Hi everyone. I've been struggling with post partum OCD for about 18 months. My OCD themes tend to me around POCD. I've been going to therapy since last December and I feel as tho I'm still in a constant loop there are times I do really well then times are just really bad. Can anyone give me some tips on how to help this. It just makes me feel like such a bad mom to have these types of thoughts
Hi all, I’m not a mom but I’ve struggled with this theme as well, and the one thing I wanted to add regarding POCD and uncertainty is I personally don’t think accepting uncertainty in regards to something like pocd is helpful either. For me the approach I took was about learning how to trust myself more and the ocd less, and know that no matter how loud it got I could keep in mind that the ocd was trying to trick me and that I didn’t have to listen to what it said. I recommend following Alegra Kastens on Instagram as this was her main ocd theme and she has a lot of great content that I found super helpful. Good luck and I hope this helps!
I just started following her the other day! It seems that uncertainty is the wrong approach to this I will have to bring up to my therapist next time. Can you give some examples on how you built trust in yourself?
Hey. I’m a mom as well and I deal with POCD. First of all, please know you are not alone. I used to be in a really bad place and I’m starting to get better with therapy and medication. Are you doing ERP therapy? Have you considered medication at all?
Thanks for your response. It definitely helps knowing I'm not alone. I do ERP therapy but I'm not sure if my therapist knows 100% what she is doing. I tend to just write down the thought on a piece of paper and say in my head "maybe I would or wouldn't do this" I'm not sure if this is working at all. And no I've been really hesitant on trying medication. To nervous about side effects even though it has been brought up by my therapist .
@Bubbles1234 Do you do therapy through NOCD or somewhere else? And yeah I totally get the fear around medication. It’s not for everybody. All I can say is from personal experience, but medication has saved my life, honestly. I feel like it helps me better apply the therapy. I had to adjust to the medication but it needs time to help you. It’s literally changing your brain chemistry. The side effects I had initially are now pretty much gone. I know there is a DNA swab test or something out there that you can get prescribed from a doctor that can tell you which medications you’re most compatible with. Also, I’ve found that accepting uncertainty in regards to POCD isn’t really helpful. Rather in therapy my therapist has told me to say things like “OCD is a bully” or “OCD is trying to distract me, I don’t need to figure this out right now.”
@Anonymous - I like your approach to it. I will have to try that. And I do therapy outside of NOCD but I'm starting to wondering if I should give this a try instead. I prefer to do face to face sessions so I guess maybe that's where I'm hesitant on it. Do you work with a therapist on here?
@Bubbles1234 Yes I do therapy through NOCD and I highly recommend it. If you don’t like the therapist they pair you with you can always switch. I love my therapist here.
I’m also a POCD sufferer and a Mum - I have felt like this so much until recently. I’d feel so much better for a few days, maybe even nearly a week and then I’d have a really horrible feeling days and think ‘I’m just not getting this’ at all, but eventually it seems to have clicked, I hope anyway. Glad I read the above as I really struggled too with accepting uncertainty with POCD too.
Oh boy….that for me was a process that involved both a lot of ERP therapy and also a fair amount of talk therapy (I did those at different times)to deal with other things in my life that had been negatively impactful. I think that learning how to build trust in yourself is a really personal process that involves a lot of small steps. If you have a community that you feel comfortable talking with (not necessarily about ocd but in general) that can be helpful, and also let your daily life be your way to build confidence. Is pocd horrifying and super scary? Yes. Is every day though an opportunity to build more faith in yourself and to reclaim your own sense of identity apart from what ocd says? Absolutely. So I’d suggest brainstorming ways that feel right to you. Your therapist might be able to help with that as well 🙂 good luck, I have full faith in you!
Hi everyone, grateful to be here and share. Can any new mamas share how long it took for them to get over their postpartum OCD? I know everyone is different and I’m grateful to be in ERP since August, but having been experiencing heightened OCD since April. My son is a blessing and super easy, but just wondering if any mamas can share their success stories. Thanks!
I’m not sure if anyone else goes through this or if it’s normal for PPOCD. But when my ocd flares up , it makes me feel less attached to my baby and gives me a ton of anxiety. I also feel like my ocd jumps to a lot of different themes. Will PPOCD last forever ?
I’ve been struggling with POCD since I was 18 years old, I am now 22. It’s terrifying how quickly it switched from my ocd focusing on a fear of pregnancy, to magical thinking ocd, and then to POCD. I’ve been suffering with it so much so that I’ve convinced myself and have lost friends due to confession compulsions. I have major issues with ruminating, and it frequently goes hand in hand with my relationship OCD and my Suicidal thoughts OCD. (Worrying my partner will leave me because what if I am, and that I can’t take this anymore so I have to __) I often experience things like shame, guilt, grief, and intense emotional pain that manifests itself into nausea and heartburn and sometimes headaches. I’ve tried everything, so this app really is my last resort. I wish to find community here, to know that what I’m facing I’m not alone in my battles with. I know that I’m not, so why does my brain work so hard telling me I am? I love children, I always have. But I get so afraid of being near them. I want to get better. I want to be able to spend time with my family again.
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