Can you have any idea.

How could i do erp if i have lot of new intrusive thoughts daily..

Anonymous

Date posted: 2y ago

ERP is the same for every ocd thought! Whatever it is you’re having OCD about the best coping skill my therapist shared with me was inviting and welcoming uncertainty. If you’re worried you have cancer, say maybe I have cancer maybe I don’t. If you’re worried you might be going to hell, say maybe I am maybe I’m not. If you’re worried you’re actually an ax murderer and a psychopath because you watch murder documentaries and what does that mean about you that you watch murder documentaries does that mean you’re actually a horrible person, say maybe I am maybe I’m not. Lol. Ocd can be funnny honestly, like typing those out sound ludicrous but in the moment it all feels so urgently dangerously real. Also saying I don’t have to figure this out right now, helps a lot. I have almost all the themes and my ocd is random but I’ve found the coping skill treats every worry. Don’t forget to enjoy your life! When you say I don’t have to figure this out right now, it’s not surpressing the thought and pushing it away, which can be a compulsion, it’s just saying okay maybe that’s true maybe I do have rabies because that cat bit me, but I’m going to go swimming with my friends (or whatever it is in your life you have to do that’s definitely better than getting caught in a thought loop) and worry about that later. Hopefully these things help you!:)

@John

Date posted: 2y ago

Thank you very much..😃

Anonymous

Date posted: 2y ago

Oh also when you say I don’t have to figure this out right now, if you keep saying it, it trains your brain to not think the thought is a danger. If you try to figure it out right then and there with urgency you TRAIN your brain to give you the intrusive thought more because your brain believes this is an ✨URGENT THREAT✨. Giving it the inattention lets your brain believe it’s not so pressing and I’ve found I eventually have the thought less and less and I never get to the point where “okay it’s time to figure it out now”. :)

Anonymous

Date posted: 2y ago

ERP is all about exposing yourself to the possibility of the threat being real and just ✨not caring✨

User type: Therapist

Date posted: 2y ago

Hi there John0. The skills taught via ERP can be applied to all types of OCD. Once you learn how to do it appropriately, you can use it to challenge your OCD thoughts, even if there is a new intrusive thought every day.

BipolarOCDsu...

Date posted: 2y ago

Research Buddhist meditation. Do that and then ERP. ERP becomes much easier if your mind is already balanced and calm.

@John

Date posted: 2y ago

Thanks @Roberts

Anonymousssssss

Date posted: 16w ago

Do you have to do erp?

I’ve noticed that I’m somewhat happier also ignoring my thoughts than I am instead of doing compulsions (I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired atp) but I’ve heard you’re technically supposed to do erp rather than pushing under the rug. But idk if I have a thought I just refuse to think about it again and im fine even if I want to do compulsions

Chels0212

Date posted: 15w ago

Intrusive thoughts

I struggle so bad with intrusive thoughts. They can be so bad that I'll cry because I KNOW that's not how I feel or want to do. (Too embarrassed to say what they're about) I'll constantly try to figure out why I have them, and constantly figure out what they mean, causing me to constantly circle around and around. I had to get on anxeity meds, which helped a little but the thoughts still happen. How do you help yourself with this? How do you know that you're just not some physcopath? 😅

Young adults with OCD

issphra 🫶🏻

Date posted: 12w ago

Advice please??? I’m CONFUSED

OK, this might sound really dumb, but when you guys get intrusive thoughts, do they just come once and then go away? I’ve heard that repeatedly thinking about an intrusive thought is considered ‘checking,’ but it doesn’t feel like I have any control over how many times it comes up in my head. It’s not like I’m trying to check anything—it just keeps showing up, almost like it’s terrorizing me every time. I can’t seem to stop it from looping, stop remembering it, or prevent it from coming up. Every time it does, I feel horrified, and I already know it’s going to horrify me. I don’t think I’m actively trying to see if my feelings have changed, so is this still considered checking? How do other people get an intrusive thought and just move on? Doesn’t it pop up a million times for them too? I always thought that was normal, but now I’m hearing this could be a compulsion, and I feel really confused, scared, and lost. Is this why my OCD feels so extreme? Because I really don’t feel like I can control how many times the thought pops up.

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