- Date posted
- 14w ago
Advice?
I’m having a big OCD relapse and would like to hear anyone’s tips on how to be present and healthily deal with these intrusive thoughts and the “need” to preform compulsions. Thank you!!
I’m having a big OCD relapse and would like to hear anyone’s tips on how to be present and healthily deal with these intrusive thoughts and the “need” to preform compulsions. Thank you!!
I'm sorry to hear that you're experiencing a relapse. Focus on your breathing or use mindfulness techniques to bring your awareness to the present moment. Techniques like the "5-4-3-2-1" grounding exercise (identifying things you can see, hear, touch, smell, and taste) can help anchor you in the now. Instead of trying to fight your intrusive thoughts, acknowledge them without judgment. Understand that these thoughts do not define you and recognize they are part of OCD. When you feel the urge to perform a compulsion, try to delay it for a few minutes. Gradually increase this delay over time. This can help reduce the anxiety associated with the compulsion itself. Use cognitive restructuring to challenge irrational thoughts. Ask yourself what evidence you have for and against these thoughts and whether they are realistic. Find activities that you enjoy or that require your full attention, such as reading, drawing, exercising, or spending time with friends. Engaging your mind can distract you from intrusive thoughts. Resist the urge to avoid situations that trigger your anxiety or compulsions. Gradually facing these triggers can help diminish their power over time. Structure can provide a sense of stability. Try to maintain a daily routine that includes self-care activities. Remember to believe in yourself and your recovery. You can do it, just as you did before.
Thank you so so much for your kind words and advice!! This was very helpful🫶
You're welcome 🙂. Wish you a speedy recovery.
Use the SOS button. Take care of your body - sleep, nutrition, exercise. Learn basic mindfulness - stay grounded in the here and now. Sometimes when it's really hard I have to speak out loud to help myself be present in the moment - "now I'm brushing my teeth, I feel the taste in my mouth of toothpaste, now I walk out in the kitchen to make some tea..." Practice practice practice - and it takes time. We have to remknd ourselves that we have an disorder and we don't will fall for the tricks. Compulsions make it worse. Check Jenna Overbaugh on Insta - she is great.
I’m going through a really bad flare up. I developed ocd many years ago when I had my first child. Postpartum ocd. I suffer from harm and pocd. At first I had mostly mental and some physical compulsions but the physical faded away pretty early on and i’ve just done mental compulsions since. My ocd was in remission for alot of years and if the ocd would pop up now and again, I was easily able to shrug it off and not engage. A few years ago I went through a stressful time in my life and the ocd came back to stay. At first it was bad but then it got better and has been pretty mild until now. It’s been really bad this week and the physical compulsions are even back. I never thought it would ever get this bad again. My ocd is making me doubt who I am and how I feel. I know it’s all ocd and not real or true but the ocd makes it feel so real that I can’t easily dismiss or disprove it. The more I try to disprove it the more real the ocd makes it feel. I’m really struggling and don’t know how to get back on track. I don’t have access to a therapist because there are no ocd specialists near me and my insurance doesn’t cover online therapy. That’s why i’m reaching out here. Has anyone been through a rough relapse? How can I get through and past this??
hi. so one big factor of my OCD is rumination. i met a guy who i have a crush on the idea of (idea bc there are red flags). my biggest fear is not finding true love, my ex told me no one else would deal with what i have (my ocd, specifically reassurance seeking and getting overstimulated after intimacy). a few weeks ago, my friends and family all gathered and tried to give me advice that sounded like “you’re shy and you’ll never find someone.” after that, i’ve felt off. i’ve been using an unhealthy coping skill, daydreaming, and i’ve just felt unbalanced. my ocd makes everything feel different sometimes, i can’t explain it. life, myself, almost like being in a dissociated state. has anyone else experienced that? i don’t know how to remain balanced during my off times and i know pms exasperates it all. i take ashwaghanda and omega 3s in a multi vitamin daily. i take them all together in the evening but i’ve missed three days recently and also messed with my rocky sleep schedule because of fun times with friends. i hope these supplements work, because i don’t know if i’d be brave enough for medication. i had a bad reaction on prozac and often am forgetful. i just have been battling my OCD consciously for almost ten years now and unconsciously for longer. i am so tired, as my mental health extends beyond my OCD. i’m in talk therapy with some cbt aspects but i only see her twice a month. i’ve broken down so many times and promised myself id get on track or that certain things would work, but it’s like i am stuck in a circle that gets smaller when i’m able to help myself. i just want to be normal. i want to be able to mess up my sleep schedule to enjoy good times and not suffer horrible consequences or fear that i will be entirely thrown off balance. i don’t want to worry or doubt or feel so dissociative that i squint my eyes for a moment and wonder why i feel so unreal. i will never understand why god has allowed me to go through this. i cannot let it be for nothing but i don’t know how much more to bend and contort my body and brain to get somewhere stable but how lovely it would be if i could. i don’t have much of a schedule right now, i get apathetic and give in with things from time to time. one thing can trigger me and i am back to square one wether in a week or month. any advice, any and all is so helpful. your stories, your thoughts. maybe feeling less alone and knowing what has helped you is exactly what i need right now. thank you 💗
Does anyone have any advice on how to deal with intrusive thoughts&images. At first i had intrusive thoughts around my partner, now it’s centred around me & I can’t be around window ledges or medication due to a story I read online(it’s too triggering for me) . Sometimes I feel like I can’t leave my bed due to the thoughts being so overwhelming I just break down and want to sleep. I aren’t taking any medication or therapy yet. I worry that if I don’t give my thoughts a reaction that my thoughts are true and not OCD. I’ve had these thoughts 24/7 for 2 months.
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