it has been almost 9 or so months for me with my theme, i just recently started seeing a ocd therapist so i dont expect to see major changes yet, but still. i struggle with SO-OCD and R-OCD mostly right now. how long has it taken you to get better and feel semi back to normal ?
Mh mh mmh what an innocent question š For rocd, when you are completely single. But for general ocd, It never go back to normal, because when you start to forget about it, ocd will come out again for something newš«”š«” Good thing is, there are super good days aaand even in the bad one is never as bad as before therapy. Remember that, it's progress even if it's not linear. You'll probably starts to see progress in some months, a lets say 3 or 4. It also obv depends on how much therapy you do and on yourself too, how much you follow your therapist indications etc. But yess, i'll say a couple of months for understanding it, another couple of months to learn how to deal with it and than you'll start to recognise an ocd flare up on your own, you'll know how to deal it and BOOM it will trigger you less, and less and lees every time that will happen it will be always easier :) At the end you will even be able to laught and instantly move on :)
thanks so much for the reply
I usually have OCD relapses every 2-3 years, and they last a lot (from months to 2 years, in my worst crisis)
how long have you had ocd for ?
and are the relapses about the same obsessions? or are they different every time ?
@RRubberDDuck I have had it since i was 12 years old. And nope. It usted to be Somatic most of the times, but recently i have fallen into Harm and Incest OCD, which have been more tough imo
@Kai95 i understand, it sounds rough! i hope it only gets easier for us
I have relapse too, maybe every few months but they last like a day or two, MAXIMUM a week when they hit hard š Once i recognise them they go away pretty fast tho :) And sometimes they are on the same topic, sometimes they aren't. But hey i started from not being able to getting up from bed or washing, or stop crying and always wated to die because of guilt anxiety etc... so a good progress i sayš«”š
My SOOCD theme started in lockdown 2020. I was in a very very dark place: thinking about it all day every day, dreaming about it, the moment I opened my eyes it was the first thought. I didnāt want to be around anyone/watch anything out of my comfort zone in case of ANY triggers. I remember being in the bath one day crying my absolute eyes out thinking, this is it, I donāt want to be here anymore. Iām in a long term relationship too so the guilt I felt was heartbreaking. I did my own research and came across intrusive thoughts and arranged a phone call with my local mental health community centre and they told me thatās what Iām dealing with. I would lie in bed with my boyfriend and thought of even being in bed with him and the āsickā feeling was SO overwhelming I couldnāt even cope. The thought of even saying the word āboyfriendā was such a HUGE trigger as I used to think āshould it be boyfriend?!ā And that was just a minor! It was BAD. Cut long story short, I struggled almost every single day for about 12 months before I even started to see a ānormal dayā. I opened up to a couple of close friends and my mum and it turned out that all three of them that I opened up to said that theyāve had thoughts like that but they just laugh it off! And thatās when I realised that Iām not alone but I OBSESS and that is the difference. About 2 years down the line and I didnāt get that āsick feelingā or anxiety when I had the thoughts and that caused MORE anxiety! Which is when I learnt about the āback door spikeā. 3 years down the line (to now) my boyfriend is aware of what I was going through, I still have thoughts but no sick feeling anymore. Yes I still have some tricky days but a lot MORE better days. Something I read once was: Do not ever make a decision when your in a dark place or having a bad day. See what you are like when you are having a really good day and your mindset is different - do you still want to make the decisions you were considering on your bad days? Trigger!!! Iāve come to terms that at the end of the day I will NEVER always know, I need to live each day as it comes. Iām happy and content right now in THIS moment. You are NOT aloneš©·
thanks so much for your reply, it sounds so rough! can i ask at what point if any did you start therapy for ocd and how did the treatment help ?
Iāve OCD for about a decade and had SOOCD in particular for 1.5 years. Recovery has been super difficult but so, so worth it. SOOCD is by far my worst theme and I genuinely believed I was never going to get better. However, after 4 months of doing intense ERP, my symptoms have gone down drastically- and I can say that the thoughts donāt affect me as much anymore. I still have my bad days, but it doesnāt leave me in a spiral and state of hopelessness like before. Things will get easier and you will feel okay again. Do everything your therapist says/recommends, stay consistent with your ERP, and you will start seeing improvements as time goes by. š©·
Looking back, I realize Iāve had OCD since I was 7. though I wasnāt diagnosed until I was 30. As a kid, I was consumed by fears I couldnāt explain: "What if God isnāt real? What happens when we die? How do I know Iām real?" These existential thoughts terrified me, and while everyone has them from time to time, I felt like they were consuming my life. By 12, I was having daily panic attacks about death and war, feeling untethered from reality as depersonalization and derealization set in. At 15, I turned to drinking, spending the next 15 years drunk, trying to escape my mind. I hated myself, struggled with my body, and my intrusive thoughts. Sobriety forced me to face it all head-on. In May 2022, I finally learned I had OCD. I remember the exact date: May 10th. Reading about it, I thought, "Oh my God, this is it. This explains everything." My main themes were existential OCD and self-harm intrusive thoughts. The self-harm fears were the hardest: "What if I kill myself? What if I lose control?" These thoughts terrified me because I didnāt want to die. ERP changed everything. At first, I thought, "You want me to confront my worst fears? Are you kidding me?" But ERP is gradual and done at your pace. My therapist taught me to lean into uncertainty instead of fighting it. Sheād say, "Maybe youāll kill yourselfāwho knows?" At first, it felt scary, but for OCD, it was freeing. Slowly, I realized my thoughts were just thoughts. ERP gave me my life back. Iām working again, Iām sober, and for the first time, I can imagine a future. If youāre scared to try ERP, I get it. But if youāre already living in fear, why not try a set of tools that can give you hope?
How long did it take to make this? And is it actually possible?
People who went from a really bad time with OCD to a better time now. Is it really possible? What was your theme? Did you take medication?
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