ERP

@seinzumtode I understand so if I watch it just consider it as an exposure ? Then if I continue to sit with the fact that I’m getting aroused and not care, I would end up not getting aroused by it down the road ?

@Anonymous ERP would be accepting whether uncertainty as to whether you are aroused by it. The goal of ERP is not to somehow recondition yourself to not be aroused by something. It is not a behavior therapy in that sense.

@seinzumtode Is it possible to find out you’re not gay and still get aroused by it ?

@Mr. Solo Dolo I’ve just been watching gay reels on social media . The most I see is kissing , I’ve tried gay porn and was aroused like I never felt . At 1st I was very uncomfortable and nervous but when I relaxed it felt like I enjoyed it , that didn’t sit right with me . Even with the gay content, I don’t like that it arouses me but I do enjoy it because of the happiness and humor , or maybe because I haven’t watched anything like that before . Or maybe because I’m gay and didn’t know it .

@livonmarz “OCD runs off of uncertainty and fear” no, OCD lives off of the search for certainty. Accepting uncertainty is actually a treatment for OCD. A lot of the advice you’re giving on here isn’t recommended in ERP. What you want to do is learn to live with uncertainty and live in the maybes, not to label what is OCD and what isn’t, or what is a deceptive thought and what isn’t.

@Brendan =] well you see if you go back and read, they were asking advice on if they should use homosexual content as an exposure so i was giving sound advice because if they’re using it for reassurance then they shouldn’t but if they’re scared of it then they should. you can’t tell me my advice isn’t recommended when that’s quite literally what an exposure is for. I agree that acceptance is a part of treatment and i never said it wasn’t. Actually by watching the content your accepting it because it’s not being avoided. it is true that searching for certainty is what keeps ocd going (which is also a compulsion) but then that would go back to my first point that the original poster shouldn’t be using it for reassurance but as an exposure. They need to use it for an exposure. Nobody is labeling what thoughts are ocd is and aren’t either, I simply stated that if they’re using it for reassurance then they shouldn’t. watch but if it’s an exposure then yes. it is okay and completely fine to differentiate and catch ocd in when it’s ocd and it’s okay to know that certain thoughts are ocd - that’s how you can catch it and do an immediate exposure. so yes a lot of what i said is correct and while you also made good points, so did i.

@livonmarz I’ll say i shouldn’t have included that it runs off uncertainty, i miscommunicated that and im glad you caught that but everything else was actually correct

@livonmarz I’ve watched gay porn , which I was afraid to at 1st because I fear of being gay . The gay reels I wasn’t too scared to do after that but I fear that I like it which means I’m gay .

@livonmarz Hi, I hope you’re well. In my response I wasn’t going after the parts of your post about the exposure never said was addressing those. I corrected the “OCD runs off of uncertainty” part, which I presume meant to say “certainty” instead. Also, catching OCD thoughts and labeling them as such isn’t usually recommended, but it can be a helpful tool in rare cases depending on the subtype. On the Sheppard Pratt website, which I’ll link below, Jon Hershfield writes: “Some may find it useful to mentally note “OCD thought” but I generally do not recommend this. By drawing distinctions between “OCD thoughts” & other kinds of thoughts, we’re playing into the distorted belief that the content of the thoughts has intrinsic value. If we must disown thoughts by calling them “OCD,” then we’re saying we would be bad for having them without OCD. But they are thoughts, not threats. So even the worst thoughts are better off being understood as ours. This doesn’t mean we like them or that they represent us, but simply that we have minds & minds have thoughts.” I agree that these moments of struggle could be excellent opportunities for exposures, but one can usually determine when they are getting stuck on thoughts regarding their specific themes without having to directly label the thought as being rooted in OCD. That just isn’t necessary and can actually be counterproductive since it’s very possibly compulsive. I hope you’re not taking my responses to your posts personally or viewing them as attacks. They aren’t meant as such. =] All the best. https://www.sheppardpratt.org/news-views/story/how-to-respond-to-unwanted-obsessive-thoughts/

@livonmarz It’s just so confusing because I feel homosexual after doing erp .

