- User type
- Staff
- Date posted
- 51w
Relationship check-in
How has OCD treatment affected your relationships?
How has OCD treatment affected your relationships?
Going through OCD treatment brought my family closer together. They became my biggest support and cheerleaders. They have also worked to educate themselves on OCD which allowed them to be more understanding.
@RobynšŖ“š§š»āāļøš§ I love this
Love this! Education is so important.
@RobynšŖ“š§š»āāļøš§ I would but you donāt take my insurance
@Crabmask2023 Mine either. I guess Iām not supposed to learn about me.
@nana3 Find another way! You're important enough. š
Ocd treatment has helped me realize that I had ROCD. For years I had struggled with it not knowing what I was dealing with. Letās just say this treatment has helped me in my marriage tremendously.
So amazing to hear!
Iām constantly over analyzing every little thing he says or does and how it can be taken the worst way possible. Always questioning whether things are right and that heās āthe oneā, and checking to see if itās normal to feel the way Iām feeling. Itās so fucking exhausting
OCD can be exhausting, but know that there's hope for symptom management!
@mvrganne I felt that one deep sister !!
Ocd is exhausting! Praying for you to get it under control. For every negative, seek two positives.
Treatment helped me to lean on my close friends for emotional support, and to accept their kindness, both of which used to scare me. I also got the courage to tell my family about my disorder. It helped me with my relationship to myself too, in terms of giving myself grace and self-compassion, and ending cycles of negative self talk. Some days itās hard, some days itās easier.
This is completely relatable! Giving grace to yourself can feel challenging but can be important in the recovery journey.
My OCD was relationship OCD. Therapy helped me deal with my thoughts so we could actually see and enjoy the progress we had made with marriage counseling. Being free from those obsessions gave me time, and motivation to be the mom and wife I want to be. I think the whole family is better because of it.
Wow this is awesome - thanks for sharing this piece of encouragement!
My family is very supportive. Sometimes I feel like a burden when I get into a reassurance seeking loop but they are so good about it. My So knows I have rocd and we even joke about it it which actually helps a lot because I don't have to hide anything
I donāt ask my mom for reassurance anymore - I can just be present with her and hear how her life is going and talk about my own without needing to do a compulsion. Such freedom!!
So much hope found in this message! Thanks for sharing!
I lost my most important relationship due to extremely high OCD and so im committed to making sure that doesnāt happen ever again. It was so painful to have happen.
I'm so sorry to hear that.
Once I found out I had relationship ocd, therapy helped me lean in closer to my values. I am so much closer to my boyfriend. I feel more present in my life and relationship. I have my period where I have more intrusive thoughts, but its mostly in passing now
OCD treatment has allowed me to grow in my relationship. From the lowest of lows, and now recovering back to that high. My relationship isnāt the same before the OCD hit, but now something different my partner and I have both learned to live with
NOCD has helped me develop relationships (marital, family, friends, work) in the sense that before I would avoid mostly all places and people including my family (my kids and siblings) because I never felt like I was there meaning I was physically at a place but never mentally there. I had become a stranger to others and even to myself. NOCD has helped me regain myself and has allowed me to be present for those who matter the most. On behalf of my husband, family, friends and kids but more importantly me, Thank you NOCD!!!!!!!
Love this!
I have relationship ocd. For years, my wife has occasionally had to go out of town on business trips. I always get nervous whenever this happens because I have trust issues with her and think of all the possibilities of her with someone else. It drives me crazy. I obsess about it until we end up in a huge fight, and one of us threatens divorce. I have no friends to rely upon when she's gone. I also end up sick and sometimes in the E.R. I NEED TO BREAK MY CYCLE!
It makes me sad to hear your pain. I pray for you and hope you seek help. You deserve it, and she deserves your trust.
@slmslc Iām sorry to hear. Has it gotten better I have a similar thing with trust and am always worried and questioning my husband I feel bad and he feels like I think he is an asshole and I donāt mean it I tell him itās me thatās messed up and I feel bad that I hurt himš
OCD treatment has allowed me to connect better mentally with my friends and have just a better and greater time being in the moment compared to the beginning of treatment and where I was months before now šŗ
OCD treatment has allowed me to create relationships that I thought Iād never have š
@noahhateshisocd I love this , it gives me hope
@Dogmom97 There is so much hope to have with conquering your OCD ā¤ļø I didnāt think there ever could be, but just keep the practice up :)!
