I have very odd dreams and they always have to do with my intrusive thoughts. I will have nightmares about all of the things i don’t want to happen and i am afraid of and even thought this is normal, i never have real dreams. Only nightmares.I also always remember my dreams and have 3-7 dreams a night even if i only sleep 6 hours. i wonder if anyone feels the same way or has a story to share
def. i’ve had nightmares about intrusive thoughts haunting me since i was rlly little, ur not alone. i’ve had dreams that I remembered as memories and would shame myself for what happened in those dreams, and a lot of people feel this way too. remember that memory is far from perfect and each time you remember something it changes. stay safe and take care of urself C:
Stress can cause nightmares. OCD causes a lot of stress. We tend to dream of our stress. Even if in the dream you seem to not care or even enjoy something intrusive, it means nothing. It’s a dream, you’re okay. They can be very disturbing, just know sometimes dreams are just our brain’s trash can. It’s just where what’s been spinning around in our heads even if it’s bad, gets dumped.
I dream the same way many dreams a night and always violent and terrible and extremely vivid I always think they are real. I’m glad to know it’s not just me
I haven't yet, but had psychosis from OCD and I'm afraid I'll get it again especially bc I didn't sleep at all last night!
Rane75, Thank you for being open and posting. We have an article on our site that may be helpful for you. OCD can affect your dreams just like it affects you when you are awake. I do not know everything about you, but I hope that the article can help in some way. https://www.treatmyocd.com/what-is-ocd/info/related-symptoms-conditions/can-ocd-cause-intrusive-dreams
@Brooks Gale thank you
Hey rane75! That sounds really tough. I am sorry you are experiencing the dreams centered around our intrusive thoughts! As an OCD therapist who also has OCD, I can say that I have seen this with many people who experience OCD and have even experienced this myself. It can be very unpleasant when this happens, but it makes sense that our brain continues to play the story it creates while awake in your sleep also. What do you find yourself doing to attempt to manage the anxiety around your distressing dreams?
Have you ever felt the need to hide knives because you’re scared someone might hurt you while you’re sleeping? Or have your thoughts ever tried to convince you that you have feelings for your family members? Maybe you feel like you need to tell your parents to “drive safe” every time they go somewhere, believing that it will prevent them from crashing, or that something bad will happen if you don’t. These are things I’ve experienced, but they didn’t last long, and because of that, I’m unsure if I actually have OCD, as these thoughts don’t happen frequently. I’m 17, so maybe it’s still developing, but I’m not sure. At one point, I even thought I might be a psychopath and would become a serial killer (i was analyzing my past and feelings but it went away quickly) When I was a kid, I was also scared I had a tumor and constantly needed reassurance from my parents that everything is okay, but it wasn’t as intense. Recently, I’ve been scared that ghosts would come or that a demon would possess me, or that if i open my eyes i will se my dead uncle (i was 16😂) which kept me from sleeping. Are these signs of OCD? Should I consider getting treatment? About three months ago, I had my first big obsession about possibly having OCD itself (i was scared of going crazy, of feeling like this forever, of not being perfect, of not having control), and now I’ve been struggling with HOCD for three months. But I’m scared that I don’t even have OCD, and that these thoughts might be true. It’s funny because just a few months ago, I was terrified of having OCD, but now I feel like I want to have it. I think a traumatic experience with weed might have made my OCD worse, but I’m not sure. What do you think? I also found out that my mom is also hiding knifes and that she was also obsession over sickness…
Is it common for children with OCD to have intense fears of certain things? For example, I was extremely afraid of tsunamis – I was constantly dreaming about them. Then, I became afraid of ghosts, robbers, war, the possibility that someone close to me might get sick or die, that I might develop a tumor, that our house could catch fire, or that I would grow up to be a drug addict. I even thought about getting a tongue piercing when I was older and was scared of doing that without having control, which now seems kind of funny. There were periods when I had different fears, but I always needed to ask my parents if these things would happen, and they would always reassure me. Although I don’t remember everything clearly, I know that throughout my childhood, I constantly had such fears. I remember ehen something was wrong with me (for example: i had headache) I immediately thought of the worst case scenario and I was extremely anxious. And another thing is that I couldn’t let go of a past as a child (still actually) Now I’m wondering, is this something every child experiences (even those without OCD), or is it more intense for children with OCD?
for the past few years i have been struggling with a certain theme of ocd as well as most of the other themes. but this one i have not figured out a good way to do my own form of erp or non-engaging responses. basically i will be daydreaming or thinking and have a very random thought. i wouldn’t call these thoughts intrusive thoughts because it’s not necessarily fear of the thoughts coming true, its just fear that my thoughts are too unique. my ocd will latch on to random or weird thoughts and may also add in that i was doing something weird while doing the thought. let’s say for example i thought of something random while i was rubbing my feet. then my ocd would be like “why are u having such a unique thought while doing something weird? nobody has ever thought about that specific thought while rubbing their feet before” (just an example). but basically it’s like my ocd bullies me for having thoughts that are too random and things i’ve never heard people talk about before if that makes sense. i am just trying to see if anyone relates even a little and how i can accept that everyone has unique thoughts.
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