I feel like I have to do things a certain amount of times.Such as 2or 5 times. Or i have to do 3 and 2 then double it and do 2 and 3 sets of something.(it’s very confusing).It messes with me so much that if I step on a crack in the middle of the street I have to go back all the way to go touch the line again.
Thank you for sharing what you are going through. This is a really common OCD theme. It’s not one of my current themes, but I have battled it in the past. I think you may find the below article interesting: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/counting-numbers-ocd Regardless of the theme/subtype, it’s all OCD, and recovery is possible. ERP (exposure and response prevention) therapy has helped me deal with my OCD. ERP helped me realize that I can tolerate uncertainty and fear, as well as handle negative emotions and anxiety, without engaging in compulsions. The more you practice ERP, the more you build resilience. Below is a link to an article with information on ERP: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/what-is-exposure-and-response-prevention-therapy If you are not in treatment for your OCD, you may want to consider reaching out to the NOCD care team for a free 15 minute consultation; please see the link below; https://www.treatmyocd.com/calendar?src=homepage&_gl=1*dpgbx1*_gcl_aw*R0NMLjE2MzY2NTk5MTQuQ2p3S0NBaUFtN09NQmhBUUVpd0FydkdpM0QwaEhYczN1Q0ZabWhVRUF4RndaaDJoa3AxbTRnek9TRWQweUJ4U3pqeU1SRU9FNGVwZkFSb0NNY0VRQXZEX0J3RQ I wish you all the best on your recovery journey.
I get that number thing. It has to be 3 or 5 , cant be 2 or 4. 1 is ok, 9 is better than 6 but odd numbers “feel” better.
@Leslie354 Same for me! It used to have to be even numbers and then it switched to odd numbers, but not the number 13!
I have suffered with this before as well. I couldn’t move on from what I was doing unless if I touched something 4 times. And if I didn’t touch it exactly right, I would have to go back and do it again until it felt okay. You’re not alone and this is a very common theme with OCD.
@MK30 What did you do to help your self I mean do we really have to do it
@cheis Delay your compulsions as much as you can and sit with the anxiety or discomfort. It’s like riding a wave in the ocean. It’s going to come and it’s going to go. Another thing that might help us to make a hierarchy. Start with the things that bother you the least first and work your way up. Don’t get upset if you have a setback or don’t get it right the first time. You did not get this way overnight and you won’t be able to work through all of it overnight either. I wish it worked that way. There are also a lot of great OCD therapists on YouTube and IG that I follow that have great advice to help. There’s also books online that are available to help as a self guide and some therapists also offer their own courses, which can be cheaper than therapy every week. Those are also self guided. I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck! ❤️
This can be so confusing to people, even if it doesn't make logical sense it is driven by this perceived need or pull to do this- the idea that something bad may happen can be enough to keep the person doing the compulsions, the more they do the compulsions, the more their obsessions grow and it is this continuous cycle of OCD. To live in recovery we must learn how to stop this cycle. ERP can teach you how to do this. If you haven't already done this I would highly recommend it.
Hi, this is a very common theme for OCD. This may help https://youtu.be/DxNQtHKZGO0
Exposures target your obsessions or your fears. For example, a good exposure may be touching something the individual finds contaminated if their obsession is related to contamination themes. It should be noted that exposures will not be effective when used alone. In other words, you must change your response. I tell members that I could expose them to their fears all day long but it would do them no good if they continued to respond with compulsions or rituals. Compulsions or rituals provide temporary relief from the anxiety or distress that someone with OCD is feeling. These feelings are typically triggered by obsessions. Obsessions can come in the form of images, urges, or intrusive thoughts and feelings. Although most people do not like to feel anxious or distressed, people with OCD feel they cannot tolerate these feelings. This pull, at the moment, to feel relief is what often leads to the cycle of OCD. This cycle includes the obsession (intrusive thoughts, images, urges, feelings) and behavior to reduce these feelings of distress. Then the person experiences temporary relief from the feelings that are uncomfortable. But that is the issue, the relief is only temporary until the next trigger occurs. ERP works to provide long-term relief from anxiety and distress. By facing your fears head-on and allowing the feelings to be present, the person learns that what they expected to happen, often doesn’t. Individuals with OCD learn that even if the worst-case scenario does happen that they are able to tolerate this.
What is ERP
@cheis Exposure and response prevention therapy. There are a lot of great resources online that explain what it is. If you are able to, try to find an OCD therapist who specializes in this to help you.
I have a really weird OCD problem. My brain doesn’t ‘like’ or has a fear of the number 6,9, and 12. When I see them or do something this amount of times it just feels ‘off’. I have to make a constant effort everyday to avoid seeing these numbers or doing something the amount of times as these numbers. I know it’s weird and ridiculous but I don’t know what to do.
I’m confused. I don’t know how this is supposed to work. Can anyone relate to this??? I don’t have anyone who understands just what my ocd is. I barely understand it. No matter what I do and where, my thoughts hit me. I can be blinking the wrong way and I have to blink until it feels right.. same for swallowing, touching things, light switches and setting down cups. I have to sit and stand up multiple times until it feels right. Step on certain things like cracks in sidewalk as many times I feel is needed. Wash my hands multiple times. Even when texting, I can type out a whole paragraph and my mind tells me to delete it all and start again because it’s not right. When something isn’t right my mind tells me that someone I love is going to die or get hurt. And for some reason I obsess over certain days, like a day someone I love it born. I will sit there and flip a light switch with that date in my mind and a bad thought that something will happen and I can’t stop until I feel that person in my head is safe and everything is fine. In a way I feel that I am saving them and myself from something bad. Can anyone relate? And maybe share how you’re dealing with it all? Please and thank you.
MY OCD STORY I’d like to tell you guys my ocd story because why it happened is still a mystery to me. I have never dealt with ocd for my life. I only dealt with some thoughts recently that I would worry about and obsess about but...most of my ocd thoughts would be something that my ex boyfriend would say. For example. My ex boyfriend would say things like, “I’d fuck her” about a random girl. Now I get those thoughts and deal with sexual ocd trying to repress those thoughts. Another thing is my ex used to say weird things about girls younger than him. Way younger, and talk about their body and how they’ve changed so much since the last time they’ve he’s seen them. This caused me to struggle with pocd. Anybody have any thoughts about this? I am not trying to blame him but just wonder if someone else had this experience or can explain what more this experience means for me. My therapist calls these traumatic memories, which I then obsess about.
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