Incorrect treatment due to comorbidity?

I read the article posted by NOCD about talk therapy not being the best for OCD due to trying to interpret the intrusions (and other things), saying ERP was best. But I’m used to talk therapy, and I appreciate it greatly. More importantly, I have a host of other issues (assuming OCD was diagnosed correctly) that do benefit from psychotherapy, or at least I’m certain they will. Depression, an anxiety that seems more like social anxiety than just OCD’s, family and culture issues, LGBT issues especially need to be talked with. (I’ve been prioritizing an LGBT specialist in my current search.) It makes me worry if I am sabotaging myself by seeking a non-OCD specialist. By not seeking ERP. I don’t know if my OCD is worse than the others/I should prioritize it. I go through long periods of time where I think I was misdiagnosed because I’m not showing any symptoms. My most pertinent issue has changed a lot as I’m in a transition stage of life, just moved living space, and am looking to do so again. My OCD symptoms have changed before as well, first being intrusion about hurting others, more recently being a kind of contamination-order combo that involves imagery. I’m sure that I don’t parse these symptoms perfectly. I’m sure I might say “so my depression makes me think this” and then say what is actually some OCD symptom, which is then dissected and challenged like a depression-induced cognitive distortion, which is counterproductive for OCD. With these issues that have seemingly contradictory cures, am I hurting myself in terms of OCD by seeking a talk therapist? I really just want someone to talk to a lot of the time. Recently anyways. Tagging health concern in case this triggers someone else with comorbidities. Don’t think this is my OCD talking here, I’m mildly concerned at most. - If I’m using the phrase “talk therapy” wrong, let me know. My CBT experience involved homework as well as talk, so I grouped it in. -

chilligans

Date posted: 3y

I'm currently engaging in both ERP through NOCD and regular talk therapy with another therapist. I don't see one as getting in the way of the other. Rather, I've been in talk therapy for 7 or 8 years and have gained tremendous insight about myself. Despite this, my deeper inner turmoil, what I now recognize to be OCD, remained roughly the same. Talk therapy aided in my not spiraling too deep into compulsions -- I never have an issue admitting that I'm not a bad person, or that other people aren't bad, as my intrusive thoughts would have me believe. Yet the thoughts never lost grip on me. I've never felt less shame for having them. I never stopped avoiding close relationships in order to lessen the urgency of the thoughts. Basically, talk therapy never hurt, it helped, but it just has it's limits. Talking and doing thought exercises isn't very helpful in responding to what is the more primal and emotional process behind OCD. ERP addresses that.

thecoastofspace

Date posted: 3y

Most of what ERP is about is acknowledging your intrusive thoughts and just letting them be. Accepting uncertainty. I think as long as you balance talk therapy with exposures, you'll do better overall. OCD makes you question were thoughts are coming from and tries to have you solve it by overthinking or doing compulsions. I have added back in talk therapy with ERP because just doing exposures wasn't enough. I needed someone to talk to about what I was feeling, someone sympathetic who could work with me. I would suggest that, if you do go to a talk therapist, have them hold you accountable for regular (make sure they are mangble) exposures. You could also maybe start challenging the distortions in the same way you challenge intrusive thoughts (ie. Maybe, maybe not.)

Lean_into_th...

Date posted: 23w

OCD/Trauma/Depression

Hi everyone. I haven't posted on here in quite in some time. I'm hesitant to post but I'm battling some things that are compounding onto each other. I've had ocd since 15 I'm 30 now..I feel it's still there but much better than years ago. Currently though I'm really struggling with depression and trauma too. Atleast I believe it's trauma and my psychiatrist saw some indicators. Long story short I was in a relationship with a narcissist and I'm still recovering. I feel my nervous system is still kinda on fight or flight. I've learned that our bodies very much stores trauma. Alongside this I'm pretty critical of my appearance and my self esteem is not so great. I've been putting myself out there more and socializing but I can't shake this feeling of being stuck in an endless loop. It's hard to tell what to tackle. It's difficult for me..I don't know if ocd treatment is for me or more so trauma based therapy. I think there is some overlap..any advice or feedback would be appreciated. A side note I've done ERP in the past and I've been to treatment centers such as mclean. I feel like I need a community because I feel pretty alone but I'm having trouble putting one foot in front of the other.

Huskydog

Date posted: 22w

I have a question.

I had my second session with a therapist and they told me they don’t think I have OCD. They think that I have just intrusive thoughts. They also said they don’t do diagnosis. I also noticed they did not ask me questions about my different themes.This has made me so confused. Even though I had a terrible fear that a therapist will tell that I don’t have it, (which is the main reason why I had not gone to one) I did suspect I had it because I identify with many of the symptoms. On the website it says that they treat it but I don’t think they are like a specialist. On the first session they described OCD mainly as needing to have things symmetrical and fear of contamination. I have a feeling that they don’t know much about it. I also didn’t mentioned all the themes I think I have because I’m scared to be misunderstood. I am not sure what to do. I can’t afford seeing an OCD therapist at NOCD. Can anyone give an insight, has something similar happened to you? Thank you!

Cody Fournier

User type: Therapist

Date posted: 21w

OCD switches themes

I was just thinking about how OCD tries to be tricky and switches themes on us!! The amount of times I have said to myself in the past, IF ONLY I HAD THE OLDER THEME I USE TO WORRY ABOUT BECAUSE THIS NEW ONE IS SO MUCH WORSE!!! Has anyone ever experienced this before? Once I started ERP therapy, I began to really start understanding what mental/physical compulsions I was doing to really keep my OCD alive! While I did this, I would also tap into my self-compassion bucket, even when it felt like it was dry at times, because it was SO easy to judge myself for because of the sheer presence of my thoughts. I would also have the most self-compassion for myself for those taboo intrusive thoughts that really felt so strong, ego-dystonic and real!!! My OCD would hop around from theme to theme and just when I thought I figured it out (compulsion) it would hop again and make me discouraged! I noticed for me that once I really understood my compulsions, it didn't matter when the theme switched as I could tackle it at its core. If I was able to stay steadfast and resist compulsions the best I could, I started to notice that my CONFIDENCE increased in the long run! I also noticed that some of the core fears were the same for different OCD subtypes. OCD treatment is hard BUT living with OCD is harder. I have experienced subtypes including Harm OCD, ROCD, Moral Scrupulosity, Sensorimotor, Contamination, Perfectionism/Just Right, Hit and Run, Magical Thinking, Real Event/False Memory. ERP therapy allowed me to really work on stopping these compulsions and switching from theme to theme. I was fed up with what OCD took from me and I needed to do something about it. I talked to an ERP therapist and it was one of the best decisions of my life. If you are struggling, keep pushing and get the help you deserve!! You got this!!!

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Incorrect treatment due to comorbidity?

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