- Date posted
- 2y ago
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y ago
I understand the struggle you mentioned. I have the same struggle as well at times. I think one way to determine if it is OCD or not is the level of anxiety it produces. I was stressed when I got out of my car if my door hit the car next to me. So my ERP was going to the parking lot, park next to a car. Get out walk to the back of my car and get back in and drive off without looking at the car I parked next to. I did that again, again and again. Overtime my brain stopped setting off false alarms. So doing ERP is so important. I know you can do it, I did and yes it is difficult in the start but the work pays off. I look at it as the more I make myself uncomfortable today will make next month much easier.
- User type
- NOCD Alumni
- Date posted
- 2y ago
I understand this! One time I was discussing this with my therapist. I think my intrusive thought was “what if I don’t get the spaghetti sauce my dad likes and he hates me forever”. It felt like a real threat to our relationship. Once you do ERP and sit with the uncertainty you can come to a conclusion with a clear head. In my case it was, if I have time to get the spaghetti sauce my dad likes, that would be a nice gesture, but it in no way is necessary to maintain a nice relationship! And then I could do something not out of fear but because I wanted to.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 22w ago
That’s kinda my question. All my thoughts feel so realistic and so now I doubt if they are ocd and if I just can’t make my mind up about something and I’m using ocd as an excuse or something idc I feel like this post is word vomit.
- Date posted
- 11w ago
This list by ai gives a good summary of my symptoms. Does it resemble OCD or is it something else? 1. Compulsions (OCD-specific behaviors): • Feeling the need to flex or contract muscles an even number of times, equally on both sides of your body. • Needing to reverse actions (for example, if you roll your eyes or trace a line with your finger, you feel compelled to do it again in the exact opposite way). 2. Intrusive Thoughts (OCD-specific ruminations): • Daydreaming about people you care about getting hurt (e.g., school shooting, injury, or kidnapping). • Sometimes feeling like you might want something bad to happen to someone you find attractive—possibly because of a desire to help or save them, though it’s confusing. • These thoughts can sometimes provide a twisted sense of relief while remaining distressing and confusing. 3. Sexual Orientation OCD: • Experiencing confusion or doubt about your sexual orientation. 4. Contamination Thoughts: • Feeling like things are contaminated, especially after touching something gross. 5. Sensory Compulsions: • Feeling the need to smell your hand after touching areas like your ear or hair. 6. ADHD-like Symptoms / Additional Observations: • Fidgeting or moving your legs when standing or sitting.
- Date posted
- 8w ago
Does anyone have any advice for how to know the difference between ocd and real feelings/thoughts? Sometimes an intrusive thought will come in and I immediately know it’s ridiculous and I can just leave it alone and it won’t bother me but other times I really really don’t know. It’s when ocd hijacks and twists my real feelings and thoughts and tries to manipulate me into believing they’re something they’re not or something that doesn’t align with my true morals or intentions. But since it’s twisting and mixing with real feelings I get so confused and scared. Everything gets jumbled and I feel like I can’t trust myself or my own mind. Yet other times and other topics I can laugh off and push away just fine. Make it make sense. And then I start to think well maybe I don’t have ocd at all and I’m just in denial because I don’t want to accept that these scary/concerning things are true about myself. Or maybe that’s just the ocd talking.
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