ROCD

@SimplerTimes I appreciate the really good advice. That’s what I’ve been doing. I don’t wanna say forcing myself on them but telling myself to give them a hug and just act normal

@SimplerTimes My friend is coming over soon because I’ve been in this daze or episode for like 4/5 days now.. I wanted to tell my friend because obviously no one knows and I feel like I need to talk to someone but should I avoid ? I know it can be seen as a compulsion but then I go back and forth with how if you are battling mental health to talk to someone

@____Anonymous_____ So for that, you could start with giving your friend a more general idea of what OCD is; remember it’s not the theme, it’s the OCD that matters. People won’t always understand, but something I start with is that OCD is the doubting disorder. You can tell a friend or a loved one that your condition makes you doubt things and you have an urge to figure it out. Logic does NOT work against OCD. You can ask for support or what helps me a lot is to just talk it out but avoid reassurance and compulsions. Things like “they really love you” or “of course you love them” will just offer reassurance. My good friend knows when I want reassurance so he combats it but making me go to fun things with him even when I am not enjoying it. OCD is very treatable and we are very fortunate to live in a time with ERP, meds, and good OCD therapists. You have OCD, but you don’t necessarily need to be suffering from it. It sucks when it attacks what we care about the most, but if we didn’t care about anything then OCD wouldn’t work.

@SimplerTimes @loganh55 I’m like better, I talked to my friend that is aware of my ocd and it felt good to get it off my chest and not be so isolated. It scares me that I feel better after that? I feel like damn is it the truth ? My friend didn’t give me any reassurance or anything he just sat back and listened. I don’t want this to happen but why am I a little bit better? I hope this is the numbing point and I’m just not “accepting my thoughts”

@____Anonymous_____ I’m so glad to hear you’re feeling better! I can relate to everything you’re saying, it’s almost like, I feel good, will I feel bad tomorrow? But it’s not the theme, the OCD that is the issue When we suffer from OCD and it flares up, it attacks what we value the most. That’s helped me a lot throughout my themes to realize that, but the thoughts feel so true sometimes When I was in a relationship, I always had this intrusive thought that maybe I did not love my partner or that they didn’t love me. It was terrible but when I finally started working with an OCD therapist, I faced these thoughts head on and after time, my brain honestly feels rewired. The thoughts don’t bother me as much anymore, but I still need to stay on top of it and address flare ups. Yes, we have OCD, but we don’t need to suffer from it. Don’t accept the thought, lean into the uncertainty and challenge the thoughts. With more taboo or emotional thoughts or memories, I like to say, “huh, I don’t really need to try and figure this out right now” and then continue to live my life in adherence with my values. Yeah, it sucks for a few weeks, but I feel a ton better. Don’t give up and remember to keep giving your partner a big hug!

@SimplerTimes You’ve been such a help. Really… I truly appreciate your guidance. It’s scary because when me and this person got back together I had the thoughts but I ruled it as we are both trying to get rid of the past and it’s just a trauma response. 2 almost 3 years later (now) it came back and it scares me because I’m like “okay this isn’t new I’ve been in this relationship wtf is happening” so I’m searching for a reason why my ocd is flaring up right now because there is no reason. I wish I could just tell myself to stop and I stop. It’s so scary not being able to control your brain. I know you know. May I ask did you find your therapist on this app? Where I live it’s hard to find a therapist that specializes in ocd so I’ve just been here struggling. Let alone not having health insurance I feel stuck and like I have no options but to be miserable and ride it out

@____Anonymous_____ Happy to help!! Oh yeah, it springs up at the worst moments. I hate when an old theme comes back but I’ve been figuring out how to better prevent it from going overboard. I found my therapist on this app and he’s been incredible. I started noticing difference after 4 weeks of ERP, but it really took affect when I stopped the compulsions. I encourage you to give NOCD a call and see if they can help with options. Trust me, an ERP therapist can be really life changing. Still a ways to go, but I feel a lot better. I have avoided dating or anything for a while because of OCD, I just couldn’t even picture explaining my themes to a future partner. But now I feel a lot more confident. OCD is so isolating sometimes :( Def try giving them a call though, if you can’t get help through here, I can imagine they’d at least point you in the right direction.

@SimplerTimes https://www.ocd-anxiety.com/ https://chrissiehodges.com/ More great resources, def reach out and see if they can help too!

@SimplerTimes Thank you !!!!