is this a compulsion or a form of rumination?

sometimes, to try and prove my fear wrong i’ll be like “ okay, let me think of this REALISTICALLY. would i REALISTICALLY feel this way or do this thing? “ then i come up with scenarios in my head on how i think i would realistically ( or logically ) do something but then my feelings go against that thing i thought of then i start getting anxiety and start to fear that i would actually want my fear to happen or that i’d feel a certain way that proves my fear true. it’s basically just checking how i feel about something i think of to try and prove my fear wrong, checking my emotions or checking how i think i’d realistically feel towards it.. but then i may react “ unrealistically “ it goes wrong and i freak out

Username: Billie Ray is the dogBillie Ray i...

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 8d ago

Yes this deifnitely sounds like rumination to me, but it's okay because you're learning more about your OCD and how it shows up. Something I like to do when I notice that I'm ruminating is simply shift my mind to whatever is in front of me. Especially because rumination tends to make us get stuck in our heads instead of focusing what's in the present. It takes practice, but you can learn to refocus your brain to what realy matters.

Username: Anonymous Anonymous

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 16d ago

I do the same thing and my therapist says it just another compulsion for you to try to make sense of your ocd. I struggle with a lot too, I’ll be okay “I feel like I would do this at some point but logically let me look at the facts so it can’t be true” don’t give in to the compulsions! You can do it <3

Username: mikulovermikulover

Date posted: 16d ago

@Anonymous thank you <3 i’m trying my best lol ocd is awful

Username: Garrett MaguireGarrett Maguire

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 8d ago

Hi there, rumination is a compulsion. Trying to prove your fear wrong, never works with OCD. Saying, let me think of this realistically, in my experience won't help because the what ifs always come up......you cannot reason your way out of OCD obsessions, the best way to deal with this is to stop ruminating......ok I know that's hard but once you learn ERP , you can say to yourself, the only time I will deal with this problem, is when I am doing ERP, which you can leave to a set time, once or twice a day, the rest of the time just allow the worries to be there but, DO NOTHING WITH THEM, allow the anxiety without trying to figure it out....yes that is hard at first but will get much easier with practice and with using ERP to weaken the obsessions.

Username: mikulovermikulover

Date posted: 6d ago

@Garrett Maguire thank you :) i’ll try, it’s just really hard

Username: Garrett MaguireGarrett Maguire

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 6d ago

@mikulover I know it's hard and sometimes you may drift back into rumination, but remind yourself that it won't help....at least not for long,.....once you catch yourself ruminating, stop, leave the problem unresolved, take the anxiety, do the ERP every day if you can........ when your mind tells you, you must try to figure it out, that's the OCD trying to get you back ruminating/doing compulsions.

Username: r.m.1r.m.1

Date posted: 15d ago

Rumination is a compulsion. Anytime you’re checking or proving it’s a compulsion

Username: MichelleVMichelleV

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 9d ago

In my experience, arguing with my OCD or trying to prove it wrong doesn’t resolve it. But learning how to work with the thoughts takes time! If you have a therapist, ask for help with non-engagement responses. This article touches on it: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/effective-ways-you-can-respond-to-unwanted-thoughts I’ve tried proving my OCD wrong when it came to driving-I was always afraid I would crash my car and hurt someone. I would argue against it by saying I felt fine, I was in control, and looking at every car around me. It just kept my cycle of fear going. Learning how to just roll with the thoughts ultimately made them easier to sit with. I hope this helps!

Username: love_fnv

Date posted: 1y ago

Mental Arguments/Contradictory Thoughts Leading to Doubt

Does anyone else experience arguments in their head when it comes to their thoughts? I find that I'm constantly going back and forth when I have compulsions, where two sides of my brain will argue with each other. I may argue "logically" against the fears I may have, but then I'll remember some past event or something I've done in the past that will lead me to believe otherwise. It's a chaotic cycle I'm trying to deal with, but I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this/has ideas pertaining to getting out of it? It really messes with my head after a while, because I feel like the side of my brain that is telling me I'm a bad person almost always wins. Every time I try to reassure myself by addressing the fact that my thoughts are unwanted and irrational, I feel like more rational proof of me being a terrible person comes rushing into my head.

Username: blueteddybear

Date posted: 1y ago

Feeling like I need to solve

Sometimes I have so much going on in my head at one time - and I have layers of intrusive thoughts one on top of another - all together and sometimes I don't know or remember which one caused my anxiety but I have to go back and solve them or reproduce the feeling that came up so that I can "disregard" it properly. It gets so exhausting because I'm always chasing after random thoughts and feelings all about similar themes - that are constantly getting triggered - by silly things. The fear is - I won't know its ocd unless i go back and solve them. I think this might be a compulsion? Does sitting with the discomfort with this Also work?

Username: Nameless000

Date posted: 35w ago

A new perspective. The opposite side of what ifs.

It might just be the opposite of what I fear; it might just be OCD. The whole thing about being uncertain of something that you're not willing to tolerate not knowing is a sign of how distressed you are by it. Having uncertainty and obsessing and worrying about not being certain about something should be self-reassuring because it means that you're wondering and thinking painfully about an issue that many wouldn't even question or doubt themselves within; it bothers you and it scares you. It suggests that you're clearly not what you fear the most. All this time, you thought that in order to not be a monster, you should never even notice and think about these scary and disturbing things in the first place. But maybe the fact itself that you're obsessing about this bothering stuff, trying to figure it out, confirms that you're the furthest thing away from being that monster. Not wanting to be is an enough answer. All the things that are triggering us daily, are just tests in which we have to always recognise when we're about to ruminate and pull ourselves out of it, and thinking it as a chance and a challenge to practice exposure and response prevention.

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is this a compulsion or a form of rumination?

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