Hi NOCD! I've been working with a therapist through NOCD for a while, and have decided to post this to see if we can all help each other a little đ. When your OCD gets really loud, but you no longer feel the urge to do a compulsion, but you're still left with that feeling of panic and distress, what do you do?
I try to say hello to it and welcome it (ex: "Hello there anxiety/fear/sadness/pain/etc. Welcome.") and allow myself to feel it while I return my attention to whatever task I'm doing, without engaging in mental compulsions like rumination. And I don't try to track whether it is increasing or decreasing (this can be a compulsion of mine). I also like to do self compassion exercises. ex "This is hard/uncomfortable, and that's okay. Let's ride the wave."
I try to use mindfulness and acceptance techniques. Notice itâs there and let it be there without trying to fight it. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy techniques are super helpful for this!
Iâve been practicing laughing at my OCD. If I feel the distress rising, and saying maybe/maybe not doesnât immediately help, Iâll say âit would be so funny if ____ happened.â Or, âOCD, youâre so silly, thank you for that thought, but Iâll take it from here.â Music is also really helpful for me, esp if my ocd flares up when Iâm driving. When my thoughts are loud, I sing louder. Overall, the practice of going on with my day has made tolerating the distress easier. It was hard at first to work, or do hobbies while my ocd was flaring up, but continuing to practice and reminding myself of my values has helped a lot.
I've been working on sitting with my triggers, my compulsions have decreased recently. This last week was when I saw how much calmer I am, my physical symptoms have drastically reduced. Have patience with yourself, you will see a decrease in the severity of your panic feelings as long as you keep practicing.
Hello! I'm new here and new to OCD. My therapist suggested I might have OCD due to my tendency to ruminate endlessly on doubts and fears. These thoughts are indeed intrusive and I can't seem to stop them. The thing I'm kind of stuck on is that I can't see where the compulsions come in. Unless the thoughts themselves are compulsions. Can anyone relate to this?
Hi everyone. I'm feeling kinda scared because I have to wait a whole month to start ERP therapy, but I feel like I need to start doing exposures now because the longer I wait, the more anxiety I get. It just feels like the OCD monster is getting worse. One thing that helps me is asking one person about an obsession I have...asking a person that I trust, and then doing an exposure after I get the "ok" to do it. I feel like I do need 1 reassurance and then I can go ahead and do it. I know i'm not supposed to ask for reassurance at all, but i dont think you're supposed to do ERP on your own right? Does anyone have any suggestions for what to do while waiting for therapy? PS-the reason there is a wait is bc she's on vacation. After she's back we will meet regularly.
I get asked about the name NOCD a lot. People might want to know how itâs pronounced, and theyâre curious about our story. Every time, Iâm excited to share a bit about what the name meansâin fact, itâs an opportunity for me to talk about something everyone should know about OCD. First things first: itâs pronounced âNo-CD.â And it actually means a couple things, both central to our mission: To restore hope for people with OCD through better awareness and treatment. The first meaning of our name is about awareness: Know OCD. Though weâve come a long way, not enough people truly know what OCD is or what itâs like. How many times have you heard someone say âDonât be so OCD about that,â or âI wish I had a little OCD. My car is a mess!â Things like that may seem innocent, but they trivialize the condition and keep most people with OCDâaround 8 million in the US aloneâfrom getting the help they need. The second meaning of NOCD is about treatment: No-CD. To go a bit deeper: Say âNoâ to the compulsive disorder. On one level, this is also related to knowing OCDânoto means âto knowâ in Latin. This inspired the name NOTO, the operations and technology infrastructure that powers NOCD the way an engine powers a vehicle. But this meaning goes even further. It has to do with how you can manage OCD symptomsâlearning to resist compulsions. This is the foundation of exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, the most effective, evidence-based form of treatment for OCD. Learning how to resist compulsions with ERP changed my life, and it taught me how important it is to get treatment from a specialty-trained therapist who truly understands how OCD works. Iâll give you an example. When I was 20, my life was going according to plan. I was thriving on the field as a college quarterback, doing well in school, even winning awardsâuntil OCD struck out of nowhere. I started having taboo intrusive thoughts, things that horrified me and went against my core values and beliefs. Desperate for help, I saw several different therapistsâbut no one diagnosed me with OCD. At one point, I was instructed to snap a rubber band against my wrist whenever I had an intrusive thought. It was supposed to stop the thoughts, but it only made my symptoms worse. Driven into severe depression, I had to put my entire life on pause. Once I started ERP with a therapist who understood OCD, I learned why: you canât stop intrusive thoughts from occurring. Everyone has themâand the more you try to get rid of them, the worse they get. Anything you do to suppress them is actually a compulsion, whether itâs counting in your head, snapping a rubber band against your wrist, or using substances to drown the thoughts out. To get better, you have to learn to resist compulsions and accept uncertainty. OCD doesnât get to decide how you live your life. How do you educate the people in your life about OCD? Whether friends, family, or strangers, Iâd love to hear how you share your understanding and raise awareness about OCD.
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