Spiritual/Existential OCD

Can anyone relate to this?: I wanted to fix my OCD (aggressive and sexual) by turning to spirituality and spiritual teachings (A Course in Miracles). Now the OCD uses the spiritual content to torture me with existential thoughts and worries all day, for example: „the world is an illusion“ or „you’re just dreaming this — you have to ‚wake up‘“. Problem is that these ocd thoughts are backed up by the spiritual literature. I don’t know what to believe in anymore and if I try to figure that out, I’m back in the ocd cycle again.

Username: Dee CDee C

Date posted: 2y ago

Sorry you’re going through this but that’s what ocd does. It’ll lead you to the rabbit hole of trying to figure things out and come up with an answer. Problem is whatever answers you come up with, it’s still not 100% certainty. For myself I believe in a higher power (because I don’t have all the answers). And when my existential ocd kicks in with its lies, that’s when I lean towards uncertainty. I acknowledge that it’s my ocd and I choose not to engage in the thoughts. I will accept the uncertainty. Hope this helps you.

Username: Dee CDee C

Date posted: 2y ago

@Lennart - the existential thoughts come in the form of questions. Most are when things (shapes, images, pictures, etc.) don’t make sense. I begin to question, Why am I having these thoughts? What do they mean? Why does it bother me to think about them? Why do I question everyday images? Where do they come from? Where are they going? Inherently, they have no answer. In practicing ERP I sit with the thoughts & discomfort in a nonjudgmental way. I acknowledge the thoughts and label them for what they are (OCD thoughts). I don’t follow them to try and figure it out an answer. Or ruminate why they came. I don’t distract myself rather I choose to disregard them and accept the uncertainty. I may also practice some mindfulness and just let them float on like clouds in the sky. Hoping this helps you.

Username: hellopeoplehellopeople

User type: NOCD Alumni

Date posted: 2y ago

I can 100% relate. I went through the same thing! I am now a Christian, but the thing I didn’t know is that there is only one gospel and only one truth because there is only one God. I was caught up in word of faith, new age, manifestation, that triggered my ocd because like you said, they confirmed my horrible thoughts were true and they celebrated them! It helped me to get away from teachings that’s celebrate harmful thought patterns. And using ERP techniques when intrusive thoughts pop up

Username: Lennart..Lennart..

Date posted: 2y ago

Thanks Dee. How do you do exposures concerning existential ocd ? Any recommendations?

Username: Anonymous

Date posted: 1y ago

Spirituality, Religon & False Memory OCD

I’m new to NOCD and was recently diagnosed with having traits of OCD. I’ve yet to start therapy, but I’d like to start to engage with the community and especially with anyone who can relate to what I’m currently experiencing. I’m a spiritually based person and my OCD has latched onto my spirituality, religion and may be making me question my overall reality, etc. This also makes me question whether or not I am experiencing Magical Thinking OCD as well. Can anyone who deals with spirituality, religion and false memory OCD help guide my thoughts and I? I know that we’re not licensed professionals, but I am seeking fellow users who can relate to what I’m currently going through and experiencing because I currently feel alone and like no one else immediately around me can relate. Thanks in advance!

Username: Dan8421

Date posted: 1y ago

Anyone stuck in the spiritual community traps?

At one time I was kind of good at ignoring the intrusive thoughts when I recognized the OCD patterns in them but later on as I was getting deeper in the spiritual community I am not able to do that. I am confronted with things like that if you believe it/if you put too much energy into that, the thoughts can come true. Any insights how to deal with this?

Username: reaganmarie

Date posted: 1y ago

Existential OCD

For the past week-ish I have been having a really scary existential crisis that feels like it is stemming from ocd. It started with me being freaking out that i’m going to die one day, then it merge into me being freaked out about what was going to happen after I die (mostly the thought of nothingness). I found some very brief relief in some spiritual beliefs and watching psychic medium readings but then I started think about even bigger and harder to answer questions such as, “if there is a God, who created God?”, “Is the afterlife scary?”, “Could the afterlife end one day?” “What is the point of anything at all?”, “Will the sun exploding destroy whatever afterlife exist?” Really ridiculous questions. I truly believe that there is something after death and something that exists as a life force science cannot explain, but the fact that my mind can’t comprehend or figure it out is really really scary. I feel as if I am going crazy. I have been thinking about nothing but the universe and the meaning behind it all and where it all came from. I can’t enjoy anything anymore. I just want to lay in bed all day and even that is hard. I have been non-stop watching videos about people’s beliefs about this topic trying desperately to find some sort of answer and I am starting to think that may be a compulsion. I am trying my best to remind myself that I when I die I will have all the answers to these questions and I don’t need to worry about this right now because it truly doesn’t affect anything or change anything in my life but it is really hard. I feel as if I have “uncovered” something and my life will never return to normal again. I am terrified that I am going to go crazy or start having hallucinations and that I’ve ruined my life by researching into something so complex and not understandable at all. Any kind of suggestions or anything would be helpful, I hate dealing with this and feeling so crazy and hopeless.

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Spiritual/Existential OCD

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