@Anonymous i would say based off what i’ve learned that it’s ocd tricking you into making you think you might be homosexual… that’s why it’s important to keep doing it so you can find clarity on what you actually feel

@livonmarz I think I actually feel gay.

@Jtremain1988 Thanks man

@Jtremain1988 I’m not sure if I knew who I was even before past sexual encounters kinda been like “ehh” I have taken coricidin pills and just had psychosis due to withdrawals from recreational Xanax . So now I’m questioning if I’ve unintentionally suppressed being gay or I’m having these problems due to the withdrawals .

@Jtremain1988 Ok thanks

@Jtremain1988 Ok thanks

@Jtremain1988 I feel like I’m not doubting it though . But we’ll see . I just really don’t want to be gay . I have nothing against gays at all. I just didn’t think it wasn’t for me .

@Jtremain1988 I can literally look or think of any dude and feel a lot of sensations , it feels like my heart opens Up. I get more mass in my stomach and blood rushing everywhere it seems, and a sensation in my foot , I feel like I’m mentally stimulated. I even go to the point where I can sort of decipher my conscious voice compared to my frontal lobe voice . My intuitive consciousness Is telling me I’m gay . I don’t get aroused by women , so I don’t know if this is loss of attraction or was I ever attracted in the 1st place . I’ve always been nervous around women because I always try to say the right thing . Now I wonder if it was never a genuine attraction and that’s why I get nervous so I get turned off and not say anything genuine . I can look at a guy and come up with stuff right in the spot . This is the 1st time I’ve ever checked out guys . When I first start to realize all of this I was terrified .

@Jtremain1988 30, I’ve had 2 sessions and can’t afford more at the moment .

@Anonymous Trying to figure this out and get certainty is a compulsion and is reinforcing your disorder. Ruminating about what you are is a compulsion. Thinking about what is likely and what’s not is going to strengthen the disorder. Trying to convince yourself of anything and working to believe it compulsive. I would be looking more towards advice from therapists and sessions. Some advice that comes from good places can sadly be counterproductive. OCD is looking for food and this quest for an absolute answer sadly feeds it and allows it to get worse.

@Brendan =] Ok, thanks . So if I’m aroused just by looking and not thinking . I should ignore that as well ?

@Anonymous I’m not totally sure what you mean but my advice is to find a way to continuously work with an ERP therapist who has the training to guide you in the right direction. I wouldn’t advise self-administering ERP because you can’t catch and notice all of your compulsions on your own. ERP without the “RP” is just exposing yourself and then using compulsions to feel better which will not only have no benefit but will be quite counterproductive. The compulsions all need to be eliminated correctly to see the benefit. I hope that makes sense. =] By working with a therapist you will get the time, attention, and the access to an expert you need to do ERP correctly. To be extremely blunt: you’re turning to advice on here because you don’t have enough tools and guidance from therapy yet to approach this on your own. I’m already seeing bad advice on your thread. A person can’t successfully go out and practice law after two days of law school, and two sessions of therapy sadly won’t give you what you need to win against something like OCD. I hope I’m not sounding harsh or that my tone or words are being misinterpreted. I’m just trying to be helpful. It’s concerning that you’re trying to go about this alone. You are however on the right path by looking towards ERP. =]

@Brendan =] Thank you I greatly e it , and I’m saying I feel groinial responses and arousal feelings just by looking at same sex . I don’t have to think any thoughts . It does enhance if I entertain what I’m looking at like a guys butt .

@Anonymous My OCD doesn’t revolve around anything like this so I sadly can’t give you any input because I have no idea. I’m so sorry.

@Anonymous oh ok then yes that does sound like reassurance to keep looking at the content. I wouldn’t engage with it anymore if you’re not using it for an exposure. Just try to sit with the “maybe, maybe not” and just let it be a sensation just like a scratch on your arm.

@livonmarz Thank you

@Anonymous happy to help!!