Recovery

I’m on the way to recovery and as I’m accepting and ignoring my thoughts so they don’t affect me anymore, I realised that I actually used to have intrusive thoughts even before I developed POCD, and I’d have them DAILY! The only difference was that I had never given them the power to scare me — stuff like “grab that cigarette and smoke!” when I’m not a smoker, or something inappropriate about my family that I just always scroll off. The fact that I scrolled them off made it possible that they’d never come and bother me again, so that I could easily pass my friends their cigarette without feeling the urge to smoke it myself. The only difference is that I never feared those things because I know where my true intentions lay. I’d probably had POCD thoughts even before, I simply didn’t care about them enough to become so repetitive. That is to say, intrusive thoughts happen all the time; even when we’re “normal” (and trust me, I used to lead such a happy normal life when I had those random thoughts, or even URGES). It’s your reaction to them that needs to change.

luckydawg

Date posted: 3y

Sometimes I used to feel the physical urge to drop my phone in the river. I knew it was just something stupid and I wasn’t scared to walk past rivers all the time. I know its a stupid example, but this realisation has made recovery much easier for me.

luckydawg

Date posted: 3y

I mean, there were times I’d even have to put my phone in my pocket for how deep this urge to drop my phone was. But I wasn’t scared of it because I knew what it was — an intrusive urge.

sien23

Date posted: 3y

@luckydawg Before I was diagnosed I could not go near the edge of cliffs or bridges or anything off the ground because I thought my thoughts would force me to jump.. now I look back and realize that was an intrusive thought and I probably wasn’t actually going to do anything

Pluriel

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 3y

I can relate to that. I can remember when I was a student that I was reading a book for sons of a frikend of mine and suddently noticed a groinal response which already shocked me back in the time. Somehow I was able to get over it and not pay to much attention to it. In the menatime I developed quite a few OCD themes which I wasn`t really aware of, some of them I treated myself (without knowing) with exposure and response prevention. For instance, I only checked once when I used the iron and left the building and told myself that the house probably will burn. Back in december me and my partner looked after a 16 year old teenager of friends of us. I supported him during his long and winding road of coming out as being gay to his parents. While we were watching television he snuggled up to me and I froze....checked myself again in terms of groinal response and there it kicked in again. That was the starting point of my journey getting in touch with OCD. What kind of exposures had been helpful for you?

luckydawg

Date posted: 3y

I’m not followed by any therapist just yet because I can’t afford it at the moment. However, when I have a better day, I try to induce the thought into myself. I try to think of what scares me — if I am, actually, attracted to you know what. I picture myself being actually attracted to you know what, in front of the cutest one of them all, and I let that feeling of fear go away slowly, until the thought and “false attraction” goes away as well and I realise it’s nothing but an intrusive thought. I also try not to avoid videos of kids or kids on the streets. I don’t stare at them but I fight the urge to immediately look away. I don’t know if what I’m doing is right, I’ve only started these few days. I hope it is, I’ll keep you posted if you want.

luckydawg

Date posted: 3y

@luckydawg I know some people look up pictures of what scares them, as well, but I haven’t been able to do that yet. It’s still a bit scary for me

Nica

Date posted: 3y

Great light bulb moment! 👏🏻

Holl1

Date posted: 18w

OCD

So I’ve noticed that my OCD has calmed down, I’m getting less intrusive thoughts but I feel more uncertain than ever. Is this normal for recovery?

HOY

Date posted: 17w

Wow

more advice for sexual/pocd sufferers I read somewhere that if you hyperfocus too much on your body's reactions to intrusive thoughts, you're unwillingly just making it intensify the sensations. Your body, after enduring severe anxiety and stress from sexual obsessions, will now just react to anything sexual that comes into your mind, whether forced or randomly. It can happen in any way. OCD makes anything possible, and is driven by fear. Knowing this I realized, it doesnt matter at this point, and to let it happen. And you guys should too. Remember what your real values and desires are. It can feel as real as it gets, but it is still not you.

Holl1

Date posted: 15w

OCD recovery

I think I’m in the recovery stage as my thoughts have settled so much & I only get intrusive thoughts on occasion and get worse only when I’m anxious, but the quietness in my brain feels so weird & I feel awful saying that because all I wanted was the thoughts to stop. This is the most quiet it’s been it’s over 7 months, so to go from non stop thoughts for a long time to quietness I don’t know how to take it. Has anyone else felt like this in recovery

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