[Deleted]
- Date posted
- 1y
š¤BrokenChaosš¤š¤BrokenChaosš¤
- Date posted
- 1y
I'm sorry to hear that. This sounds very confusing. I will tell you, I do not feel that you have done anything wrong at all. If you had, the animal would react negatively. Keep this in mind. <3
CristyS323CristyS323
- Date posted
- 1y
@SavageGirl They donāt react negative, just pur and roll around. Sometimes if I pick them up too much they just get squirmy and try to go away. And I feel bad bc I bother them a lot picking them up bc of my ocd but they donāt get mad.. I just hate this
š¤BrokenChaosš¤š¤BrokenChaosš¤
- Date posted
- 1y
@dee012 - I am going into veterinary medicine and know many behaviors of animals. The fact that they don't react negatively means that you haven't done anything wrong. The closeness of having the pet with you is reassuring, so I understand needing that. Since they don't get mad, they aren't really bothered. What kind of pets do you have? I can help you identify body language and behaviors to help reassure you. Would you like me email to keep in touch, or no? If not, no problem. *^^*
CristyS323CristyS323
- Date posted
- 1y
@SavageGirl Thank you for the offer! If I ever do I will let you know. I have cats, 3 of them. The only time I assume im doing something wrong is when I yell at them, but sometimes they attack each other playfully but it gets out of hand and one of them got a cyst before on their eye due to a cut from fighting. So I only really yell or give them a little tap/smack on their butt if they are misbehaving like really bad. Not hard just enough to get their attention so they stop. But regarding my post above, they seem to only be annoyed because I keep picking them up and stuff. Since the compulsions are repetitive I can see why they feel bothered and the need to move. I just feel sad that my OCD targets my pets. But like you said im not hurting them and they arenāt mad, next time is to just get better with my OCD.
š¤BrokenChaosš¤š¤BrokenChaosš¤
- Date posted
- 1y
@dee012 - It sadly targets those we love most. I hope that I've helped
CristyS323CristyS323
- Date posted
- 1y
@SavageGirl You did! Have I said something wrong? My apologies for the long comment
š¤BrokenChaosš¤š¤BrokenChaosš¤
- Date posted
- 1y
@dee012 - No, there is no problem <3 Don't worry, you have done nothing wrong.
TexasOCD41TexasOCD41
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
@SavageGirl - I would discourage going down this route as this type of discussions are feeding dee012's need for reassurance which is feeding their compulsions. It is well intended and you are very sweet to try to help but i think we should be encouraging them to practice exposing themselves to the uncomfortable situations without responding to them with compulsions.
š¤BrokenChaosš¤š¤BrokenChaosš¤
- Date posted
- 1y
@TexasOCD41 - I've found exposure a slow process, just like you can't cold-turkey medication.
TexasOCD41TexasOCD41
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
Well i was trying to respond to a previous post of yours and i had to close my window ( i do these replies at work and my boss walked in lol shhh) it was in regards to kissing your kitty on the mouth, i didn't even really read the full post cuz i knew 2 sentences in it was OCD messing with you. I actually giggled slightly at the start of it becuase i full out kiss my cats flat on the mouth all the time lol my husband does too ( and then i am reminded that one likes to get drinks out of the toilet and promptly gag a bit ) My husband also grabs them and pretends to lick them and nibbles on there ear. You have to keep in mind, intention is important. I kiss my cats with the intention of showing them i love them ( and cuz it annoys them and that tickles me lol) but its never to harm them or violate them. The fact that you question your actions but know your intentions is the proof its OCD throwing a glitch in your thinking. I encourage you to do what we have discussed. Don't hop on this app spelling out each encounter because its actually compulsive and will only make your OCD worse. The compulsive petting needs to be worked on too. its GOOD to let your guard down, pet owners don't monitor their behaviors with their animals because they just know its not necessary. The fact is, you could even touch your cat directly on the butt and it wouldn't be bad. my kitten likes to sit with her butt on my toe ( shes odd lol) its not inappropriate. what i want you to do, is REALLY work on stopping yourself when you want to do compulsive pets. i think a good ERP would be to turn your head and pet your kitty without looking where you're touching. Let yourself feel that anxiety of " did i just touch her inappropriately?" i KNOW it sucks, i REALLY do, TRUST me, the ONLY way is to ALLOW yourself to feel that yucky feeling and NOT RESPOND to it. Give kitty some blind pets then get up and walk away and go do something else. each time your mind asks if you might have done something bad, you respond to it with " perhaps i did, probably didn't, its simply not important, i have other things to do right now." THIS is the exact phrase i have used to pull thru hard OCD spells in the past and am even using now to get thru a nagging little flare up I'm experiencing currently.
CristyS323CristyS323
- Date posted
- 1y
@TexasOCD41 Thank you so much for this comment, Iām sorry I did not see this when you posted it. I just checked this post and saw it. Your advice really helped, I think I will bring up the ERP method with my therapist. I honestly think the fact that I hyperfocus on it, whatever it may be regarding my pets, is why it feels so inappropriate to me. Itās because of my brain, the compulsions are just to make myself feel better, which obviously make me feel worse. Your call really opened my mind up to a new ERP method. Iāve been struggling recently, and been feeling like I need to be away from my pets. This made me feel better. Thank you
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