Not giving or seeking reassurance?

It can be confusing for sure! 🙏 I would say with Ocd, there’s a fine line between being sympathetic and enabling someone’s OCD symptoms. It’s normal to ask a question once and receive an answer. But with Ocd, we’ll ask the same question 1,000 times, because nothing someone can say will fully satisfy the Ocd. The excessive part of asking- hints at reassurance seeking. And for someone without Ocd, they can hear an answer and be satisfied. But with Ocd, reassurance is only satisfying for a few minutes or hours. The person will be back asking again and again, which prolongs their suffering when they should instead be resisting seeking reassurance. I would say a great way to give support is to relate to someone’s struggles, give Ocd education, and let the person know they aren’t alone. But be cautious even of this, because literally anything can be turned into a reassurance compulsion. Anything with the aim of reducing anxiety- can be reassurance for an OCD sufferer. Even saying “everything will be okay.” This answer often provides certainty to the sufferer and anxiety relief. Instead we often try to say “Sit with the discomfort. Short term pain for long term gain.” These are referred to as “response prevention messages.” Even using humor with someone’s Ocd thoughts can sometimes be helpful because it takes the seriousness out of it. It’s called a “cognitive defusion” technique. If you see someone posts a lot about the similar questions or topics- they’re often looking for reassurance and not doing their ERP homework. Good advice for them would be to encourage them to do their homework and resist compulsions, even when they feel anxious and desperately want to know answers to OCD’s questions

Welcome! Here’s a bunch of resources about OCD and compulsions to better understand your situation and how to treat OCD: -What is OCD? Explained by Nathan Peterson: https://youtu.be/eeTFME9mOMc?feature=shared -The Psychology of Seeking Reassurance: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/reassurance-seeking-ocd-anxiety-how-to-stop-cycle -5 Things To Do Other Than Compulsions: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/five-things-to-do-instead-of-compulsions -Stopping Rumination’s Tough! Video by Nathan Peterson: https://youtu.be/CkcspsmLh9k?feature=shared -What is Rumination? https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/the-rumination-trap -Confessing compulsion vs. healthy sharing: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/ocd-compulsive-confession-vs-healthy-sharing -What’s Pure O OCD? https://www.verywellmind.com/pure-o-primarily-obsessional-ocd-4159144