- Date posted
- 48w
questionš
guys how do i stop needing constant reassurance? what do i do instead?
guys how do i stop needing constant reassurance? what do i do instead?
Agree with your intrusive thoughts no matter how disturbing they are. They will pass almost instantly and you wonāt need to see reassurance for anything at all because you will have done the work (very brave work) all by yourself.
I would say the biggest thing that helped me overcome my reassurance compulsion was learning how to be uncomfortable. Yes, I know how gross and yucky it feels, but the more you allow yourself to have these feelings, you will learn that you can handle them and they will pass without you needing to get reassurance in order to make them go away. It's all about retraining your brain. I find it amazing that no matter how old you are, you can rewire your brain to make new patterns!
Can you recognize what is causing you to seek reassurance? I believe reassurance is a symptom of the problem. Perhaps discovering the cause will help you to identify tools to prevent. I love your nickname, btw. Chocolate chip cookies are my favorite!!!
@Someone99 hi! iām having some heath concerns and im super super obsessive about it. and thank you, they are my favorite too!!!!
@Someone99 do you have any advice on how not to obsess over health problems even though itās something really happening you just donāt know what it is yet?
@ilovechoclatechipcookies What I can share is from my personal experience with OCD and ERP therapy. I also had health related OCD in 2018 that almost debilitated me, all is well. First, don't search, web md and Google may not be helpful to you, probably escalating your OCD. Are you seeking medical care for your concerns? Then allow your doctors to do their best. And self care is very important. Stay away from researching, even stay away from the Internet. Take a walk, stay hydrated, eat healthy, pay attention to loved ones and people close to you. Can I ask what you're concerned about?
@Someone99 thank you for your wordsš„¹iāve been definitely trying to stop googling bc itāll make me feel good at first then terrible so i definitely know thatās a compulsion. but i am worried about a lump i found on my leg that has started to hurt and itās been there for months i just havenāt noticed. i am going to the doctor soon and i am so worried about my health and life. its so hard to keep my mind off it bc i am so worried its serious. i have had different health problems this year that have all turned up okay but i am feeling super defeated and drained bc i was just feeling better until this. let me know what you think!š„²ā¤ļø
@ilovechoclatechipcookies Thank you for sharing. If you'll allow me to, I would like to be a part of this journey with you? Let's take one day at a time. You have the appointment with the doctor, that's the right thing to do. It's not an invalid concern. There's almost too much information online these days, so let's stay away from researching for tonight and tomorrow. Ok? One day at a time, I'll be with you if you allow me to. š
@ilovechoclatechipcookies Good morning, happy Sunday. No checking, no researching. Tell yourself "I feel like I need to research this, but I'm not going to, I'm going to allow the uncertainty, might not like it, but allow it." Allow yourself to be present in the moment today. :-)
@ilovechoclatechipcookies You doing ok today?
@Someone99 definitely better, just staying off my phone. thank you!
@ilovechoclatechipcookies Good. No researching!!! š
@ilovechoclatechipcookies So...when is your doctor appointment?
I apologize I post here a lot lol. I have a few questions/I want to vent about this. My therapist and I have identified one of the triggers Iāve been trying to work on, which is my fear of never being good enough; for myself, my family, my friends, for my romantic relationships, and just in general. Honestly, I hate myself so much. Not for any reason in particular, but I overanalyze everything I do and let it consume me. I know this is normal for most people, and everyone goes through bouts of self depreciation and lack of self love. Iām trying to give my love to myself that Iāve always given to other people and itās so difficult. Itās really funny, I need male validation even though I feel like I can never trust a man ever again. I was broken up with at the beginning of April, and so you can imagine how my self worth really has been feeling. Iām aware my self worth isnāt based on other peopleās perception of me, but I just want to be loved consistently through my ocd and adhd. It feels like itās too much for people, while I simultaneously feel like Iām making this a massive deal. I donāt want to get into another relationship ever again, I just think Iām too weird for most men or theyāll take advantage of me for something again. I think if a man is nice to me, it means thereās an ulterior motive or a catch. Thereās genuinely no way someone even cares as much about me as I do them, itās always one sided. I love my friends, Iām taking about relationships wise. Not to mention, I hate the way I look and act. When I think Iām somewhat decent looking, thereās always a post to pop up with this stunningly beautiful girl. I can never catch up with modern beauty standards. I hate this so so so much. I hate feeling this way, how do I make this all stop?
Hey everyone. I hope you all are doing okay. Iām currently struggling in the worse way I have through the course of my relationship. We are doing long distance right now, and I am unfortunately in the worse place I have been in. The uncertainty is absolutely unbearable. He is doing a cool new, consuming job 7 hours a way. He loves it, but I fear him loving the job so much that he stops caring about me. I have definitely noticed a shift in the amount of time he texts me and the energy he can give to the relationship. The job actually started off with 2 weeks of no phone. He has it again now though. We saw each other a couple of days ago in person for the last time we would in about two months. I was okayish when we were in person though I knew I would spiral later. And spiral I did. He left and I broke down. I am worried I will lose him. I start a really intensive EMT program in a week. It will be all-consuming for me. I canāt sleep very much and I donāt feel like eating. I know itās pathetic. I am constantly consumed by these fears. I think I know what I need to do to combat them. Accept uncertainty but it feels like the possibly of it ending feels more real than ever. And I literally can NOT stop thinking about it. My brain feels in danger!!! I just worry that bad stuff is actually happening. I think we are going through a rough patch, but I also just feel more alone than ever. Drowning in my mind. What do I believe? I have a past of ocd, so it wouldnāt be surprised if itās getting intertwined. Most people would say: itās okay to ask him for reassurance about the relationship!!! But I feel like thatās the trap for me. I donāt know how to move forward. I know things are tough for us right now. But Iāve been floating back and forth on a spectrum of well maybe I just have trust to maybe this literally wonāt work out!!! Texting and communicating over text is really hard for me. I am constantly analyzing it: how much energy is he giving? How much energy am I giving? Well I donāt want to do all the emotional labor, and be the main texter. But I also donāt care about texting that much and get exhausted with this back and forth.
Can I get some tips on how to not seek reassurance I have HOCD and had it for three years now unfortunatly. Iāll have times where itās not as bad then Iāll get a spike again and I rlly need to put an end to this but I canāt seem to stop seeking reassurance Iāll go thru phases where Iāll stop seeking for a while but then Iāll always come back. Tips would be appreciated
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