Honestly, when I was good for a few months and had zero symptoms. My relationships were amazing. My head was so clear. But other stuff come to the surface and I'm not the best with them right now because I'm almost hyperfocused on what's in my head (creativity wise rather than ocd). So still currently not the best but I am healthier than what I was
Progress isn't linear!!
My parents donāt understand OCD. Especially, my dad, who does not believe in ERP. He thinks OCD can be cured with a pill. Iām alone, on my own. OCD gets triggered whenever my dad argues or has an attitude with my mom (even if they are divorced my dad will find a way to speak bad of her in front of me) I had to learn how to do ERP on my own, but whatās also eating me is my environment. I am in therapy for trauma, but I feel controlled. Iām sinking and each day I canāt see the surface
I have ROCD. My wife refuses to educate herself and tells me that she does not think that I have OCD. She really pushes meds. Which Iāll admit meds have made a huge impact, once I got through the bad meds. Iām doing better but worry about our marriage long term. My relationship with my kids is better and Iām focusing at work better.
I used to self isolate switch hurt my relationships with family and friends. I stoped self isolation after treating ocd with greatly helped my relationships.
Definitely made all of my relationships easy I wasn't shaking from anxiety thinking harm could come to them :)
Messed up my life I donāt have relationship friends
Me too. But I know now that I didn't screw up. I wasn't taught things I needed to know but didn't know I needed.
I don't either, and I know it's not healthy eventhough I'm married and have two daughters. Let's get help! ā¤
I finally feel like I can connect to people like real people do. I donāt have the need to anxiety dump or confess as strongly as I used to. I can simply just enjoy the people I love.
I admire your frame of mind and want to get there, too. Thank you. ā¤
I would say 2 big things for me are 1) Iāve stopped asking people for advice for the most part and comparing their answers and agonizing and 2) being able to do an exposure when Iām very anxious to target a specific insecurity
Treatment for my ocd has given back my relationships with my friends and family! Iām no longer compulsively confessing any moment I get to be with them and am spending time with them while being present. My relationship with my husband is less strained as we have been working together on being with each other and through our current needs.
Boss isnāt happy Iām missing some work. Other than that itās still pretty terrible hahaha
That's a loaded question.
Time. Time is literally being taken away from my loved ones. Itās sad to me, but not only till then end of the day. I go, go, go and do things until bed time comes.
It sounds like you're consumed with distraction, so you don't have to face being in the present and facing the pain that's stopping you from growing. I say this out of experience. It's okay to slow down. ā¤
Yes :( friend, family and spouse !@! I hate this sickness t
I have always felt so guilty and ashamed around my family but still reached out cause I didnāt want to fight it alone as a kid- I would sleep next to my mom for comfort in the night, through my teens it was so bad, and like mumbling reassurance shit to myself, calling my youth pastor, my sister, anybody with great reassurance at like 3am- it was bad
I was really struggling and I felt like I was dragging my family down the drain with me- the worst part was none of us knowing what this was all about and judging myself for having these mental breakdowns- I could barely handle going to the bathroom alone with my thoughts ⦠my family has tried their best and Iām so glad Iām finding better support so I can share these thing with them to help them understand whatās going on and how they can get help
I also feel significantly less jealousy of exes and other people my partner could be interested in
It has given me hope and grace for myself. It has taught me how worthy I am of my life and the people I have in it
They improved a lot. Iām finally able to go out with friends and my boyfriend. I am less distant too.
Iāve never had a girlfriend. Thatās how itās affected my relationships.
Going through this has caused me to get confused when it came to my romantic one and has been so hard to try and figure out fact from fiction sitting with this is not the best feeling
You're on the right path. The challenge is to not figure it out, to be okay not understanding your thoughts and feelings. Be in uncertainty, look at it, feel how it feels and don't make meaning out of it, and let it pass. Then focus on what you love and what you want to do.
Better. All better. I'm able to actually be emotionally present with my friends and family in a way I never was before. I always felt like I was presenting a false self and I was stuck in the throes of guilt. I have rocd as well, so treatment allowed me to recognize this and have a great relationship with a great man.
OCD treatment has really helped me to be able to spend more time with my friends and family without the interruption of compulsions. It helped me to not worry so much and focus on the present with whoever is with me in that moment.
Well I told some dear friends of mine and they thought I was a psychopath so there's that. These are adults in their 50s .
I notice that after I complete an exposure, I need to decompress before I can walk back into social interactions. One time, I finished an exposure, went right out of my room to spend time with my sister, and she asked me, āAre you okay?ā because I didnāt seem quite myself. Exposures can be really intense, and I need to be in solitude (watch a funny video or something, by myself) for at least a little while after completing an exposure.
A spike in ROCD when I moved in with my boyfriend (first time living with a partner) is what made me realize I had severe untreated OCD. Iāve been in therapy for over a decade, but OCD was the missing piece of the puzzle I could never find. I wasnāt broken, unlovable, or a terrible personāI just never had the correct tools for what I was dealing with. This new awareness + ERP has helped me work on myself and stop self-sabotaging. I was always stuck in the past or future and was never able to enjoy the present with my loved ones. I no longer feel doomed to repeat this cycle of self-torment. It has also helped me identify OCD symptoms in my partner and family members (I went under the radar because everyone around me has OCD) and share hope and courage for their journeys too. We were all unknowingly feeding off each othersā OCD, but in just a few months Iāve seen so much improvement in my life and relationships with others.
Meh
My OCD GOT SOOOOO BAD ?!!!
Not at all. First of all Iām single and always will be. Secondly my parents have always been there for support
In terms of hand washing, my parwnts(my father, mainly) joke abt me washing my hands endlessly. At this point Iām used to it, but they get rlly upset when I canāt control something, and it feels like Iām just ocd
My firsthand treatment experience has helped me to educate my loved ones. My mom just recently bought a book about OCD to learn more!
My relationship with my anxiety :3
OCD fād up so many relationships, to the point where all I could do was let. Go.
What should I do if my family calls me too sensitive? How can I tell them lovingly that I have OCD without seeming aggressive?
It has affected my relationships in many ways but my family has a long line of people with OCD that lets us understand who we are and what we need to be functional!
100% yes. There is very little OCD hasnāt affected in some way.
What is an exposure
@yadasake It is intentionally bringing about the anxiety that triggers your OCD, or āknocking on OCDās doorā instead of the other way around. However, instead of responding with compulsions, you respond with ERP messaging.
What is ERP messaging?
@yadasake Statements like āI just donāt know,ā or āI donāt have all the information to be certain.ā
Going through OCD treatments so far as Iām a beginner has got me to bring my family and friends who are very supportive closer for emotional support. Itās got me to understand that my relationship with myself is just as important and how some days harder than others to end negative feelings
I honestly have felt pretty alone going through treatment. I know my husband loves and supports me but just doesnāt fully understand. And my mom and dad they didnāt know what to do at all which is nothing against them. All the way from when I was a child they would get frustrated and then as I got older and my themes shifted to more taboo themes they were terrified and so was I. We donāt really talk much but I know they love me and support me as much as they can. Iāve learned that while yes having support from others is nice however, I am the one who has to put in the work. Regardless of what type of support Iām receiving. My therapist is obviously a support and Iām so happy to have met her. I know others have to go through this completely alone so I am grateful for the support I do have. My heart goes out to those who are doing this alone. You are amazing and strong and you can do this.
I donāt visit back home because I am apprehensive about traveling or āwhat ifsā of traveling or being away from my comfort zones. I over-question my feelings in my marriage, if theyāre real, genuine, even there at all. I sometimes get existential thoughts about how I even got to where I am like it was by chance rather than choice.
Study
It has made me able to explain what I need from loved ones much easier.
It was hard. I was hospitalized for 15 days about 8 months ago, so it's been a journey. NOCD treatment and all of my treatment has helped my relationship with my mom and my husband and brought us closer together!
My son has OCD and heās 9. My husband is in denial, my mother thinks he needs a spanking and my sister thinks heās spoiled! I tell them, āknowledge is powerā! Educate yourselves and then maybe Iāll listen! Itās just my son and myself keeping on. Iāll continue to read and search and hope.
@Jessie M. Iām sorry they donāt believe it, but Iām glad your son has you as an advocate.
Going through ERP has helped me learn to trust my boyfriend and live act confidently in my relationship!
No judgements, listen to understand and not to blame or point a finger "thus is why..." Don't look at it as flaw, a problem, look at is as something you, they, us have to learn, adapt, like diabetes or Kidey disease. Change your lifestyle to live better and live longer and most productive. Understand boundaries maybe necessary.
My whole marriage was affected by my undiagnosed OCD. Once I got an official diagnosis and treatment, I cried a lot to my spouse due to feeling so bad for how much it caused issues. Now, Iām so very grateful to be able to explain to my family and try to do my treatment in real time. They have been reaping the benefits as I do. Unfortunately, my marriage has ended because of my ROCD. I had to be very honest with myself. Now, my ex-spouse and I have a new understanding and respect for each other and life is getting better.
