometimes in shorter & shorter successions becuase The feeling better is not lasting as long as it used to when I sought out the reassurance. For me it doesn’t even matter what the other person says back to such a text, just them answering at all is the “fix” for me. Until the next thing comes up that my ocd tells me that I cannot handle without that reassurance. And so the cycle goes on & on. I’m working on it in therapy though. I do see it. I have not completley stopped. But I am seeing it better now when I am feeling pulled to seek out the reassurance.

But sometimes it's an external trigger that causes the anxiety.