Does anyone have any helpful vitamins or routines that seem to help reduce anxiety? I have been trying to get more sleep & read more (which sounds silly but is a great distraction from all of my thoughts) which seems to help so far. I just wondered if anyone has found things that seem to anchor them & help to reduce the spiral of ocd! Also do routines tend to help those with ocd or discourage the breaking of compulsions??? I feel like they help me but maybe they only give me comfort and reassurance which might actually worsen my ocd in the future??? I’m not sure lol if anyone has any suggestions please reply! :)

I don't know of any vitamins- besides making sure you're overall healthy and taking any medication you need to be taking. But- I would encourage you to keep doing peaceful, definitely not silly routines like getting lots of sleep and reading. If you have any activities you like to do that are relaxing or rejuvenating- like exercise, art, gardening, etc., I would encourage you to continue doing those. Try and stay off of the news/social media as much as you can to reduce situational/social anxiety, but obviously don't isolate yourself. Besides that, yoga/journaling has been really good for me, especially when my thoughts are spiraling. Hope this helps. :)

For OCD, try N-AC (N-Acytle Cysteine) it helps with OCD symptoms but can give weird or vivid dreams. For good sleep, Melatonin gummies. For stress or depression, St. John's Wart (don't take if you already take an antidepressant) and Vitamin C For OCD spirals, I like to have a list of ten or fifteen things I like to do that distract me. Like, take a hot bath, read a book, do some sewing, or play a game. When OCD is bad, I pick from the list at random rather than having to compulsively do one thing.

GABA during the day, GABA, melatonin and magnesium at night to sleep better have been life changing for me.

Hi mdocd, I’ve definitely been in this position before, looking for and trying vitamins that could help reduce my anxiety. Please do talk to your doctor about medications if you’re interested. Anti-depressants have helped me manage my anxiety/depression levels, but there is no vitamin or pill that will magically make your anxiety disappear. When I started therapy for my OCD, I realized that fighting or trying to suppress my anxiety only made it more powerful. Much to my displeasure, I had to learn to sit with my anxiety and sometimes even summon it with ERP. Anxiety is just an emotion; it could mean something is wrong, it could mean nothing at all. Accepting anxiety, learning to co-exist with it, and continuing doing what I was doing was life-changing for me. With the help of a NOCD therapist and ERP therapy, I am no longer controlled by my anxiety; I let it come and go as it pleases.