- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
I know it started for me when I was a kid. Really young. Always feeling guilty about my thoughts or actions. I would call them “bad thoughts” when talking to my mom about them. I always felt relieved when I would confess my intrusive thoughts and behavior to her. She’d always talk me through it. I had stuffed animals that I felt were each connected to a family member. If someone touched any of my stuffed animals I believed it would effect the person that the stuffed animal represented for me. I couldn’t leave the house without drinking water or brushing my teeth right before walking out the door. Certain prayers I would repeat many times a day in order to feel safe. Having to touch certain things I saw while walking through a store or mall just to feel “complete” or normal. As I got older it turned into thoughts about my face and appearance. Then harm ocd then religion ocd.. then into existential ocd. Theme to theme. It’s been a roller coaster since I can remember.
- Date posted
- 6y
I have really good days and really bad days. Sometimes I’ll go many months without even 1 ocd spike and then something will trigger it and it’ll hit me hard. I’m learning to face it, accept it, and most importantly pray through. Also talking about it out loud with close friends, family and my boyfriend helps so much!
- Date posted
- 6y
When I was 8 years old I had a classmate in school who moved and I randomly began freaking out asking myself "what if I killed her but I don't remember!?" It was so obsessing that I was even having false memories of killing her. I broke down in tears to my mom and sister and they both looked at me like I had lost my mind. As time passed, I moved on to hocd. Then I moved on to scrupulosity. Then pocd. Then rocd. I've had all types of ocd ?
- Date posted
- 6y
As early as around 8 I knew I had ‘rituals’ but they were a secret because I knew it was unusual behaviour.
- Date posted
- 6y
I would stay up all night after my dad died because I was obsessing over whether someone would break into our house or the house would catch on fire. I was diagnosed with ocd then. And then a year and a half ago I started having other intrusive thoughts and I eventually realized that it was OCD. Even though I was diagnosed young I never actually understood what it was until last year.
- Date posted
- 6y
Got a sinus infection. Started worrying it wouldn’t go away. Then the worry got worse then the sinus infection. Then the theme switched to religion and morality. That was a long time - and many theme switches - ago, when I was 19.
- Date posted
- 6y
I discovered I had ocd few years ago but they were mis diagnosing me . Since I’m going through self harm/suicidal ocd they kept telling me I was suicidal and depressed but I didn’t feel depressed or suicidal I just kept getting the thoughts over and over but never wanted to do any of them they just caused great distress and anxiety. But I been through all the other ocds but just this one I’m currently going through has been the toughest to get over with.
- Date posted
- 6y
Wow JM7, I can totally relate to almost everything
- Date posted
- 6y
@MissK preach! They were weird in your own head and didn’t want to tell anyone...
Related posts
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 23w
Looking back, I realize I’ve had OCD since I was 7. though I wasn’t diagnosed until I was 30. As a kid, I was consumed by fears I couldn’t explain: "What if God isn’t real? What happens when we die? How do I know I’m real?" These existential thoughts terrified me, and while everyone has them from time to time, I felt like they were consuming my life. By 12, I was having daily panic attacks about death and war, feeling untethered from reality as depersonalization and derealization set in. At 15, I turned to drinking, spending the next 15 years drunk, trying to escape my mind. I hated myself, struggled with my body, and my intrusive thoughts. Sobriety forced me to face it all head-on. In May 2022, I finally learned I had OCD. I remember the exact date: May 10th. Reading about it, I thought, "Oh my God, this is it. This explains everything." My main themes were existential OCD and self-harm intrusive thoughts. The self-harm fears were the hardest: "What if I kill myself? What if I lose control?" These thoughts terrified me because I didn’t want to die. ERP changed everything. At first, I thought, "You want me to confront my worst fears? Are you kidding me?" But ERP is gradual and done at your pace. My therapist taught me to lean into uncertainty instead of fighting it. She’d say, "Maybe you’ll kill yourself—who knows?" At first, it felt scary, but for OCD, it was freeing. Slowly, I realized my thoughts were just thoughts. ERP gave me my life back. I’m working again, I’m sober, and for the first time, I can imagine a future. If you’re scared to try ERP, I get it. But if you’re already living in fear, why not try a set of tools that can give you hope?
- Date posted
- 19w
Hi, I’m new to this app and newly diagnosed. Question for you all, What things did you normalize and do without a second thought that when diagnosed, you realized was actually your OCD? Mine was how concerned with germs I am. I hold my breath when I open a door so the rush of wind doesn’t infect my lungs from whatever is in the room. I thought everyone was really careful and concerned like me. But Ive learned it’s not normal the lengths I go to. What was yours?
- Date posted
- 17w
Hello, my name is Brittany, and I have been living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for as long as I can remember. However, since experiencing a stroke that I believe was a result of chiropractic care, my struggles have intensified and become overwhelmingly exhausting. I have always been acutely aware of my body and its signals, which has led to a heightened sense of worry about potential health complications. Though I’ve always had a tendency to worry, the anxiety that has surged since my stroke feels insurmountable. I’m reaching out in hopes of connecting with others who understand this journey, sharing stories and experiences in the hope that, one day, I might find a way to overcome these challenges or at least discover some relief from the relentless grip of anxiety.
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