I made a mistake at work

Months ago I made a mistake at work and I havent brought it up. Im a grad student and part of my work is in the lab. I took some things out of the lab and into a different lab where there's more potential for cross contamination and I'm worried I may have contaminated them and someones lab work will be messed up but because I didn't say anything they'll never know. I feel like I need to announce what happened but it's been months, and I dont actually know if I did contaminate anything and Im embarrassed so I'd rather not. But it keeps popping up and haunting me. I know my OCD is at play right now, I'm not sure if this is a real fear or not...but I also think what I did was wrong, like there's a pretty common protocol to not take that stuff out of the lab, I just didn't think about it at the time. I could tell my advisor on Wednesday and see what she thinks I guess, but in the meantime I'm feeling consumed with guilt and it's hard to work. I know this is possibly an urge to confess so maybe it's good for me to wait? Any thoughts??

Username: JenniesOCDBrainJenniesOCDBrain

Date posted: 1y ago

hey there, i totally get how tough this situation feels for you. that nagging guilt and the 'what ifs' can be super intense. i have different obsessions with my pure o, but the struggle? i'm right there with ya. just remember, i'm here to listen and you're definitely not alone in this. i heard about this free ai tool called "unstuck" (www.AIOCDtool.com) from my therapist, and it might be a game-changer for you, especially with these confession urges and contamination worries. it's like having an ocd therapist in your pocket. you just type in what's bugging you, and it guides you through, step by step, to help you break free from the ocd cycle when it gets overwhelming. i was skeptical about apps too, but honestly, this one's been a lifesaver for me, and i genuinely think it could help you navigate through these feelings without giving in to the compulsion to confess. no pressure though, just something that might be worth checking out. if you have any questions about it, feel free to ask. i'm all ears. 🌟

Username: AnonymousAnonymous

Date posted: 1y ago

I can totally relate to this with how my ocd has been manifesting recently. It can feel like confessing is the only way to get relief from the constant ruminating, but I’d recommend not doing so. Confessing will feed the ocd cycle and while this specific event might stop replaying in ur mind ocd will latch on to something else and start the cycle over again. It’s really hard, but letting yourself sit with the distressing thoughts without checking over and over is the best way to get long term relief

Username: Anonymous48Anonymous48

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

Thanks! I ended up holding out and I feel so much better. It passed! And you're totally right. I may get relief if I confess about this one thing, but next it'll be something else, and when I sit with the uncertainty I usually feel better after a while and I can just hold off again next time too. It does get better.

Username: Anonymous48Anonymous48

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 1y ago

I'll try that, thanks!!

Username: Violet2411

Date posted: 5y ago

Does anyone else suffer from ‘Real life events’ OCD? I constantly worry about things I did as a teenager (from ages 15-19) I wasn’t a very nice person and think I was quite a toxic girlfriend in my first relationship. I’m always terrified that people are going to find out and that I’m going to lose my job or something awful. I also think that a lot of people would be so shocked if they knew some of the things that I’d done, and that they would think so much less of me. I feel a constant need to confess or apologise, and wish more than anything that I could erase that whole chapter of my life. Previously in counselling, we looked at ‘black and white thinking’, and I managed to rationalise that everyone makes mistakes and nothing I did was that bad, but I have this horrible feeling that one day this will all catch up with me. Is this just genuine guilt and remorse or is this a symptom of OCD? Thanks in advance.

"Pure" OCD

Username: Elaine8

Date posted: 2y ago

Mistakes

What do you guys do when you do something wrong? I don't know if it's ocd but when I do something wrong I just can't let it go, it was months ago now but I think about it everyday and it's just consuming me. And I don't even know if it can be guilt/shame ocd because I actually did the thing

Username: Anonymous444444

Date posted: 1y ago

What if our Real Event really is bad?

I know this is such a typical OCD thought, but I really feel mine is. Without going into too much detail feel like I basically SA'd my ex without meaning to and got away with it. I feel like I need to confess to everyone, including ny current gf, but I'm worried people will never look at me the same again. I'm trying so hard with ERP but I feel like I'm just using it to avoid confronting what I've done. I feel like I'm going to get cancelled or thrown in jail and my life is going to fall apart. I feel so guilty and sorry. I want to be a good person.

Real Events OCD

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I made a mistake at work

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