Advice for partners

Know that your significant other is just overthinking and its not real, reassure them letting them know that YOU know its not true. Tell them the way theyre feeling is normal and be supportive.

Support without reassurance is all that is necessary. Patience would be welcomed wholly

Use empathy and take a break if you get frustrated. Don’t give reassurance or help with compulsions. It feels like the kind thing to do in the moment, but it prolongs our suffering in the long run.

Please be patient with us, you don’t know the horrors of what is going through our OCD brains. I’d also say educate yourself on what OCD really is and how bad it can affect people, from reliable sources. Be kind without providing reassurance. Encourage us to not avoid people, places, things, that we would like to avoid because of OCD.

Join in on a therapy session or a few. This has helped my fiancé learn terminology and what to do / not to do in moments of my OCD episode. It has been so helpful to our relationship, without it we may not have made it this far. He now knows how to help in the situation and even helps me with my homework ( ERPs) 🤍

Be supportive without providing reassurance as it can become a compulsion for the OCD sufferer. There are ways to be there for your significant other without fueling the fire of OCD!

Please be patient with your partner and their tendencies. Getting annoyed with them will only make them feel worse

Know that intrusive thoughts are really scary, sometimes gross and very unwanted by the person experiencing them. Especially if we have them about people or specific taboo topics like harm related things or infidelity. We do not want these thoughts there and we're just as grossed out, disturbed and hurt by them as you are. Please don't take them personally, intrusive thoughts are invaders in our brains and they're scary enough without external judgment added on. We experience alot of shame and guilt around them.

One thing that has helped me personally is my partner using humor. It makes everything seem less serious and I can actually laugh about some things when I see how silly they are. Might not work with everyone. If your partner is struggling, making a light hearted joke might help them.

be patient, stay educated, and make yourself vulnerable to continue the journey of growth together

One of the things I have appreciated from my friends and loved ones is them telling me they love me and not offering reassurance. My husband still has to work on this a bit. He is very much offering reassurance so I myself am trying my best not to go to him cause I know if I do it will make it worse. If you love your significant other support them in other ways and remind them you are still there but don’t offer reassurance.

Single

Always the truth. If you love them. And respect them.

Be patient and understanding always, even if you don’t understand yourself ❤️:)

I think it’s important for my significant other to know that OCD involves a lot more symptoms than what the common stereotypes are. I would also have a conversation with them about how they can help me and not enable me

Relax and chill

Chill

Act like you do not care- it simply does not matter; attach no significance to whatever new "thing" or theme your partner's brain attaches to. That calm, strong, irrelevant attitude towards an OCD moment can often be contagious, in a good sort of way.