- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
I'm obsessed with heart attacks. Any arm ache chest pain or stomach pain I link to something being wrong with my heart since I have high cholesterol. I google every symptom I feel.
- Date posted
- 6y
Some of my OCD is health related. When I did residential ERP treatment they had me record every time I submitted to a compulsion so I could better resist and Some exposures I did were writing “I might have a heart attack” over and over, reading personal stories of people who had had heart attacks, reading stories about people who died from heart attacks, reading about symptoms of heart attacks, exercising without monitoring my heart rate, etc. Most of those exposures could be twisted to work for any health related fear.
- Date posted
- 6y
I keep a log and every time I check something (usually on the internet) I need to record it. Knowing that I will have to write it in my log almost always prevents me from doing the compulsion (usually internet search). I have done this with many checking obsessions/compulsions, not just health related ones, and I have been very successful using this method. New obsessions pop up, but as soon as I recognize them I create a specific checking log for them and quite quickly the obsession dies off.
- Date posted
- 6y
Thanks for your responses wonderful people ?
Related posts
- Date posted
- 23w
For many years I’ve had contamination OCD. I wear many layers of plastic gloves when awake. Take off a layer when needing to do things. Early last year it started getting worse when I began ERP. Much worse. Showering took 1 hour before, now 3-4h or longer. I always have to shower before bed because the bed is a clean safe place. But showering didnt feel clean enough anymore and took so long. I would get stuck repeating things over and over. The humidity was ruining my walls and ceiling. I’d stay awake up to 40 hours avoiding showering and sleeping. So one day I started wearing clothes covering all skin, plastic gloves, sleeves taped, hoodie on. That way I could easily just sleep still on my back on the couch. No more awake 40 hours or stuck in the shower up to 4h + bedtime rituals. But then slowly I found myself unable to do… anything. Stopped going outside, stopped talking to people, can’t even get up some days so I just lay on the couch. Fall last year was very stressful I think it broke something in my head. I don’t change clothes and I make sure the gloves last many days. My hands are suffering. The skin blisters and comes off. I think my nails are now separating from the nail beds, for real. I’ve also spent so many years holding pee when outside the home that now the pelvic muscles are weak and I’m becoming urge incontinent. Can’t do physical exams at the doctors. Can’t seek help. Can’t get out of the couch. OCD is ruining my physical health. ERP did not work. Has this happened to anyone else? What did you do if so?
- Date posted
- 22w
Hello! I'm new here and have a nice, big grab bag of OCD sub-types, but the one I struggle with most is health anxiety. I would love to hear from folks who have had success with ERP and this subtype! Maybe without many triggering details 😉
- Date posted
- 12w
What would I do for ERP if my OCD says because I didn’t do something correctly or remember something I will have panic attacks that don’t end?
Be a part of the largest OCD Community
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond