Fire OCD with Water Heater

For the last three months I have been battling with obsessive thoughts about my water heater. For context, the water heater is at the end of the hallway right next to my daughter’s bedroom. I always have these repeating intrusive thoughts of my daughter being stuck in her room and the fire getting to her. The intrusive thoughts kick in at night before bed because I worry that if the water heater were to catch on fire, I wouldn’t hear the fire alarm and/or get to her fast enough. It’s a terrifying thought that makes it hard to sleep at night. Our water heater has been making popping sounds because of sediment, which has made me more nervous and uneasy. When we drained it last week we couldn’t get too much out but the popping has gotten a little better. I’m so tired of feeling this way every night. Any advice?

Mid-life adults with OCD

Username: •nocd_user••nocd_user•

Date posted: 23w ago

I have feelings like this too about the heater in my house. I’m always scared of it catching fire and burning my house down. Usually i just think of how I would help get everyone out and try to end with a good thought of everyone safely out of the house with help on the way.

Username: NintenderpNintenderp

Date posted: 23w ago

@•nocd_user• I’ve never thought that way. I love it! I’ll give that a try. Thank you!

Username: FJustRightOCDFJustRightOCD

Date posted: 23w ago

@•nocd_user• This can be good, but just to an extent, you don’t want this to become a compulsion where you feel that you have to engage with these good thoughts in order to neutralize your distress. Bc sometimes OCD can really up the gauge on how far you need to go to think of how you’ll get everyone out. Yes a bit do this is good, I’m just sharing bc OCD can make these good intentions into compulsive “shoulds” that places more pressure on ourselves to control what at a certain point is simply the uncertainty of life that we only have some but not full control over. 😉

Username: FJustRightOCDFJustRightOCD

Date posted: 23w ago

I struggled with this fear at my old place, and the key to the distress of this worry decreasing ironically isn’t reassurance ourselves of safety (I know, sounds awful right?), it’s using “non-engagement responses”. So, I had to say “yes, that would be terrible OCD, I’d that happened it would be so tough. I undertand that this could happen, but I’m going to keep on with my day knowing I’ve already done what I could”; and just really treating OCD like an annoying pest that’s trying to warn you too much about sometning it’s already mentally brought up for you too many times. There are always risks that we live with, whether a fire, earthquake, tornado, car accident, etc, and working on our OCD means not feeding into the worry more than is healthy or productive for us, but instead treating the thought with a grain of salt. And I totally understand it’s SO hard, and some scenarios are too horrendous to “accept” but its just accepting that we live in an uncertain world, and are able to live our life as best we can amidst the uncertainty. Knowing there is more reward to doing so, than the slight chance of a risk occurring. You got this.

Username: Waaahmo

Date posted: 4y ago

Unlike the most common types of OCD, my fears always come true. Let's take the easy example of turning off the stove 10 times just to be sure, it's all about the obession and compulsion. However my fear is to feel depersonalizated (i think i have this, not sure, for me it justfeels like being stabbed by 1000 knifes every second for weeks on end) so i try to avoid things that will make it happen. However, it keeps happening and it's devastating every single time, so much that i can't bear it at all. Your house catching fire likely won't come true, but me suffering intensely once i am triggered does, almost every single time, unless i somehow magically convince myself i just triggered myself and dp won't happen unless i let it by reacting strongly to the trigger. But it only worked like 5-6 times in my 4 years of suffering. I am still looking for a therapist to help me deal with this, but if anyone has any ideas as to what i could try or do i'd be grateful. Exposure doesn't work because the thing i am scared of comes true every time and i lose all control and cant think straight / really need guidance when it happens.

Username: Bhappy

Date posted: 3y ago

OCD and fear is robbing me of the most happy moments of my life. My husband and I just bought our first house, an event that should be one of the happiest of our lives. However, I am miserable. All I can think about is that one of the walls of my daughters bedroom is shared with the kitchen and the refrigerator. Since my obsession right now is radiation, my mind is convinced that I’m harming her by exposing her to the radiation coming from that wall into her room. I would sell this house if I could even if my husband divorced me. That’s how bad my anxiety is and my need to bring my child to safety. Everyone just tells me how crazy I am and how nobody would even consider my concern a real one. But this is driving me insane. I’m starting to believe that I’m just addicted to this anxiety feeling because there is always something that I worry/obsess about no matter what. Im just exhausted.

Username: JFL

Date posted: 40w ago

Stove

I have been making progress with certain elements of OCD, however I still can't get comfortable with whether or not the stove is off when I go to sleep. I know I check it but if the knob feels slightly not over the off label I feel that the stove gas might be on and I don't know it. How do I overcome this?

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Fire OCD with Water Heater

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