Faith burn out?
Any fellow Christians who struggle with religious OCD, do you ever feel burnt out from your faith from managing obsessions and compulsions? I have a desire to read scripture and be with God, but it can also be a battle because a lot of my compulsions center around scripture. What encourages you when you get like this?
Yes, I can relate. As a Christian I sometimes find myself either avoiding prayer because I can't get every topic out perfectly. Or I go TOO hard and can't stop praying and going into every little detail so as not 'leave anything out' and iys exhausting. I feel like I'm a bad Christian like I'll be judged eventually for not putting enough 'effort in" or praying to my 'full potential ' and in this day and age it feels as though Christians are persecuted for our beliefs and singled out. I try to remain mindful and slow things down. God gives us so much grace. OCD is very taxing. Can you relate to these thoughts? :)
@Snoopy52 Yeahh man, I was literally just struggling with prayer as well. I want to just pray and seek God but the OCD makes me feel so exhausted because I have to compulse and repent every time I get an intrusive thought, and I’ll literally be downstairs for like hours some days just struggling. But yeah I don’t think God wants us to be obsessive and struggle like this it’s just my anxiety, and I’ve been helped by Romans 8:26 “[26] Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”
@CJ_022 Thank you!! What an awesome bible verse and I must say you have wonderful thoughts of wisdom. I appreciate you replying to my post.
@Snoopy52 I can defintely relate. And you are right, he does give so much grace. I’ve found that it helps me to pray as I think of things/ as things come up, or for only a short time (like 5 minutes or less). It has helped me a lot, it helps me to know that Jesus is actually interceding for us and praying for us. He knows what’s on our heart. Thanks for commenting
@Snoopy52 Of course brotha
Yeah I feel that. I have intrusive blasphemous thoughts towards God and the Bible especially when I read. I also feel exhausted by these thoughts everyday. I think what’s helped me though is just trusting in God’s promises that He will be with us in trouble, and I just try to get out of my own head and focus on the Lord. But it sucks for sure
Definitely, it also relies on your church members. My church is very toxic and such so everytime I'm there my compulsions get worse, but I feel like being in a loving, understanding community it would be so much better. I just wish there was a church made by people with religous trauma/religious OCD or any other disorder based struggle with religion, I feel like the community in a place like that would be so fantastic and just peaceful.
I relate for sure. For me there’s also the challenge of my other OCD themes being tied in with my faith. For example I used to think that it was “Christian” of me to have to pray in response to having sexual intrusive thoughts, which I misunderstood to be “lust”. So I’ve been learning that intrusive thoughts are NOT the same thing as lust, and that compulsively praying in response to them is OCD and not a mark of a “good Christian”. So now when those thoughts swim around my head I feel like a bad Christian and it’s all becoming very confusing to figure out which convictions of mine are actually true and important and biblical, and which ones are just OCD. Anyways, rant over. One thing that’s encouraged me a lot lately is reading Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund. There is another person in my church who also has religious OCD and she actually gave me the book, it really encouraged her a lot and it’s encouraged me too.
@healingLittleJade I can totally relate to being unable to differentiate between personal and biblical convictions; I think in those moments that’s where I have to trust the most and it’s good for me. And I have heard good things about that book
@healingLittleJade Yeah that’s a great book
I feel this. I get motivated to read the Bible and then I go to read it and I feel like it’ll never be enough and I’ll never be enough.
It feels dry for me really, I do my stuff and times with God and then I go by with my day. I get these obsesive thoughts that I just kinda shrug of really easily but then I'm left with the feeling, I don't give into most of my compulsions by now but the fight with them kinda left me empty. Try to feel something means giving into compulsive behaviour while not feeling anything kinda makes me feel empty. I broke recently but I felt something at least and after that I got hit by a wave of good emotions and thoughts. Like I started to tell myself "When I'm down You are still God" , "When I break, You are still God" like a few of these and then I somehow shifter 180° for some time. I just needed to feel something I guess.
After all, one of the biggest encouragements is the fact that only by looking at this comment section, you can see you are not alone. There's so many of us experiencing this.
@Dragos9898 So true! We’re a community for each other
OMG YES. I am in a total mess right now with religion bc I have intense un resolved religous trauma and my church that I currently go to is abusive towards me bc im gay and enby, so right now I'm in a place where I'm told God hates me everyday and I'm loosing faith. But I also have so so many religous compulsions, mostly with prayer and asking if God is there. I dont have encouragement, sonif you find some let me know!
@ArdenIris I’m so sorry you’re going through this and that people have told you such hurtful things … as a Christian myself who’s been blessed to be in a healthy church I can encourage you that God loves you more than you could possibly fathom. And there are a lot of healthy resources out there for people who are in your shoes. If you want to chat more feel free to message me on discord jade.a#9977. I know that Jesus is angry at the abuse you’ve experienced, and I know that He’s right there with you wanting to help you and heal you and embrace you.
@ArdenIris I’m sorry that you’re having to go through that with your church right now. I hope it can bring some comfort that church is full of people (who are messy, make mistakes, and don’t always reflect God’s unconditional love). I am not in any way trying to condone what they did/ are doing, because it’s not right; just trying to say that people will fail to love, but God never will. Something that has been helping me lately is thinking about how God loves us so much and desires a relationship with us that He pursues us! I think Psalm 139:7-12 would be encouraging, because it talks about how God is always present. 💗
This has been a good resource for me with managing themes around my faith. https://www.justinkhughes.com
I am suffering from religious OCD for the past 32 years. When I am practising disregarding my OCD fires back with strong thoughts of until when u r going to disregard. When I say to myself God is with me it fires back with thoughts of what God has done until now. You will never recover. May I ask you what is this. Azhar from India
I got diagnosed with OCD a few months ago after getting plagued with intrusive thoughts last November. It’s been present in my life since I was younger but didn’t become truly debilitating until last November. I’ve been in therapy since May, and I started an SSRI. I’m a Christian, and I’ve struggled a lot with my faith since this started. I’ve had a hard time with ERP because I fear it’s not going to help and actually make things worse. I have also had a lot of emotional turmoil from family trauma and marriage issues. I’ve become so hopeless and numb and desensitized that I don’t know how to continue forward. I don’t feel like I’m able to talk to anyone about it because it’s taboo, so I feel like a fraud and like I don’t deserve to do things I enjoy or hang out with people I love. I do want to get better but I also have a fear that I don’t actually want to. I feel like my whole life is ruined and that I’ll never enjoy living again.
So, this may not be everyone’s cup of tea. But eight years ago after getting out of the military. I was very ill, my walking around weight now is 219-225 I love food. At that time I was 159 I thought I had cancer I couldn’t keep food down. I spent more time going to that bathroom than living. The VA thought it would be good to put me on muscle relaxers, it did the opposite affect. It made me worse almost to the point where I almost lost control and took my own life. Fast forward eight years later and the fear of losing control is what is consistently on my mind. I do rituals to make sure the door is locked, I have to watch my groceries at all times because I feel like someone might poison me. I have to put my clothes on a certain way or else I feel like I might lose control. So, this is my life right now I had my first appointment today and I can feel some light at the end of the tunnel. I know erp therapy is going to be rough. But I just want my life back. To all suffering from this terrible thing called ocd keep fighting and turn to God, it really does help me when the anxiety kicks up. Love you all and remember the valley is only temporary and the sun shines brightest at the peak. Don’t give up.
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond
