Hello, I need some help with responding to intrusive thoughts. I know the best response is when your OCD tries to mess with you "okay, maybe I will." but that is in some cases way too hard and scary. Trying to fight your OCD is even worse, but I was wondering if there were responses that we're sort of in the middle, a 'neutral' response.
Some people will respond with a kind of neutral "yeah, sure" or "whatever". Nathan Peterson on YouTube talks about this a lot
Thank you, I'll check those videos out
I think recognizing that these are intrusive thoughts caused by OCD is most important because it reminds you they are thoughts that don’t matter. Like any fleeting thought, this one will pass with time as well, and these thoughts are just part of having OCD. Being able to say, “there goes my OCD again” when you get an intrusive thought is very important, and as difficult as it can be you will get there ❤️ trust the process and trust yourself!
Thank you, that helps :D
Also, remember that you are NOT supposed to fight off the intrusive thoughts in your head. Let them run freely in your head without trying to fight them or fix them. It takes a lot of pressure off your life when you are not trying to stop the thoughts. Instead, you just let yourself think them.
Try and associate your thoughts with humor and give them a silly name. For example, when my thoughts are annoying me I'll be like "oh hello pineapple, what a silly idea that is" and try to think about the thoughts in a humorous way and even laugh at them. It helps make it not so serious
Oh I like that that! I'll start trying that. Doesn't that also lead to you avoiding pineapples in this examples because you associate then with the intrusive thought tho?
@idkausername Not really for me, pineapple was just an example. You could completely make up a new word or omit the name thing altogether if it doesn't work for you
@scatcat01 Oooh thats also a good idea, Thanks!
Is it possible to seek reassurance from oneself? Because sometimes I try to combat my obsessive thoughts by telling myself, "this is just my OCD. There's no need to be anxious or upset over this unwanted thought. My OCD is telling me things that aren't true." Or if I have an intrusive thought, I'll tell myself, "this is just an intrusive thought, it doesn't reflect who I am as a person. Just because I'm having an intrusive thought about doing something awful doesn't mean I actually want to do that thing. It's just an intrusive thought, it doesn't say anything about my character or desires." Is it okay to do this, or is this another form of reassurance-seeking? I guess basically my question is, is it okay to comfort oneself and remind oneself of the truth, or is this a form of compulsion in itself? I'm just trying to figure out how to respond to my intrusive thoughts and obsessions in a healthy way.
What is the correct response to intrusive thoughts? Of course I know that you must avoid compulsions but what is a good mental process? Like, 'Okay whatever', or 'It's just an OCD thought', or 'Mm Hm disregarding'. What should you kind of say mentally?
Is the best way for getting over OCD to ignore the intrusive thoughts? Most of my compulsions are in my head and it’s hard to ignore when they’re very distressing and you don’t agree with them at all!
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