Lately I’ve been having some thoughts like “i don’t feel real” and I feel disconnected and not been feeling like myself, I don’t know if this is just ocd because I do get thoughts about life and they don’t really cause much panic.. or could this be something else
Sounds like existential OCD maybe? Or dissociation? I struggle with this.
i feel like this all the time too. probably one of the scariest things i’ve ever experienced in my life. im sorry you’re going through this - you just have to keep pushing, honestly. just try and ignore it, i know it’s so hard with ocd and the spirals (and i definitely understand that) but genuinely thinking too much about it makes it so much worse. if it helps (which it doesn’t really for me, but i do it just because what if one day it helps) try and shock your system someway, somehow. when the thoughts get intense, take a cold shower or hold ice cubes. i know everybody says that, but it genuinely might work for you. the pain kind of brings you back if you know what im saying. you will be ok
Any kind of stress that causes an anxiety response like OCD does can cause derealization. I want to emphasize that although uncomfortable it feels, you are completely SAFE. This is a normal, common, safe anxiety response. From my knowledge, it’s basically your brain trying to protect you. It knows how overwhelmed you are, and in an effort to protect you, derealization takes over to kind of “space” you out and numb you in a sense. Obviously it backfires and causes more panic, but rest assured it is normal and will pass without needing to do anything about it. In fact, as hard as it is to do so, the way out of it is to just accept it. “Yup, I notice I’m feeling unreal again. This is scary, but I can handle it”. The same way we do with OCD. Radical acceptance of the thoughts and feelings helps them to pass quicker. Fighting them and pushing them away or trying to solve them only prolongs them. Existential OCD can be a common trigger for it, but it doesn’t have to be the “cause”. The cause really doesn’t matter, and solving it can be compulsive. Good luck friend 💕
Dissociation! Which goes hand and hand with my ocd And if wad triggered by a dissociative (lsd) and stuff I was roofied
I’ve been feeling the same way for a while! I can’t figure it out
I meant fighting back your harm ocd thoughts like letting them exist, I guess your right wrong verbiage makes it sound like you’re not allowing the thoughts to exist! Like mine switched from loud harm ocd thoughts and urges to loud “is this ocd, or are you crazy” or that dissociated feeling!
@Kaylynn123 Do you ever get that weird feeling, like you feel different but don’t know why, with it?
@Holl1 Yes!!!!!
This is VERY normal especially if you’re fighting back your OCD! I also experience harm ocd and I have been doing ERP now my thoughts are quiet but that makes me super anxious so the other day I ruminated about it and I totally dissociated and that FREAKED me out because I thought I’d do something because I wasn’t in control. Sadly I looked it up on google and this is VERY normal for people with OCD and doesn’t mean your not in control you still are! Basically during it you say the same thing as if your having a thought! I do not need to figure this out right now I am okay with the uncertainty!
@Kaylynn123 I usually get these thoughts when I don’t fight them and just let them be, it’s almost like it’s switching from harm ocd to existential but I can’t be too sure. Thank you for your reply! 💗
I suffer from religious ocd. My only goal in life is to live in God's will and to serve Him - to live and enjoy His eternal purposes & His presence. Jesus Christ is my life. That is my only desire on this earth, this short trip into eternity, and it's being stripped by ocd thoughts and intrusive thoughts 24-7. I have read many times that ocd can 'feel real', and this is true, our minds lie to us because of fear and anxiety we can't and were never meant to carry. I have begged and tormented myself in every way to find an answer from God. I think His answer may be that this is OCD, but I'm not sure. I started therapy again because I am so exhausted and this had stolen so much of my life in a spiral of negativity, depression, and constant anxiety & intrusive thoughts. I have spent about 2 years trying to figure out if my thoughts are real or not, especially with ocd it can deceive so easily as a spiritual matter when in reality it is just a thought, which is confusing and scary to say the least. Can anyone share their experiences with this sensation? No matter what the theme is... Thank you & Praying for your comfort
i’ve unfortunately fallen into the cycle of trying to figure out my thoughts and find answers as to why i feel so distressed. this still pertains to the situation regarding changing my room for those reading who have seen my multiple posts over the last few days. i’ve been so distressed and in so much panic about it. i’m also panicking over my other room looking so different from when i left it. it’s been making me feel crazy because to me there’s no reason for my anxiety to latch so hard onto something that seems so minuscule. i was thinking i was having anxiety over change, but it’s like symptoms of ocd too that’s making it really hard for me to let go. SO i started thinking maybe it was perfectionism ocd? i’ve realized over time that i do compulsions to where things have to feel “just right”, but i also do that with any environment i’m in. like it HAS to feel cozy to me and provide me comfort in order for me to feel at ease. and this change is causing me to panic because there’s something wrong that i can’t find an answer to. maybe the different colored carpet? but it’s also more than that it feels like. however, now it’s spreading into other areas of my house where i’ve always been fine in and possibly to just any area i’m in at all. hence why it’s making me feel crazy because there’s no reason for me to be THIS distressed over that as i’ve never really had this problem before. and when i did it would last maybe an hour to a couple of days at most, but this has been going for over 2 weeks with my really bad anxiety being this week. i’m doing a little better, but it’s still hard when i can feel that panic waiting for me to acknowledge and just engulf me in the ocd cycle. i’m also analyzing basically any feeling i have so i just feel off in general and like i’m going insane. i’ve been so hyper focused on how i feel and that will send me spiraling too. multiple themes then start coming in like existential ocd and fear of solipsism. not to mention my harm and contamination ocd that just adds on when i’m this vulnerable. then i worry if no one is real, then no one feels the way i do. or just in general that what if no one feels the way i do. honestly, i think being out of college and in my house with nothing to do is causing me too much time with my thoughts. which is why i’m so distressed about everything that pops into my brain.
I’ve been triggered so bad this week I’ve had bad anxiety and feel depression coming on. Last night I had a thought oh let’s plan it and I immediately thought why would I think that and started crying bad. I’ve had these thoughts for 7 months I really don’t know why I’m having these thoughts, if I knew I would work on it. Like people say has something happened in your life for you to have these thoughts and nothing has happened, it all started off from what if thoughts , like “what if I’m a psycho” because I saw this fb post saying introverts are more likely to become psychopaths and it all spiralled from there I started getting thoughts about harm towards others and myself. What do you think guys should I treat it like ocd or do you think there’s something seriously wrong with me.
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