Hi NOCD users. I’m a trained ERP therapist here at NOCD. I’m here to help you with any questions you have about our wonderful program that is going state wide as we speak! It’s exciting to have many more trained therapist joining to help many OCD suffers. If you have any questions about our program, feel free to post here. I will try to respond as quickly as possible. Good luck to you!

Any advice on false memory harm ocd i have immediate thoughts scary feelings, false images with fear Scared feeling that i posted harmful violent threatening dangerous internet comments while using the internet and refusing to check the internet history to get relief To prove to myself that i didnt post harmful violent dangerous threatening internet comments??

Hi Russ1989, Thank you for reaching out and sharing your story. I appreciate your honesty about your struggles. Harm OCD is a tough one, the checking compulsion feels almost automatic at times and so strong! The need to check your own behavior, to make sure...making the choice to not check could feel like one of the hardest things you will ever do. I give you lots of credit for trying! Keep trying! When you are using the ERP strategies, the criticial piece is to break that toxic cycle. For you to take control of those negative thoughts by stopping the toxic cycle. To do that, you have to stay with the thought, “what if” I posted that, “maybe I did, Maybe I didn’t”, that strong uncertainty makes it very uncomfortable ? to the point of checking to see. The checking is the compulsion that leads to more unwanted thoughts about the “what if” or “maybe”. Stick with your thought, no matter how uncomfortable. Do Not go to the checking! Don’t let your mind wander anywhere, just stay with the thought. Slowly your anxiety will start to lessen, slowly you will regain the control over your thoughts. When your anxiety starts to lessen, try to stay present where you are, look around what do you see, repeat that until you can pick your next thought, let it be something you are grateful for - family, a roof over your head, food in the refrigerator, you get to pick that, you get to pick what you want to think about because...you didn’t do the compulsion and you broke the toxic cycle. This skill set I talk about is the framework of ERP and it is best practiced with a trained ERP therapist. Check out our programs here at NOCD and see if one sounds good to help you move forward in your life - get your life back! I wish you all good luck ?

Yes very tough battle, but you can do it!

Hi Russ. Even the checking in with yourself is a compulsion. As soon as you have the first intrusive thoughts, focus on just that one thought, then go to question uncertainty. For example, Intrusive thought may be your example, “did I write a harmful note” stop and stay there with that one thought. Question the uncertainty of that thought, because it is not a fact, it is just a thought. Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. The uncertainty makes me feel scared and anxious...I don’t know if that thought is true but I know I’m anxious thinking that thought. Wait for anxiety to lessen as you question that thought. Not going to the checking helps you stay with that one thought so it doesn’t turn into many intrusive thoughts. Eventually, you can get very good at focusing and not going to compulsion but it takes hard work and practice. Scheduled practicing, not just real time practice and that is best done with a trained therapist. It can become difficult to navigate on your own. Look at our services with a trained NOCD ERP therapist that can help you get your life back. I wish you good luck, I know you can do this!

You will, get some help from a trained ERP therapist. It will be incredibly helpful to your progress. ?

Thank you so much for your time and energy this morning Terrie B. I will continue to use the "stop sign technique" whenever i am using the internet or writing things down with my marker at work i will continue refuse to go check my internet history or to check the room i have been working in to see if i actually did post/comment or write a violent threatening internet comment or note or letter because deep down inside my heart and soul i dont want to post/comment or write down any violent dangerous threats, thats one of my biggest fears and i never want to say or write down or comment harmful violent dangerous threats, i never want anything bad like that to happen, i will continue to refuse to check internet history and to check a room around where i have been working in to see if a harmful threatening note letter was left somewhere or internet comment was Posted, i dont want to do that but the intrussive thoughts take over every day every night with Mental visions Of images of posting harmful comments, its become an obsession about the fear that i posted or will comment harmful comments, and i never want to do that, i never want to say evil terrible things, i want these intrussive thoughts to be gone forever, i have to continue to refuse to check internet/youtube history to see if bad comments was posted and i will continue to try to use the stop sign technique, i smoke medical marijuana often alot daily and digest cbd oil to try to help my misery and pain from Harm ocd and sometimes it helps sometimes it makes my memory worse and i forget what i did 3 seconds ago and thats when my harm ocd attacks me by saying since u forgot what u just did 3 seconds ago then u must have posted harmful comments and i refuse to check if i did. Very tough battle

Alot of times this happens when i am using the sharpie marker and writing down the name of the client that just arrived on property at my job, the immediate intrussive thoughts hit me immediately before i grab the sharpie marker, when i grab the sharpie marker, when i am writing down the clients name on marker board, when i close the cap on the Sharpie marker and when i place the sharpie marker down on the desk i get hit with immediate intrussive thoughts, visuals, images, false memories that i just wrote a harmful threatening note, message, letter somewhere close to my desk in the office room i work at, very scary, its like my mind is constantly obsessing about that i just left a harmful note or i that i forgot writing harmful threats down and that i will be fired and sent to prison for the harmful messages, its also a big big fear that i will accidently without knowing write down my intrussive thoughts down and they will trace my handwriting back to me and i will be fired and sent to prison for it, it sucks having this daily nightly obsession that you already left bad harmful comments or that you will leave bad comments without knowing or i already left bad comments and forgot about it. I will continue to refuse to believe these Terrible harm thoughts false visions false memories. Its weird when it happens my mind is consumed by the fear that i will or already have written down something threatening or innapropriate, i hope i can recover from this

You are welcome Russ