Exposure?
I have harm OCD towards my cat and now she’s lying in bed next to me while I draw and my OCD is wild, screaming at me to remove myself from the situation as I might snap and kill her… this is the absolute worst feeling in the world.
You are not alone I have the same thing with my dog. My psychologist advised me to lightly put my hands around his neck and think about squeezing. It SUCKS and I panicked the first few times but in the long run I became less and less afraid to the point where the thought kinda bores me like when you’ve watched a scary movie too many times and it no longer freaks you out. In an odd way it’s a blessing that you have your cat to practice exposure on, As opposed to humans, She definitely won’t judge you or think you are weird. I promise You will get through this and your relationship with your cat will return to normal. Much love to you and your cat 🐈⬛ ❤️
I know exactly what you mean. I was brushing my cat the other day and he loves scratching his face against the brush. I suddenly got intrusive images of hurting him with the brush and it felt like I started being rougher after that even though it was pretty much the same pressure in the spot he loves. But because I wasn’t actively smiling or anything while brushing my thoughts are telling me I am an evil person who wanted to hurt the cat. I’m trying not to ruminate but I keep thinking back to how much pressure I used , how long, the face I was making, etc. But as an exposure I’ve been brushing him for a couple minutes since that day and it seems to be helping.
Thanks for these replies, it really helps knowing i’m not alone ❤️🥰
I saw a line in a self help book for ocd that said what if I ___ my son. It spiked my cycle. Now a month later I am really sick. Anyone have advice about this? I REALLY need help.
Sometimes I feel phobic toward my son, spiked anxiety, holding back but I always kiss and hug him and treat him as a Mom should. But secretly I feel horrible.
This morning my cat was following my everywhere and my harm theme was so intense after a nightmare I had last night, I could not calm down because wherever I went she went there with me and I kept avoiding. It pains me so freakin much, she is such a sweet and loving kitty and it's so horrible that I can't even be near her and give her the love she demands due to my harm ocd. I felt so anxious and scared and at one point I even felt so annoyed with her and it scared me! I sat down on the floor outside my room and started sobbing and suddenly said out loud "I can't deal with this anymore" and at that point I felt impeding doom and felt that I was going to get up at any sec and hurt my cats and my family, I really thought 'this is it, it's about to happen' ...I don't get this, it felt so fkcn real, I did not do anything but I literally felt I was going to and now i'm so traumatized :(
Y’all I am so goddamn mentally exhausted it’s incredible. I have a cat, she’s two and in perfect health, but my OCD won’t leave her alone. I’m constantly worried she’ll get crushed under a recliner or die of heat stroke in the dryer. My mom accommodates as much as she can, we keep the dryer shut and we keep a cat bed in the living room so she has a place to hide instead of going under the chair. I’ve never had an animal more than a year or so (hamsters that met tragic ends no matter what I did, and a senior dog that we put down after a year due to declining health) so I think the lack of experience with a pet is a big thing here, and she’s the first animal I’ve ever actually bonded with for real. I just want to make my brain stop describing her possible deaths to me and I can’t figure out how. Anything is appreciated. Thanks for reading, folks.
whenever i have harm ocd thoughts abt hurting my cat, normally i get really scared and i used to avoid being close to him or near him when those thoughts were there, but recently as ive been trying to work through them i find that im not scared. not only that though, whenever i have my hands near any places where my mind is telling me i could take advantage of, seeing that my cat is still happy and not afraid, reassures me that i havent ever acted in any way similar to what i think.. i find it comforting but i feel like its disgusting and fucked up of me to continue interacting with my cat and to be in any position where i could hurt him if those thoughts are there it feels like i enjoy the thoughts.. but i definitely dont! i just enjoy being able to still love him 😞 is this weird? i feel even worse for being concerned abt it
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond
