[Deleted]
- Date posted
- 29w
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 29w
the thing about memory is that it is never 100% accurate so we can never know for sure. We have to choose to accept the uncertainty of this. OCD likes to continue to throw those "what if's" in our direction. Don't try to solve them. While it's more complicated than this we are here to help and you don't have to do this alone. Feel free to reach out to our team so that we can support you.
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 29w
@scrambled - I hear you with this unclear uncertainty about whether a memory is real or a product of post partum depression/OCD/ or abuse... it's exhausting and deeply upsetting. Your experience of a thought evolving and gaining 'details' through rumination sounds incredibly challenging. Many people with OCD struggle with intense doubt about their thoughts and memories, sometimes referred to as 'false memories.' The anxiety and the urge to figure it all out can create a confusing loop where thoughts feel increasingly real, even if they contradict what you previously knew. We would need a clear assessment to be able to determine a diagnosis and thus how to best help you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at NOCD to find out how we can support you. In the meantime here are some helpful resources: https://www.treatmyocd.com/what-is-ocd/common-fears/what-are-intrusive-thoughts-and-are-they-normal https://www.treatmyocd.com/what-is-ocd/common-fears/what-if-i-have-committed-a-sin-and-dont-remember https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/intrusive-thoughts-normal/
TrustGod24TrustGod24
- Date posted
- 29w
Dealt with this for years over time you’ll develop more and more strength to get through it, sending you love and light ❤️🩹
Angel20Angel20
- Date posted
- 29w
Going through something similar at the moment and like you I’m saying “If it was real” and I’ve noticed whatever intrusive thought I have I always try abs reassure myself with this phrase, If!! The thing is logically we don’t say “If” when something so scary is real do we. The problem is ocd doesn’t listen to logic 🥴
Angel20Angel20
- Date posted
- 29w
@scrambled This sounds exactly like me. I will logically reassure myself that this thought can’t be true and I may feel better momentarily but then the OCD will step in and suggest. Maybe I can’t deal with the truth and I’m just burying my head in the sand and in denial. I too wish I’d never ruminated on this thought as I’ve just gone further and further down the rabbit hole I’ve been dealing with it for weeks. It helps though to see that even though we don’t know what each other’s intrusive thoughts are, our response to them seems to be the same pattern which would suggest that this is OCD at play. Know that you are not alone.
Angel20Angel20
- Date posted
- 29w
Yes I have real memories that are from a conversation with my husband. I was using one of those memories to reassure myself repeatedly after having an intrusive thought. Gradually the memory became blurry, hazy and that panicked me that’s when ocd stepped in and said “ well maybe he didn’t say that at all, maybe he said something entirely different “ and then started offering up scary alternatives 🙄😞. Since then it’s been, well that can’t be true cos of xyz and attempts to disprove it. I too have a very vivid imagination and things can quickly feel real.
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strike1207
- Date posted
- 24w
Can someone please help. I’m struggling.
I have had the same false memory/instrusive image of me doing something horrible to someone when I was 12 and they were younger. It is a memory based on a real event. I truly don’t know if it’s real or not but obviously, the more I think about it the more I think it’s true. This has led my mind to become slightly paranoid. I worry that if this horrible image in my head is true then one day the person I might have hurt will come and k*ll me. I’m really scared I feel like I won’t feel better as long as this “memory” is in my head. Does anyone have advice?
LillyX
- Date posted
- 23w
Pocd & alcohol & false memory.
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mavis ౨ৎ
- Date posted
- 13w
help without reassurance
TW. hii, ive been dealing with horrible thoughts as of lately. its gotten to a point where as of recently, ive been starting to eat less, sleep more, and cry a whole lot. i dont know whats wrong with me, i have confusing memories. im in a relationship, and as a highschool girl who loves hard since this is my first relationship, ive been having confusing thoughts about whether or not if i found attraction to a boy last year on a cruise. the first time i met this boy, my boyfriend knew about him because i made sure to update my boyfriend on everything. me and the boy were only friends & thats how i thought my intentions were before. but i dont know why now, a whole year later… ive been having confusing, yet convincing thoughts that i found attraction to the boy and i cheated on my boyfriend. everything seems so convincing, yet makes no sense, but i want to know the answer, did i find that boy attractive, and i try to look back into my memory to remember how i felt, but nothing works, i dont know how i felt or feel anymore. i dont know if these are false memories or theyre real memories. how do i know if they are real, concrete memories & how do i genuinely get rid of these thoughts?
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