- Date posted
- 2y
false memory ocd with really awful topics
Does anyone know how to deal with uncertainty when the false memory is something really awful. I just feel sick and depressed all the time thinking about it :(
Does anyone know how to deal with uncertainty when the false memory is something really awful. I just feel sick and depressed all the time thinking about it :(
Hello! I totally went through the same thing and I understand completely what you are going through. Sadly no amount of reassurance or rumination will ever satisfy the OCD monster. The only way to beat the OCD monster is to starve it by not ruminating and not seeking reassurance. I know how hard it is at first, seems like it’s impossible. I never thought I could get better but I have with this technique and medication. Try to focus on what is going on around you. Try going 5 minutes with ruminating, where you are going to completely ignore the thoughts. After 5 minutes do all the rumination you want. Then do the same for 10,20,30, etc minutes and build up your tolerance. 1% better everyday and in 100 days you will be 100% better! You got this! Let me know if you have any questions
Hi, what medicine worked for you, I know everyone is different so just wondering, thanks!
@Anonymous Hello! I have tried almost every med lol. Right now a combo of Gabapentin, Latuda, and Prozac has been working for more for over a year. Just don’t give up if the current med isn’t working. I know how frustrating it can get when having to start a new one. You will find the right one. Make sure to keep your doctor updated and let them know how you are feeling!
@NOCD Advocate - Greg J. Hi! Is it normal that when you first try stopping ruminating you feel sick to your stomach and like you are awful?
@LynnOCDbattle Yeah I remember in the height of OCD I didn’t eat for like a week. Try to not overwhelm yourself as this is hard work. How much progress have you made? Try breaking your exposures into small steps that won’t overwhelm you and build yourself up from there. Do exposures that are more manageable at first then as you build a tolerance to uncertainty you can do harder more difficult and more anxiety provoking exposures.
@NOCD Advocate - Greg J. I’ve made minimal progress as this is a new theme for me. My theme used to be HOCD. I just don’t get how this false fear could never not bother me. But I’ll keep practicing in small bits
@LynnOCDbattle Does your old theme still bother you? Or does it not affect you that much even though you thought back then you would never get over this thought? Trust me you can and will when you put in the work. I really thought I would never recover but day by day I got closer and closer to my goal. The false fear is terrible I totally understand. But the way to beat this is accepting the uncertainty if the thought is true or not. When you get the thought simply think “Idk if that is true, it could be, Idc I’m going to move on with life” every time the OCD thought comes in
@NOCD Advocate - Greg J. That’s a fair point you made. I am not bothered by my old theme and wasn’t sure how I would get through that. Right now, it just feels like if I accept uncertainty I’m a terrible person
@LynnOCDbattle Yeah I get that feeling. I felt that same thing too. OCD makes you think you’ll be stuck with this theme or thought forever, but that’s completely untrue. Like you saw with your last theme the thoughts did go away and you now know the thoughts were not true. Just keep pushing and you’ll get to the same point with this theme and all future possible themes.
@NOCD Advocate - Greg J. Thanks for all your support. Means a lot. And this was the encouragement I needed.
@LynnOCDbattle You got this!!
Yes I deal with false memory also but learned to live with uncertainty and try to enjoy every moment of life and be greatful
Hi everyone!! This is a new kind of theme I’m dealing with. My brain will come up with false memories of my boyfriend saying awful things about my family or me…deep down I know it’s not real. The more I think about it though, the more real these “memories” feel. How do I deal?
Hello all, I’ve dealt with various OCD themes and compulsions for pretty much as long as I can remember. In some periods of my life the thoughts and compulsions have been particularly severe, but I’ve also had years where I’m able to keep it under control. This has made me worry I don’t actually have OCD, especially because I haven’t been doing consistent therapy and my therapists have gone back and forth on whether I have OCD. In the past few years, I’ve struggled immensely with false memory ocd, and right now I’m going through probably the most severe episode of my life. I love my boyfriend with all my heart. A few times that I’ve gone out drinking I’ve had the thought before “what if I lost control and cheated tonight” and it’s bothered me severely. Two times before, it’s gotten to the point of convincing myself that because I talked to a man that meant I had cheated on my boyfriend and just couldn’t remember. It has never turned out to be true. About a month ago, I went out with friends and had too much to drink. I was really ashamed of myself the next morning, particularly because I always try to drink cautiously now that I know it can trigger my anxiety. I am ashamed to admit I do not remember the very end of the night getting in my uber and going home. I woke up anxious and extremely worried and immediately started off by worrying if I could have tried to kiss my friend and not remembered. I called him and was immediately reassured nothing had happened, I simply drank too much and went home at the end of the night. I started feeling better, but then remembered a moment I had been in the bathroom. I remembered chatting with people in line about how long the line was, and then being in the bathroom on my phone. I then felt like I remembered people knocking and saying to myself “that wasn’t that long” and leaving. There is nothing concrete that I remember that in any way indicates I cheated, and in fact I have texts with my boyfriend from the whole night telling him I loved him. My friend told me that the only time I was ever apart from him was about 5 minutes and that when he came back I was in the same exact spot he left me in. However, when I remembered being in the bathroom, I thought to myself “what if you cheated on him in the bathroom”/ “oh my god did you cheat on him in the bathroom” and then a series of images of me performing sexual acts popped into my head. I’ve poured over my memory and truly do not remember meeting anyone, talking to anyone, or even finding anyone attractive that night, but the fact that I was drinking makes me worried I’m just forgetting and these images could be real. I’ve been constantly ruminating on these fears for the past month, to the point that the only relief I feel is when I’m able to fall asleep. I’m a law student and it’s becoming extremely difficult to keep up with my classes. I’ve been google searching, asked chat gpt for advice, confessed my fears to my boyfriend, asked for reassurance from pretty much everyone in my life, and even emailed the bar asking for security footage (which I know all sounds insane). I’m a naturally guilty person and feel bad about small things, so I really don’t think I would be capable of cheating and then nonchalantly texting my boyfriend, but these images feel so real that it’s terrifying. I’ve also seen a lot about how I would “just know” and that begins to scare me because then I think “you do just know, you did it” even though I really don’t think I did. I know these posts are not supposed to be for reassurance seeking, I’m just so exhausted and feeling really depressed. I’m wondering if anyone has experienced something similar and has any advice. I’m also wondering if images can feel more real the more you ruminate on them or if it’s a sign of memory. Thank you so much for listening.
any advice for when you get false memories that feel really real? especially something that had JUST happened, it’s like ur brain distorts it. i feel like i do something wrong 24/7 then i get over it and ocd latched onto something new
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