My wife and I have never understood each other more than we do know. Bringing her in to my treatment plan was scary AF, but it was a turning point in my life. It took time to consistently share, but once I did, the isolation I felt slowly subsided.
I have gained a better relationship with my father
Relationships will always be a difficult one for me with my disability but it made me understand my relationship mental loops and help my current relationship thrive more. It also made me understand how much more healing I have to do. My current partner is so incredibly loving and understanding and wants to help me beat this š
Having a hobby helps keep your mind off of the what ifs guys and gals it really does
My husband is very supportive.
Yeah
My OCD drove everyone away. Iām hoping treatment helps me maintain new relationships better.
Almost didnāt marry my husband: diagnosis and ERP saved my relationship. š¤ Thatās not everyoneās takeaway and thatās okay. Marriage has had some difficult points that also almost ended my relationship because of ROCD getting triggered. My partnership has survived by a two way street of communication, perseverance, and seeking help and support!
I havenāt been in a romantic relationship yet bc I keep second guessing if itās the right time, who Iām attracted to, if that person turns out to be bad for me, if Iām ready to date or not, Iāve never confessed feelings to anyone out of fear of rejection. Even if I like someone, I think there are more people out there and what if this person isnāt the right one. Ugh
I am more present with those I care about. š
almost certainly saved my marriage
It has strained my relationship with my wife because she has to put up with my distress so much and because I have constantly sought reassurance from her for a long time. She is put upon and is frustrated that she can't help me.
my mom told me i had a flat affect , and didnāt show my feelings much to her; my ocd wanted me to act guarded so that i could protect my loved ones from āmyselfā (my intrusive thoughts) but it only hurt me and her more
My relationships have actually improved since I started treatment. My wife did therapy with me and we are really making progress. Iām really nervous about my next ERP session, but my therapist is AMAZING.
I've been single for 21 years and I have no friends or family.
I spend all day talking about my partner and his life stories and fetishes lmao
In some ways it has helped my relationships because my family understands OCD much better now and knows what I'm going through, but it has hurt friendships over the years because I will obsess over friends and ruminate about them. I have relationship OCD really bad when it comes to friends. It used to be bad with romantic but I've been with my husband for over 7 years (less than a year married) so it's calmed down lol
Very much so!
Right now, Iām unfortunately in the stage where now that I know itās OCD, all thatās changed is I now blame myself for having it and how it negatively effects my relationships instead of just blaming myself in general. š
Relationships can be challenging for everyone. What are some ways OCD has come into your relationship and added extra struggles?
I remember reading a comment someone had made to one of my posts on an OCD subreddit and they told me how they believed their OCD symptoms got worse during a time in their life when they were socially isolated. Reading this comment made the brightest lightbulb go off in my head because it basically summarized most of what Iāve been going through. In addition to OCD, I also struggle with depression and social anxiety. I feel like these three things and the profound sense of loneliness Iāve felt throughout my years in college (undergrad) feed off of each other. I know that OCD can manifest in so many different ways regardless of what your social life looks like, but I canāt help but feel like the lack of relationships (specifically friendships)/community in my life has something to do with my mental health and the delay in my recovery. Side note: Iām still relatively new to NOCD, but Iām happy to say that Iāve been making some good progress in my therapy sessions <3
Hey guys! My boyfriend has said recently that he doesn't know if he's strong enough to continue with our relationship because of my OCD. He wants to see me overcome my symptoms and learn to live a healthy life with OCD, but my anxieties and obsessions are starting to really affect his life. I understand his reasoning, it's hard to see someone you care about struggle with OCD, especially when it starts to affect you too. I'm asking for tips to deal with my compulsions in the relationship. I HAVE to know the answer to things and sometimes that leads into arguments because even with apologies and discussions I can't let things go, even if they genuinely don't matter or are miniscule issues we have. It's a healthy relationship otherwise but I feel horrible because it's impacting him so negatively, that's the absolute last thing I want to happen. I care for him deeply and he cares for me too, so I don't want my OCD to be a reason we break up but I fear it's headed in that direction. I'm starting therapy soon, but until then what are some things I can do to stop my ROCD from impacting him? I know sitting in the guilt and anxiety of not completing my obsessions will help, but I'm wondering if there are other things I can do to maybe remedy some of the damage already done.
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond