- Date posted
- 2y ago
- Date posted
- 2y ago
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. :)
- Date posted
- 2y ago
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.
- Date posted
- 2y ago
GABA during the day, GABA, melatonin and magnesium at night to sleep better have been life changing for me.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y ago
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.
- Date posted
- 2y ago
I actually had the opposite experience! My OCD medications did nothing but made me more anxious. The minute I started taking herbal supplements, it improved. You are absolutely right- there is no magic pill to make OCD go away forever, but there are a lot of valid options for improving your condition without medication.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y ago
@Scooterino I’m definitely not saying you have to take anti-depressants, just saying that’s the route I took and it worked for me. And if herbal supplements help you, that’s awesome! But I wanted to discourage the OP from expecting an herbal supplement/anti-depressant to magically fix the anxiety + make their OCD disappear. The only way to really work through your OCD and it’s accompanying anxiety is by accepting uncertainty and practicing ERP.
- Date posted
- 2y ago
@Amber R For sure! And I know medications work for a vast majority of folks- I am very glad they worked for you. I think we agree that there is no magic answer, either. But I think any way possible to reduce symptoms so you can focus long enough to do the ERP successfully is a huge win! :) Medications, Herbal Supplements, Meditation, Good Sleep, even other types of Therapy... It all helps get you where you need to go.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y ago
@Scooterino 100% agree!
Related posts
- Date posted
- 18w ago
hi. so one big factor of my OCD is rumination. i met a guy who i have a crush on the idea of (idea bc there are red flags). my biggest fear is not finding true love, my ex told me no one else would deal with what i have (my ocd, specifically reassurance seeking and getting overstimulated after intimacy). a few weeks ago, my friends and family all gathered and tried to give me advice that sounded like “you’re shy and you’ll never find someone.” after that, i’ve felt off. i’ve been using an unhealthy coping skill, daydreaming, and i’ve just felt unbalanced. my ocd makes everything feel different sometimes, i can’t explain it. life, myself, almost like being in a dissociated state. has anyone else experienced that? i don’t know how to remain balanced during my off times and i know pms exasperates it all. i take ashwaghanda and omega 3s in a multi vitamin daily. i take them all together in the evening but i’ve missed three days recently and also messed with my rocky sleep schedule because of fun times with friends. i hope these supplements work, because i don’t know if i’d be brave enough for medication. i had a bad reaction on prozac and often am forgetful. i just have been battling my OCD consciously for almost ten years now and unconsciously for longer. i am so tired, as my mental health extends beyond my OCD. i’m in talk therapy with some cbt aspects but i only see her twice a month. i’ve broken down so many times and promised myself id get on track or that certain things would work, but it’s like i am stuck in a circle that gets smaller when i’m able to help myself. i just want to be normal. i want to be able to mess up my sleep schedule to enjoy good times and not suffer horrible consequences or fear that i will be entirely thrown off balance. i don’t want to worry or doubt or feel so dissociative that i squint my eyes for a moment and wonder why i feel so unreal. i will never understand why god has allowed me to go through this. i cannot let it be for nothing but i don’t know how much more to bend and contort my body and brain to get somewhere stable but how lovely it would be if i could. i don’t have much of a schedule right now, i get apathetic and give in with things from time to time. one thing can trigger me and i am back to square one wether in a week or month. any advice, any and all is so helpful. your stories, your thoughts. maybe feeling less alone and knowing what has helped you is exactly what i need right now. thank you 💗
- Date posted
- 13w ago
whats up guys what are some tips dealing with ocd and what to do when a thought makes u anxious ??
- Date posted
- 12w ago
It started when I became an adult, and started receiving my mental health diagnosis. I hyper fixated on each and every action I did and how it could be related to my diagnosis’s. It then lead to fixation to my physical health — making appointments and seeing every specialist I can to rule out every possibility. I currently have been suffering with obstructive sleep. I woke up the past few days with severe pain from the lack of sleep whilst believing I was oversleeping. Luckily my fit watch tracks my sleep cycle and it turns out I am not receiving any sleep. I had an extreme panic attack — bursting into tears on the phone with my mom wondering what this case might be. She told me it could be sleep apnea and that a simple sleep study could figure this out. However, knowing my family history I made appointments to every specialist I can to make sure it is nothing serious. The unknown of health can be scary to me. Watching my mother suffer with her physical health chronically since I was a child lead me to be very conscious and aware of how my body is functioning. This morning was one of the worst moments of physical pain. I should just take one step at a time with the sleep doctor instead of taking measures to see every specialist that could pertain with this issue. However, that is very hard to me. I don’t want to ever wake up in the pain I was this morning. Does anyone else suffer with health-related OCD? And if so, how do you find a sense of ease during moments like I expressed?
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