Advice please??? I’m CONFUSED

OK, this might sound really dumb, but when you guys get intrusive thoughts, do they just come once and then go away? I’ve heard that repeatedly thinking about an intrusive thought is considered ‘checking,’ but it doesn’t feel like I have any control over how many times it comes up in my head. It’s not like I’m trying to check anything—it just keeps showing up, almost like it’s terrorizing me every time. I can’t seem to stop it from looping, stop remembering it, or prevent it from coming up. Every time it does, I feel horrified, and I already know it’s going to horrify me. I don’t think I’m actively trying to see if my feelings have changed, so is this still considered checking? How do other people get an intrusive thought and just move on? Doesn’t it pop up a million times for them too? I always thought that was normal, but now I’m hearing this could be a compulsion, and I feel really confused, scared, and lost. Is this why my OCD feels so extreme? Because I really don’t feel like I can control how many times the thought pops up.

Username: andrewt_andrewt_

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: Yesterday

Even if it isn’t checking, it’s still textbook OCD and this is very common. I think it happens when you attach a lot of meaning to the thoughts, and your brain develops a new pattern of thinking where it will constantly infiltrate your mind with specific thoughts. Because it knows that they are relevant to you. It’s almost like certain things appearing on someone’s social media because the algorithm knows it has importance. Idk if that makes sense but I hope it does 🤣 The longer you go without reacting to them and just not engaging, the less you will get these thoughts. But it’s honestly different for everyone so it might take longer for you than someone else or vice versa. The reason these thoughts may be sticking more often than they do for someone else is because of the severity of your OCD. When your OCD is 10/10 extreme, you will get way more intrusive thoughts. For example when I wasn’t dealing with OCD that much, I only got intrusive thoughts every now and then. Now that it’s really bad again, my brain is programmed to send me a ton of thoughts. It could also just be the level of stress you are experiencing. A lot of the time OCD capitalizes on the stress that it causes. It’s like a snowball that just gets larger and larger. I hope things get at least a little more bearable soon, you don’t deserve to be dealing with this

Username: andrewt_andrewt_

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: Yesterday

@andrewt_ Also sorry for the book haha I just had so much to say 😭😂

Username: issphra 🫶🏻issphra 🫶🏻

Date posted: Yesterday

@andrewt_ Don’t even worry, I really like detailed replies. Thank you for explaining. It makes a lot of sense. I think sometimes I do check and other times it just randomly pops into my head repeatedly. I think I’m developing some sort of meta OCD where I just feel so much fear and dread at the thought that I could be checking. I don’t know. It’s so confusing to me to know whether I’m checking or just remembering. I really hope things get easier because I really hate this so so much. I feel so scared all the time

Username: Dunkin2019!Dunkin2019!

Date posted: Yesterday

Alegra Kastens said that her ocd felt like a pair of head phones were permanently strapped to her head and she couldn’t turn off what was coming out of them. I felt the exact same way. My last relapse of extrem ocd made me feel like I had headphones on for months that I couldn’t take off or turn down. Sometimes I would even cover my ears or pull my hair because my brain literally would not stop. But unfortunately I had to force my self to continue on with my day and just push through it and eventually it dialed back. I would even sit still for hours and not move because I thought as soon I got up and started trying to be human the thoughts would start. It does get better just takes a lot of motivation and fighting to get out of it.

Username: issphra 🫶🏻issphra 🫶🏻

Date posted: Yesterday

@Dunkin2019! That’s a good analogy, I do follow her. I’ll pay more attention to her content! Thank you :)

Username: nae naenae nae

Date posted: Yesterday

No, this happens with me, too! Once, I had a really horrible image pop into my head, and for a couple of weeks, it'd constantly be popping in and out. It was so difficult to pay attention to any conversations going on around me and to not get sucked into ruminating. I feel like most of the time, my intrusive thoughts appear more than a few times, and they're there for the entire day, week, month, etc, and I just sort of let them exist in the corner of my brain and go about life as best I can😭

Username: issphra 🫶🏻issphra 🫶🏻

Date posted: Yesterday

@nae nae I’m sorry this happens to you too :( it’s so hard to not pay attention to them ugh

Username: nae naenae nae

Date posted: Yesterday

@issphra 🫶🏻 I know :( I'm sorry it happens to you, too. Better days are ahead.

Username: Anonymous

Date posted: 24w ago

Intrusive thoughts

Hello everyone. My name is Cathy and I have severe intrusive thoughts that seem to come out of no where. However only one thought at a time. I fixate on that scary thought for days and days and my anxiety builds up and up. I try to then attack the suggested catastrophic thought such I may have this disease or going to die from that disease or rot in hell etc. scary thoughts always. I try and do a ton of research on line to counter attack the thought trying to prove it wrong and this helps me but if I can’t find something that proves I won’t get the disease or have it already or prove other things too depending on what the thought is, it doesn’t help at all and can make it worse. Is anyone out there experiencing what I have. I don’t have ocd cleaning or washing or checking but have intrusive scary thoughts.

Username: byrde

Date posted: 23w ago

Intrusive thought too intense to ignore

I don’t really wanna go into detail about what it’s about cause I feel like it’s super embarrassing, but there’s this one specific type of intrusive thought I get that I struggle extremely with ignoring/sitting in discomfort with. Does anyone have tips for managing something like this?

Username: carol.xxx

Date posted: 22w ago

harm ocd please respond its typed properly - sorry

I am really struggling. I feel like I have a constant harm related intrusive thought in my head, causing a horrible intrusive feeling in my head. Even if I’m just simply scrolling and see someone sometimes this feeling of an intrusive thought becomes present, leading it to become horrid intrusive thoughts and feelings. I would never want to hurt anyone. Let alone do it and I’m struggling so much. I feel like I have a constant harm related intrusive thought in my head and feeling. Which is reinforced when I look at people. It goes when im distracted and then i remember the horrid feeling. I feel like bursting into tears, ive had enough. Can anyone relate? I feel like a constant intrusive thought and feeling IN my head im so sad :( I feel horrid. Scared ill go crazy.

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Advice please??? I’m CONFUSED

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