how do you remain hopeful during dark times? what keeps you going? for me it’s my boyfriend and his optimism. he reminds me that things always tend to work out fine. since i can be so pessimistic, his words are very refreshing.
With it comes to dark times related OCD - for me it's my encouraging spouse, counselor and loved ones. Overall my faith keeps me afloat. I know I would be a lot more of a mess than I already am without Jesus. LOL.
Little things. My 3 year old had stopped most verbal communication for about 6 months and has started speaking again in the past two weeks, because we found out he’s had chronic ear infections in both ears and the antibiotics finally cleared them up. I thought I had failed to protect him well enough from the trauma of his dad’s manic episode. We’re setting him up to get tubes and he starts speech therapy Monday. My spouse has a medication that seems to work and his awareness of his symptoms and emotional regulation are almost back to normal. I am lucky that my family is still whole. I have always been lucky, somehow, when I come out the other side. I will feel that way again soon.
@Bronsautracks that’s so wonderful about your child. i hope his speech therapy goes well! and i’m happy for you too that your family is still whole. ❤️
I'm struggling too. My faith has always been my anchor and since I've been in this storm I can't even concentrate on prayers most of the time. I don't like being alone and facing what I have to do like get rid of stuff in my cluttered room or look for a job so I just run to a friend's house or something. I enjoy it for the most part while I'm there but I just think it's an escape. Not sure how to fix it. I mean I have to do what I don't want to do, but I don't want to do it. Does that make sense? That's great that you have a supportive boyfriend and an optimistic one. If anyone can relate to me. That'd be great.
@Anonymous i also struggle to be alone. and struggle to do what i don’t want to do.
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@ocd.is.a.bitch111 my dog passed away last year. it was heartbreaking but i remind myself of just how much we all loved him and he loved us. he lived a great life 💜 i do have a cat though who’s so cute and comfy. sadly i’m at uni so don’t see him much, but when i do, it’s great.
When I’m really struggling I remind myself that even though I’m in a dark place, I’ve already come a long way and shouldn’t give up on myself now. My loved ones are what keeps me going too, bc they always try to be supportive and understanding. Oh and my psychiatrist also gives me hope bc she always has my best interest at heart.
@blazed i’m glad. support is truly everything. and it’s both external (loved ones, therapists etc) and internal (looking out for ourselves).
I know everything im dealing with is OCD. I have accepted that, but I just feel down. I don’t want to live the rest of my life like this. I just want to be free from this horrible illness. Any positive stories and recovery journeys will help. What did recovery look like for you? I used to be so happy, I miss it so much. This feels like it’s taken everything from me. How do you just live your life despite how you feel? Any hope will help!
Recently, I have been obsessing big time over being the best girlfriend I can be and being the best Christian I can be at the same time. Its rough since I always have these lingering thoughts that I’m leading me and my boyfriend down a path of sin by being more passionate to the point of having lustful intrusive thoughts when with him sometimes despite the fact that we’re both not wanting to go past pretty passionate kissing. For some extra context here, I’ve grown up in a Christian household my whole life and over the past few years, have been getting progressively more interested in my faith after temporarily abandoning it. It’s been tricky knowing what’s okay and what’s not okay to do, especially since I don’t view it as a religion necessarily but more like me wanting to get to know my creator better, show how thankful I am to be here/have everyone who is in my life and show said thankfulness by being as devoted as possible while still being who I am to my core. As for my relationship, I have been with my bf for almost 6 months now and he’s made me the happiest girl in the world, constant hugs, kisses, sweet little gestures that make my heart melt, caring comfort, the purest of love in my opinion and I’m so blessed to have him as my partner. Unfortunately though, I’m always worrying about him and our future together and how this will work since he himself isn’t a Christian. A lot of people who aren’t Christian’s won’t understand this logic but my brain always goes to 2 places. 1 is possible disagreements we may have about how we want our lives to go since I don’t want to hold him back from what he truly desires. That though, may not always align with what I have in place for my life. 2, quite frankly the worst one, is worrying about my bf not going to a good place after he dies. Now, this is not because of him as a person (he’s the best, very kind, sweet, supportive and loyal) but rather, because of rejecting God from coming into his life, and that scares me more than anything. Basically, I was taught that going to heaven is accepting God into your life and having your sins forgiven, and if you don’t, your rejecting the one thing that can take away all your imperfections and make you whole once more, which leads you to not fully making the mark despite me practically begging on my knees that it wasn’t this way for the sake of others who may not view things the same as me (no disrespect towards others btw, I love and respect people no matter what the believe or do). Does that make me sound judgmental? Yea, it probably does, but I swear, I wish it wasn’t this way. Based on what I’ve come to understand as a believer in God and Jesus, it’s not that simple. Knowing that, there’s 2 things that I mainly worry about due to the context and concerns I have. I worry about being a bad influence and Christian as a whole because of how much I struggle with my mental health and how much I fall to my own imperfections. I try and I try but I never feel like I’m good enough, that I’m probably a lukewarm Christian (iykyk) and that even I won’t go to heaven because of my own doubts and mistakes. I pray constantly for reassurance and for peace so I can be with my bf and even by myself and not feel this overwhelming weight crushing my shoulders constantly. It’s scary, not knowing what to do, how to feel, if what I’m feeling is okay or not, etc. Idk if anyone else is in my shoes, whether they are worried about being a not good enough person, not strong enough in your beliefs, or even loving someone and worrying for them and their future to such an extreme extent. If there’s anyone out there who might have some advice to make the fear fade away, even if it’s a little bit, I would be forever grateful. Before I end this, I just want to say your are loved and appreciated for who you are and nothing will change that fact, even if you may not feel that way, I’ve been coming to accept that the more the years go by and I wish for everyone to know this. Anyways, God bless and hope everyone has an amazing day/night. ❤️
do y’all ever look back at memories from your camera roll and come across the time in your life when things were really bad? because when i do, i just feel so sad for the mental state i was drowning in. not that i’m not still, but i have more perspective on it so i’m able to manage it more. but a couple years ago, i rarely left my bed because of how depressed i had gotten. what’s worse is during that time, i had wished that i wanted to unalive myself. but there was never a point when i did want to so it made me upset because i had no way out if i couldn’t handle it anymore. however, i think that’s a blessing in disguise because i was thankfully able to get out of that dark period. i’m still experiencing terrible anxiety, but because i have those times to reflect on and remember i made it through, it’s motivating.
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