- Date posted
- 5y
- Date posted
- 5y
It depends on what your obsession/compulsions are. If you have a germ OCD you may touch a toilet seat and not wash your hands. If your scared of murdering someone you might watch a movie about a serial killer. Stuff like that
- Date posted
- 5y
What if someone has schizophrenia ocd then ?
- Date posted
- 5y
I have fears setting my house on fire. I had bought a new extension cord with multiple outlets (surge protector). The on/off switch has an orange light indicator, which from a distance in the dark, looks like a lit cigarette. I caught this sight as I was leaving to go to work. I could not leave because I started to freak out. I actually believed that it could be a lit cigarette even though I live alone and don't smoke and could see with my own eyes it was just the light indicator. I battled with this notion for less than 5 min before I decided to give in and unplugged the cord to make it easier for me to leave. In the car, I realized that it was another OCD trick. Like, what a minute! I don't smoke! WHAT!?! I should've caught it sooner and just left it plugged in. Oh well! The next day, I stared down the extension cord. Oh boy, here we go again! I remembered feeling very uncertain about leaving it plugged it and being away from home to go to work. Again, I struggled, began to check other things that were low in my hierarchy list. Finally left the house to go to work. To this day, the cord is still plugged in, and I don't even think about it anymore. I have even forgotten the day when I stopped being anxious about it. Even if you sucked at doing an exposure, you must always be game for it and try again. Game-face on, as a therapist once suggested to me. Do you watch hockey? I always empathize with the goal tenders, especially when they let the bad goals go in. When they let a bad goal go in, they skate around their net, take a swig from their water bottle, and shake it off. Then they are back in the net, ready to face the next shot. God knows what goes through their minds during these times. I learned that it takes courage and resilience not to give into the opponent. We all can learn from mistakes!
- Date posted
- 5y
I wish I could easily dismiss an intrusive thought as I do with spam mail. It's so hard for me. I find if I start rationalizing or arguing with the OCD, it gets worse. So, yesterday, I pretended I was a mother talking to a young toddler. The toddler wants me to go back and back again to check the stove. She is crying and acting hysterical, convinced something terrible will happen if I don't check it her way - the OCD way. I tell her softly and gently, "I'm so sorry, but I don't see what you want me to see. There's nothing wrong here. Now, it's time to leave." The child goes on to say I will lose everything if I don't go back to check. I try not to answer the question if the stove is on/off. I pay attention only to the loud ticking from the clock in the kitchen, which reminds me of how much time I'm wasting standing here. It helps too, to say outloud, "I know what's happening NOW. I GOT THIS. I've been through this before." I turn my back to the stove. Okay, good job. Deep breath. Close the light. Good job. Deep breath. Step out of the kitchen. No thinking. Whew, I did it. Don't forget to take a deep breath. Anyway, that is what it's like for me doing exposures alone. The more a person performs rituals, the more deeply it becomes ingrained in her/his brain.
- Date posted
- 5y
Anyone out there have tips on doing exposures alone?
Related posts
- Date posted
- 17w
What ERP or other techniques do you use to combat fear of cancelation? Especially curious about those with taboo thoughts, false memory ocd and event ocd based off of real events where the fear of cancellation may actually hold some validity. I once did my own ERP not under a therapist but just on my own I decided to create an anonymous account on Twitter and defend a friend who was receiving online criticism. I knew that this would be semi-controversial so I was expecting backlash and when I recieved troll replies it actually seemed to be a really helpful low-stakes exposure activity. Is this something that others have done? Low stakes online posts etc. that you know will recieve negative responses? I have had severe OCD as a kid as pretty much every subtype under the sun, and as an adult I pretty much have all the types under control except for this real event and false memory and taboo thought OCD. It seems like a different beast since it's somewhat realistic in the camcellation culture today, and it's confusing to address. Ive shut down almost all social accounts and it's keeping me from progressing in a career where I need to have an online presence :/
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 17w
So you got to ask me anything… Now I’d like to ask you something! I’ve heard from Members that they were so scared coming to their first ERP session. They were terrified that I would think they were crazy, that I would tell them their worst fears were true. That I would confirm they are some form of a terrible person or have them hauled off to prison for their thoughts. I’ve also had Members share how they’re very scared to begin ERP treatment because they’ve researched enough to know it means facing the fear, without the compulsions that have kept them feeling safe (but not really safe) this entire time. They struggled to see how they could be capable of doing this, while simultaneously acknowledging that they did not want to live like this anymore. If you have had your first session, what were your thoughts before? Did you have any hesitations or fears going into it? How did it turn out? If you haven’t yet begun to work with an ERP specialist, what is holding you back?
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 13w
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) isn't always easy, but as one of the most effective treatments for OCD, it's worth it. If you've started ERP, what has been the biggest surprise you've experienced in learning to resist compulsions? If you haven't started ERP yet, what is holding you back from starting?
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