Everyone Secretly Hates Me

Hi came to vent. Sometimes people tell me to stop overthinking and that I need to change that. And I try to give myself grace because I know ocd is real. But then I think “Or am I just lacking accountability?” Because then I hear stuff from people like “you’re just not helping yourself.” Or “you think so negative.” This and that and sometimes I really do feel like it’s just hard, because it feels so automatic… And it hurts my feelings when I’m told that I’m too much, or too negative. Or I need to work on this and that. Then I feel MORE guilt for not being able to accepting criticism well. Because the criticizing voice gets stuck in my head constantly.

I am struggling to feel like I deserve any of the confidence I used to have. I’ve done a lot of pretty cool stuff in my life, and I used to think it was impressive. I was so proud, and I would light up when others gave me compliments. Now, it feels like all a lie, and I can’t stop thinking everyone would hate me if they knew the terrible things I’ve thought or said or done. I make art, for example, and I’ve had a lot of success with it. But now, I feel like others would troll me or destroy my work, and then tell everyone that anything I touch is trash. Basically, I fear being bullied for the mistakes of my past — or even just for my thoughts. My therapist keeps telling me I’m completely normal and I’m the only one beating myself up, but my OCD says, “No, she’s wrong — you should stop pursuing your dreams and push away anyone who likes you, because they’ll all hate you eventually.” I know it’s ridiculous, but it feels so real. Anyone have advice for rebuilding confidence in the face of OCD?

So I just joined and I’ve been reading through this forum. And I feel a strong sense of compassion for everyone here. Reading about people’s OCD concerns shows me that people with OCD may be particularly sensitive and caring. I have struggled with OCD since I was a kid, but having compassion for other people’s OCD is helping me have compassion for myself. Maybe that perspective might help another person. If we can have grace for another person, we can give ourselves grace as well. I’m working on self forgiveness and gentleness when normally I beat myself up for my intrusive thoughts