- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
Thank you so so much. I think your right though that I have accepted it and that has seem to be what made it go away. I have just recently started, like 2 months ago, ERP and it seems that when I try to make myself anxious to expose myself and resist I end up not anxious and don’t get anywhere, but when I’m not trying it’ll pop up. Thank you again though I really appreciate your advice.
- Date posted
- 6y
Talk to your therapist about this! Sometimes people struggle to feel anxious in therapy. Being in the one place you actually want to feel anxious so you can get help can make your brain shut it right off. It’s the paradox of anxiety and ocd all over again. A huge driver for anxiety is trying NOT to be anxious. Sometimes the moment we actually allow it, if not encourage it, with ERP, it goes away. That doesn’t mean the work you’re doing in therapy is pointless or not helping though! Keep going! You’re still learning invaluable skills for handling anxiety in the future. And right now, this is all new still. Once you’re not in a place where you’ve accepted the anxiety, it could come back.
- Date posted
- 6y
I get that too after some things, i also do erp, but it almost seems as though after certain things ive done certain days makes me less anxious right after even for a few hours after, ive been exercising lately and been eating better than i have in the past, so i dont know if that could be making it better i could see it helping, and lately ive been doing my erp because i normally am not able to everyday like i should, but yeah i just get no ocd or anxiety at times after that.
- Date posted
- 6y
I have also started exercising more lately as I have started taking ballet classes for conditioning. I have seen some improvement from that too. Good luck with your ERP
- Date posted
- 6y
I just did some research on it and it actually says that it helps with improving anxiety, so no wonder i felt better, will definitely be keeping it up along with erp.
- Date posted
- 6y
Thank you @syd123
- Date posted
- 6y
^things that used to cause me so much anxiety, and obsessions leading to compulsions, don’t seem to anymore. I will forget to worry and then afterwards I remember, oh yeah that should have made me anxious. The things my therapist give me to do also don’t cause me any anxiety and I’m kinda worried, that I’m not anxious because I have been since I was at least 7 years old and it’s all I’ve ever known, so now that I’m not anxious it’s making me really worried. Sorry that was so long
Related posts
- Date posted
- 23w
I think I’m in the recovery stage as my thoughts have settled so much & I only get intrusive thoughts on occasion and get worse only when I’m anxious, but the quietness in my brain feels so weird & I feel awful saying that because all I wanted was the thoughts to stop. This is the most quiet it’s been it’s over 7 months, so to go from non stop thoughts for a long time to quietness I don’t know how to take it. Has anyone else felt like this in recovery
- Date posted
- 22w
Last night I took my meds to help me sleep and I kept waking up throughout the night with thoughts like “I’m really a lesbian now” or “I’m ok with it now, this is what I prefer”. I really feel like everyday for a couple of days now, I’ve woken up feeling more and more like my preferences have completely changed. The first few days was major anxiety, panic attacks, then I had a really bad double-bind and reversal spiral, and I became a little bit calmer since then. Now I feel like I’m managing the thoughts without anxiety or panic like I’m used to, but now it feels like I really want them and that I’m ok with it. Like I don’t care anymore. But the thing is, in between all of the mini spiral episodes I’ve had, I had these little moments of clarity like “I’m not giving up on my fantasies of men” or “I’ve always wanted men, that doesn’t just change”. But last night I’ve had really sexual dreams that I’m having trouble interpreting. I had one where I think it was me sleeping with a guy, but I woke up frantically because I think the roles got reversed, but I’m not sure. Another one I was a random woman with a husband, but I think the roles got reversed again so I woke up immediately. Both times it felt like arousal. Obviously I still care somewhat if I’m still here asking, but my brain or maybe me (I’m really not sure anymore) is telling me that I’m a lesbian now and I prefer it. It’s like I don’t care and want it now. It’s like I’m not even feeling confusion about it. I don’t know if it’s because of the meds, I’ve been distracted (family in town), because I’m in maybe quieter stages after two bad spiral episodes, or because I’ve really changed. It’s literally like I think being a lesbian will be enjoyable now but I don’t want that, even if my brain (and body apparently) keeps telling me that. I was told that ocd doesn’t change who you are, but now I’m worried that what I thought was background noise leading up to another spiral was suppressed self discovery (I’ve had two major soocd episodes in my life: late high school and now a few years later).
- Date posted
- 17w
There are moments when something takes over me, like I have to fight myself (literally restrain myself) from acting on my thoughts, like causing harm to my parents or brother. I get these feelings that feel so real, like they are genuinely my own. There are moments when I feel like I like them, and it makes me question whether this is truly OCD or if it's me. Then I wonder whether this is me lying to myself, because I feel the urge to smile at the thought, or feel like I have some pleasure. I check whether I like them, and then I feel like I do, so I stop immediately. I feel like my old self is gone, and I've become this person, and that it was never OCD. Right now, as I type this, I feel like I'm lying to myself. There are moments when I feel like my brain splits, as if this is my new personality. Or there are moments when I feel like it might feel liberating or freeing if I do it. I genuinely feel like this is not OCD. There are moments when I stop the thought, and I feel like it's out of principle, as if I don't truly want to stop at that thought. I truly can't picture this to be my life now. I never had these thoughts in my life until two and a half months ago. It truly makes me question whether it was OCD. I don't get why. I used to view my family as my world, and now my mind is making me scared and feel like my room is my only safe place from them, from me.
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