What's a piece of advice you give when someone has constantly intrusive thoughts and ruminations that won't stop? Interested to see what you tell others.....more on this when I see some replies!!!
When it comes to ruminating I try and tell myself and anyone else I know with OCD to try and direct your energy into a hobby you really enjoy or a task you can actually control, such as organizing soup cans or making a list of shows I like. With my own intrusive thoughts I try to get angry with them because I am someone who is low on self confidence and needs to be more assertive so I test it on my own thoughts. If I have a looping thought I'll say like "screw you obsession, I'm not interested today" or something like that.
Thanks for the reply. May I also suggest that you do things that are day to day as well, like going to work or school even though OCD may tell you not to. Working opposite of what OCD is hoping you will do will help you learn to live with OCD and not have to distract from it.
@NOCD Therapist - Patrick M. My husband has given that advice too! I try and listen to it as much as I can. I'll have an OCD that's like "I can't leave the house on a Friday because last Friday was bad" and I'll do it anyway to spite the thought.
I ask help from God to get rid of that intrusive thoughts specially during the time I’m praying.
Just beware that does not become a compulsion. Prayers to commune with a higher power are fine. Prayers to undo an obsession are usually compulsions.
Brother I struggle in the same way, including the prayers to undo an obsession. I want you to know that God knows us inside and out. He created us, and in spite of the intrusive thoughts He still calls us His own without shame. You didn't create yourself so just breathe and relax, you are in good hands. It took me years to get to this point. Even through my many failings, flaws and blasphemous thoughts, God still pours His blessings on me.
@ryanlee1985 Nicely said
@ryanlee1985 - I often say to people that even if a higher power showed up in a therapy session and told you that all was fine, OCD would still say, "Are you sure." OCD does what is in the nature of OCD to do, and that is 1. Doubt, and 2. Demand certainty.
There is a second part to that, which is to do what you need to do to accept the intrusive thoughts. I have a priest friend who gave a great sermon at finals on a college campus. He said, "In the hour before your exam, 50 minutes of studying and 10 minutes of prayer is better for your grades than 50 minutes of prayer and 10 minutes of studying." Fr. Rickey was hysterical. And, I liked his point. It is a two way interaction here. Praying is fine, but do ERP as well, and I bet that combo gets you the best results.
We must intentionally and wholeheartedly anchor our attention in the present moment. Allowing the thoughts to come and go while giving attention to whatever youre doing. Thats what has worked for me
Say that loud and proud - great advice!!
This. When I get locked in my head, a voice always asks "where are you right now?", and I always respond by calling out exactly what I'm doing and what I'm seeing at that moment. It brings me back to reality.
In Philadelphia we have a saying, “Trust the process”. When it feel like they won’t stop, you have to trust the process ( ERP, meds, etc.)
Wonderful. OCD will lead you astray for sure. ERP offers you the opportunity to drive on the road you want to.
Here is what I say to people. I wish I could make it stop. I really so. I also wish I could stop tinnitus. What is tinnitus, you may ask? Well, have you ever gone to a loud concert and after it had a ringing in your ears. Or, in movies when a loud explosion hears, first it is often muffled, and then there is a very loud ringing sound. Well, I have hear that sound for over 30 years. Turns out the medications I took as a kid for allergies and all the antibiotics I was on for Strep had a side effect for some people - tinnitus - that sound that I have heard every decade, year, month, day, hour, and second, for the past 30 years. I have learned to live with it. As I type this, it is REALLY loud, because I am paying attention to it. But, in a few minutes it will fade into the background, and, while I will hear it, I will not pay much attention to it, and therefore I will go on with my night. I will listen to music, practice my story for the MOTH radio hour, and work out. I will clean up the kitchen and load the dishwasher, and I will eventually get ready for bed. I will go to bed hearing that sound, and fall asleep for a few hours until tomorrow morning when I start the day all over again. I cannot make the sound stop. There is nothing to do for it - no surgery or medication. Just learning to live with it, and that is what I have done. It is the thing that I hate the most in my life, and, if granted three wishes, it would be the first thing to change. For now, as I have for 30 years, I will live with it, and I will ask you to live with your noises in your head - the thoughts, the images, and the urges, and we will practice together accepting that things are not always as we want them, but we can handle that. We got this.
Tell the thoughts “I don’t have time for you right now”
Take that thoughts.
Probably that these thoughts are just that. You are more powerful than them.
I agree and say the same for the images and urges that also come along with OCD.
I tell people to accept it or go to ERP.
Love that!! But I say it a bit different. DO ERP TO LEARN TO ACCEPT IT!
hi. so one big factor of my OCD is rumination. i met a guy who i have a crush on the idea of (idea bc there are red flags). my biggest fear is not finding true love, my ex told me no one else would deal with what i have (my ocd, specifically reassurance seeking and getting overstimulated after intimacy). a few weeks ago, my friends and family all gathered and tried to give me advice that sounded like “you’re shy and you’ll never find someone.” after that, i’ve felt off. i’ve been using an unhealthy coping skill, daydreaming, and i’ve just felt unbalanced. my ocd makes everything feel different sometimes, i can’t explain it. life, myself, almost like being in a dissociated state. has anyone else experienced that? i don’t know how to remain balanced during my off times and i know pms exasperates it all. i take ashwaghanda and omega 3s in a multi vitamin daily. i take them all together in the evening but i’ve missed three days recently and also messed with my rocky sleep schedule because of fun times with friends. i hope these supplements work, because i don’t know if i’d be brave enough for medication. i had a bad reaction on prozac and often am forgetful. i just have been battling my OCD consciously for almost ten years now and unconsciously for longer. i am so tired, as my mental health extends beyond my OCD. i’m in talk therapy with some cbt aspects but i only see her twice a month. i’ve broken down so many times and promised myself id get on track or that certain things would work, but it’s like i am stuck in a circle that gets smaller when i’m able to help myself. i just want to be normal. i want to be able to mess up my sleep schedule to enjoy good times and not suffer horrible consequences or fear that i will be entirely thrown off balance. i don’t want to worry or doubt or feel so dissociative that i squint my eyes for a moment and wonder why i feel so unreal. i will never understand why god has allowed me to go through this. i cannot let it be for nothing but i don’t know how much more to bend and contort my body and brain to get somewhere stable but how lovely it would be if i could. i don’t have much of a schedule right now, i get apathetic and give in with things from time to time. one thing can trigger me and i am back to square one wether in a week or month. any advice, any and all is so helpful. your stories, your thoughts. maybe feeling less alone and knowing what has helped you is exactly what i need right now. thank you 💗
whats up guys what are some tips dealing with ocd and what to do when a thought makes u anxious ??
I struggle so bad with intrusive thoughts. They can be so bad that I'll cry because I KNOW that's not how I feel or want to do. (Too embarrassed to say what they're about) I'll constantly try to figure out why I have them, and constantly figure out what they mean, causing me to constantly circle around and around. I had to get on anxeity meds, which helped a little but the thoughts still happen. How do you help yourself with this? How do you know that you're just not some physcopath? 😅
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond
