- Date posted
- 5y
- Date posted
- 5y
I talked to a therapist today, and he was telling me about how the “fight or flight” response in the brain, which is what OCD triggers, has a direct connection to the arousal signal in the brain. So I get “groinal responses” from all sorts of non-sexual things. So just remember that groinal responses don’t have anything to do with your sexuality.
- Date posted
- 5y
Well possibly also the thoughts and feelings. I think gay and feel gay sometimes but I don’t want it. I do recognize now however that to the brain this feels 100% real.
- Date posted
- 5y
@TheBigCahuna Yep. That’s what makes it so hard. It feels just as real as anything. But for me, I’ve found that the more I recover the less real the thoughts feel.
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- 5y
@dpveritasgold What’s your best strategy been?
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- 5y
@TheBigCahuna ERP and depowering the thoughts.
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- 5y
Same tbh. Sometimes my head is making me think i like them even i dont. Sucks honestly
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- 5y
Yup. Feels completely real, except for the fact that I don’t want to act on it and it doesn’t REALLY turn me on.
- Date posted
- 5y
@TheBigCahuna Yeah but that’s what hocd does. It’s wanna make me believe something what is not truez
Related posts
- Date posted
- 23w
it feels like i accepted being gay and thats part of who i am but i still feel that tension and fake attraction whenever i see a man and i feel like i could be able to have a sexual intercourse with a man even though i dont want it is it still hocd or just denial? like i am feeling okey but there is still that doubt that how can i know that im not gay if i dont get disgusted by gay things or gay personality traits and at the same time i want to feel normal again like before
- Date posted
- 19w
So my OCD has been bad lately. I’ve been ruminating and obsessing over my sexuality again. And it just keeps getting worse. I hate it so much. I try to sit with the discomfort but then my ocd does the backdoor spike. And the groinal response is what keeps me looped. It SUCKS. I am not attracted to men, but my OCD is trying SO hard to convince me that I am. There have been days where I’m just so mentally exhausted that I “accept” what my ocd tells me and I just walk around a hollow, lethargic shell. But then I rethink it and I feel better. It feels like I can only find my TRUE self when I tire my nervous system out enough that it literally breaks down and has me suicidal and hopeless. And then accepting my OCD’s “truth” (that I’m attracted to men) feels like a burden and a chore. I woke up today from an OCD dream, tried to go back to sleep, and my stomach kept cramping bc I was so anxious and ruminating over my intrusive thoughts. I’m starting to doubt it being OCD anymore. My brain is too tired to fight and cry about it anymore.
- Date posted
- 19w
Hey everyone, just wanted to post an honest update on where I’m at in my HOCD recovery. Right now, I'm stuck in what feels like a 24/7 spike — nonstop thoughts, intrusive sensations, identity doubts, and hyperfocus. The worst part? It feels real. Like I’ve “lost,” like I’ve accepted it, like I am gay. The thoughts don't feel like anxiety anymore — they feel like truth. I’ve been trying to do ERP, but the spike has been so constant I don’t even have to “do exposures” — the thoughts, feelings, and sensations are just there all day long. It’s like living inside an exposure. And it’s exhausting. BUT — here’s what I’ve been doing (and what I’m sticking to now): I say once: “These thoughts and feelings are welcome to stay for as long as they want.” I let the doubt, the feelings, the hyperfocus exist. I don’t check, test, or analyze — even when it screams at me. I live my life anyway — folding clothes, watching TV, eating, walking — with the storm in my head. Even when it feels 100% real. Even when I’m fully focused on it. I’ve stopped trying to feel better. I’m letting it all burn — and just not fixing it. It doesn’t feel good. It doesn’t feel right. It doesn’t feel like progress.
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