Pubbywomwom
- Date posted
- 2y
Uncertainty
What are some ways to accept uncertainty other than Maybe, maybe not. That just doesn’t work for me
AnonymousAnonymous
- Date posted
- 2y
I don't know, and I don't need to know. I can't be 100% certain, even if I try. These thoughts are uncomfortable, and I can allow them to exist without attaching any meaning to it. I can tolerate discomfort , it will give me freedom of this. Just because these thoughts are uncomfortable, doesn't make them dangerous. It's uncomfortable, and I don't need to judge everything that comes up. I don't need certainty to tolerate this discomfort. I can tolerate not knowing the answer. I can't be sure. I don't need to figure it out. I can't be sure. Could be, could not.
RMO2023RMO2023
- Date posted
- 2y
By just not answering any thoughts. Not engaging with them. Either just notice them and let them be, or watch tgem disappear from your mind.
braveheartbraveheart
- Date posted
- 2y
Yes, acceptance is an attitude and not a technique. I lean this way at the moment. Don't dignify thoughts with any sort of response.
ListenToTheWindListenToTheWind
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
‘I hear you, you can stay or go but I’m not engaging with you’
KeepongoingKeepongoing
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
If my ocd is really bad I make fun of it ex. “Nice try ocd i figured you out so fast! You are gonna have to try harder next time”
KeepongoingKeepongoing
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
@Keepongoing This one is slightly compulsive in my opinion so i don’t use it often
JamesMYJamesMY
- Date posted
- 2y
A good way to accept uncertainty is get busy with life. Be so busy you have to accept the thoughts.
AnonymousAnonymous
- Date posted
- 2y
That's difficult when my body can barely do the basics
JamesMYJamesMY
- Date posted
- 2y
@Anonymous - I know. I've had Harm OCD for 28 years. Since I have to take care of my father, I am forced to work and do, and I find that even though it's awful to get started, when you have other things you have to do, your mind does get off of it. The worst thing to do as a person with OCD is have time on your hands. I've probably ruminated 1/2 my life away because of that.
Will86Will86
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
Seems like Avoidance
JamesMYJamesMY
- Date posted
- 2y
@Will86 - You've got the floor, tell us how to accept uncertainty. Even ERP doesn't teach you to do that. ERP teaches you to get used to your thoughts and get bored with them.
KeepongoingKeepongoing
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
“I don’t need to answer that right now”
KeepongoingKeepongoing
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
“thanks for that thought”
KeepongoingKeepongoing
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
“Lol ok”- sarcastically
ListenToTheWindListenToTheWind
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
Sometime I have compassion for it Like ‘thank you, it would be great to have absolutely certainty about that but I am okay with not knowing’
NicaNica
- Date posted
- 2y
Practicing mindfulness
IfiknewthenIfiknewthen
- Date posted
- 2y
I didnt understand the "maybe, maybe not" thing at first when my therapist brought it up because i wasnt stopping my compulsion. If you stop the compulsion long enough eventually your anxiety will go into remission. You need to know what your primary compulsion is and stop it. And as the anxiety fades you will better understand the "maybe, maybe not thing. You will hear therapists say, "take the C out of OCD and eventually OCD dies.
ListenToTheWindListenToTheWind
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
‘Totally! Thanks!’ Eye roll
Robyn🪴🧘🏻♀️🧠Robyn🪴🧘🏻♀️🧠
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
I say “it’s possible!” or “okay brain, thanks for that but I’m moving on with my day.”
Will86Will86
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
So many great replies!
PubbywomwomPubbywomwom
- Date posted
- 2y
@Will86 Yes !!
Will86Will86
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 2y
@Loophole02 I love the sassy ones. Im a sarcastic person so they're mu favorites.
PubbywomwomPubbywomwom
- Date posted
- 2y
These are all great !! Ty
Related posts
eugeniodepalo
- Date posted
- 25w
Double standards for certainty?
Do you ever feel like people without OCD have an easy time just saying “you need to accept uncertainty” only because they’re not subject to the same level of fear and anxiety as an OCD sufferer would? I feel like they don’t really accept uncertainty, they’re just naturally more certain about things. For example, if you ask anyone whether they think their loved ones are real or not, they will never answer with “maybe, but I’ll never know for sure”. They’ll just say “of course they are”. Isn’t that what certainty is? For me, as I’ve been suffering from existential OCD most of my adult life, such a question absolutely terrifies me. The mere thought of my loved ones and the world not being real sends me into a spiral of anxiety and depression and never ending certainty-seeking behavior. I just can’t stand the thought of that horrible scenario being true. How can one accept uncertainty about such a thought, when it completely undermines all my values and beliefs and world view? Can non-OCD sufferers really accept those nighmarish scenarios? Am I misunderstanding what ERP and therapy is about?
Anonymous
- Date posted
- 19w
Any tips for leaning in to uncertainty
I need tips on how to really accept the uncertainty the ocd causes, even if it feels so bad like I might get in trouble for something , do I wanna be okay with that?
Julian2006
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 15w
A little reminder!
I hope everyone is holding up okay! I’ve been seeing a lot of scared posts and whatnot lately, so I just wanted to make this post to remind ourselves to practice our uncertainty! I want to share a few response prevention lines that help me calm down! My thoughts do not define who I am. Maybe I’m a bad person, maybe I’m not, but I have a lot of things I need to do now. I’m going to practice not knowing for sure. I don’t have to solve this problem. I am choosing to sit with this uncomfortableness!
Be a part of the largest OCD Community
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond