Username: jsagers2023

Date posted: 1y ago

Constantly shutting down unwanted thoughts

I get exhausted dealing with gross thoughts. I don’t want them, they can interrupt me in prayer or at inconvenient times. I know they’re nonsense and try to block them out with an image. I find myself saying a quick prayer for forgiveness. If I don’t do it I will get restless. I often obsess if a coworker approves of me or not. I used to triple check things A LOT. Also asking reassuring questions has become less frequent, but I have to fight it in my mind. I feel as if my brain has Tourette’s. Often my biggest relief is just becoming aggressively careless “screw it!” Lol

Mid-life adults with OCD

Username: GregJGregJ

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

Hi, I totally relate to what you are going through. The thing is you really can’t control your thoughts. They are just random. The more you try not to think of something, the more your brain will think about it. For example, do not picture a red elephant on a tricycle right now in your head. Guess what, your brain probably painted that exact picture as you were reading that sentence even though you told it not to. Your brain is just naturally reacting. I know how you feel with “bad” thoughts during prayer or Church. I would think bad things about Mary and God and it caused me a lot of distress. But truly know God understands what you are going through. Exactly he understands your OCD better than you do! I like the “screw it” attitude. Just don’t care. Let the thoughts come in and try not to react. They are just stupid thoughts, that’s all. Even try to invite the thoughts into your head. Tell them to come on in and that you’re not afraid of them. Then sit with the thoughts and go about your day. As I said I experienced a lot of the same things you are experiencing so I’m here if you need to talk/have questions.

Username: BillyPilgrimBillyPilgrim

Date posted: 1y ago

After you have gotten good at witting with the thoughts, do you find that the thoughts become less frequent? Or is it just less distressing?

Username: BillyPilgrimBillyPilgrim

Date posted: 1y ago

@BillyPilgrim Sitting with the thoughts, that is

Username: GregJGregJ

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

@BillyPilgrim Both, I guess it gets easier to ignore. Not to say I still don’t struggle sometimes. Kind of struggling now. But I know better days will come. You get so bad at ignoring the thoughts that you start to do it automatically.

Username: BillyPilgrimBillyPilgrim

Date posted: 1y ago

@Greg2 In the past, I have had the experience of refocusing my thoughts on other things, with the result that the thoughts went away (for a long time). I am having trouble getting back to that stasis because I recently kind of succumbed to thinking about the thought a while. Any thoughts or tips? I kind of wonder when it will start to get better again.

Username: GregJGregJ

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

@BillyPilgrim The good thing about OCD progress is you are never back at square one. Even better, you know it works from past experiences. Just do what you were doing when you first vanquished OCD. Instead of totally refocusing, just let the thoughts sit in your head. No need to touch them. Just observe them. Then say whatever and keep going with your day

Username: BillyPilgrimBillyPilgrim

Date posted: 1y ago

@Greg2 Thanks. I really appreciate your replies. I know it sounds weird but I originally learned the 4 step technique from Schwartz. I know it isn't looked well upon by most nowadays. But it has really worked for me in the past. I am kind of using that sometimes and a more ACT at other times.

Username: GregJGregJ

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

@BillyPilgrim That’s good! Everyone’s OCD is response to therapy is different. It’s about finding what’s best for you and it looks like you’ve found it

Username: Lisa LeeLou Lisa LeeLou

User type: NOCD Alumni

Date posted: 1y ago

Thank you for sharing what you are going through. I struggle with both intrusive thoughts and scrupulosity. I’ve learned through ERP (exposure and response prevention) therapy How to handle the thoughts without compulsing. Try to allow yourself to have the thought and respond with a neutral statement like “thanks ocd” without engaging any more or less than that. I know easier said than done, but with time and practice it does get better. In actuality what you described above being “aggressively careless” is similar to this. So you are on the right track. I wish you all the best on your recovery journey.

Username: Morgan~BueMorgan~Bue

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

Hi! I completely understand. It can feel impossible trying to fight against our thoughts all day to no end. Going through ERP taught me there was a way to cope with the thoughts I never knew possible. I learned to sit in the feeling and while it’s terrifying at first, I learned I could handle the tough emotions and the fear greatly reduced! Avoidance can be a tricky compulsion! I’m rooting for you!

Username: Stacy QuickStacy Quick

User type: Therapist

Date posted: 1y ago

I am sorry you are experiencing this. OCD sucks. I would suggest (as hard as it is) to not engage with the thoughts. I suspect that the more you are trying to drown out the unwanted thoughts you are actually intensifying them because you are paying attention to them. If you think of OCD like a faulty alarm system in your brain, you can see that the more responsive you are to it (compulsions) the more you are giving it credit or inadvertently strengthening the idea that there truly is a threat (when you have OCD- it is a false alarm). Check this out: https://youtu.be/VYht-guymF4

Username: K123321K123321

Date posted: 1y ago

@Stacy Quick I have something similar but I don’t know how to go about this because I’ve been scared to talk to someone about it. I’m in a relationship and I messed up by flirting with someone else and I told my partner and we worked through it together but my ocd made me scared. I didn’t want the idea of messing up again, but when I would pass by someone , the Ocd part would pop up a a inappropriate thought about them that I didn’t want. It scared me, but I opened up to him about it and he accepted it and understands. I felt better , but then my Ocd was saying “what if something terrible popped up in your head that you couldn’t tell him because it can be a thought so bad that it’s unacceptable” I tried to ignore it but then it tried it again and it seems like a “flash image” of it trying to pop up an inappropriate thought about everyone in his family to scare me and even one of a kid to make me terrified and feel the need that I can’t tell anyone and it tries to label me as a “weirdo” “pedo” anything to scare me and I hate it. I am not like that at all and that is why my body panics when my mind will try to scare me like that. I was doing good until that one scary thought. Now it’s hard for me to get over it and try to move on. This is now “urge” just thoughts that try to scare me and work and make me feel like I’m a terrible disgusting person.

Username: K123321K123321

Date posted: 1y ago

It scares me because this isn’t something I can’t open up to my partner about but it’s hard to deal with this by myself. I hang out with him and thing “he has no idea what my mind has tried to make me think and he will think I’m crazy”

Username: K123321K123321

Date posted: 1y ago

I don’t do repitive things to help, I just have the thoughts part that make me panic.

Username: hannie

Date posted: 3y ago

Does anyone else get intrusive thoughts while praying or thinking of God? It has been stressing me out so bad. I feel like I’m a bad Christian or somethings wrong with me cause sometimes I get flooded with intrusive thoughts when I try to focus my time on God.

Username: Mikala F

Date posted: 2y ago

Constant intrusive thoughts

I’m having constant intrusive thoughts and it’s driving me crazy. I will go through these periods where everything I do I get an intrusive thought and it’s just my brain is so loud. Anyone else?! How do you stop the constant intrusive thoughts when you can’t really do an exposure for every single one?!

Username: sidneyrae7

Date posted: 2y ago

Intrusive thoughts

I'm religious, so anyone else who is religious I need to know if this happens to y'all. When I read the Bible, which I want to do twice a day, I feel like I have to reread and reread stuff bc if I didn't comprehend it properly, something bad would happen, or my fears would come true. I also have intrusive thoughts that come into my head about what I'm reading and the thoughts will say something bad about the Bible or about God, and it's like I know God knows I didn't say it but I have to "undo" the thought by getting up out of my seat completely, and saying something that "undoes" it then I can sit back down and read. Sometimes I also shake my head or hit myself in the head trying to rid of the thought. And say "no, no, of course not" and stuff like that trying to undo the thought that intruded...

Religion & Spirituality OCD

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Constantly shutting down unwanted thoughts

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