- Date posted
- 5y ago
- Date posted
- 5y ago
this is a hard one! i struggled with it too! Exposures exposures exposures. the OCD stories podcast has a great episode on this called " existential ocd" it helped me alot..eventually i just had to say " okay so what if it isnt real "
- Date posted
- 5y ago
I completely forgot about existential OCD! I’ll have to check out that podcast for sure, thank you!
- Date posted
- 5y ago
that is exactly what you have....
- Date posted
- 5y ago
Thank you so much like once you said that I was like yup there it is!
- Date posted
- 5y ago
Perhaps there's a way you can turn those thoughts into positives or neutral ideas. I'm not sure in what scenario we could say that life definitely "means" something. So perhaps if it might not be real, that could be a motivation to take risks rather than avoiding, and live life to the fullest. I don't have existential OCD, but I do think about this topic a lot and have some mixed ideas and, of course, no answers, as it can't reasonably be solved. I find I live my life best when I think of life as a game, rather than taking it too serious. After all, none of us get out alive. Some people win, some people lose, for most of us it's a combination. It's still best to play the game now that you're here. It's an opportunity.
- Date posted
- 5y ago
Hey there! I’ve also been struggling with these thoughts the past few weeks! It can be pretty distressing.
- Date posted
- 5y ago
How have you been managing and coping? It’s really messing with me :(
- Date posted
- 5y ago
@Evelyn4416 And it really doesn’t help the suicidal OCD I have either ?
- Date posted
- 5y ago
I’ve been focusing on things that bring me joy like gardening and spending time with my dogs. I know it’s scary, but keep your head up! What I learned in ERP was to “egg on” those thoughts. For example, if I were to get thoughts like, “nothing matters” or “what’s the point” I’d simply respond with maybe there is no point or maybe nothing matters - and carrying on with what I was doing! It’s all uncertainty. I hope this makes sense?
- Date posted
- 5y ago
Thank you yes that makes sense, it’s all about uncertainty!
Related posts
- Date posted
- 13w ago
Hi guys! I’m new to the community and I’ve recently received my OCD diagnosis (tho I’ve known about it since childhood). I’ve been somewhat spiraling lately as I wait for my first ERP session (hooray!) I was just wondering if any of you guys have received ERP for existential OCD and if it was successful? My existential OCD compulsions are more so mental and have been affecting me in the sense of dream/memory flashbacks and giving me a sort of “uncanny” feeling about everything around me. Any advice is appreciated! Thank you❤️
- Date posted
- 13w ago
What ERP or other techniques do you use to combat fear of cancelation? Especially curious about those with taboo thoughts, false memory ocd and event ocd based off of real events where the fear of cancellation may actually hold some validity. I once did my own ERP not under a therapist but just on my own I decided to create an anonymous account on Twitter and defend a friend who was receiving online criticism. I knew that this would be semi-controversial so I was expecting backlash and when I recieved troll replies it actually seemed to be a really helpful low-stakes exposure activity. Is this something that others have done? Low stakes online posts etc. that you know will recieve negative responses? I have had severe OCD as a kid as pretty much every subtype under the sun, and as an adult I pretty much have all the types under control except for this real event and false memory and taboo thought OCD. It seems like a different beast since it's somewhat realistic in the camcellation culture today, and it's confusing to address. Ive shut down almost all social accounts and it's keeping me from progressing in a career where I need to have an online presence :/
- Date posted
- 12w ago
Can I hear some examples of specific parts of ERP that has helped you? I've been doing talk therapy for a few years and the major issue I have with it is that I already have analyzed all of my problems from every angle, so I'm kind of just sitting there yapping about it for an hour. I need solutions and things that make me feel better.
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