Guys I was watching a really sad movie and everyone watching it was crying but me. I’ve struggled with ocd where I think I’m a psychopath and this feels like confirmation and I’m really stressed and panicking

Thank you! I really needed this is and it’s so true?

Careful here however!:) This is a compulsion because we are responding to the anxiety by trying to make it go away. Trying to snuff it out for looking for proof against the thought, etc etc, will only lead you down a rabbit hole of repetitive reassurance that you’ll need to provide yourself everytime the intrusive thought happens (and it will get harder and harder to do this). A more productive approach involves not responding to the anxiety, but SHOWING your brain there isn’t a need for it to be there. We ‘show’ it this by not getting rid of the scary thing, but letting it be there, and preventing any response (erp?). It’s a natural thing to want to protect yourself with rational evidence and logic, that’s what we do with most other things!! It’s just counterproductive here.

@Leah?? You're correct. I also suffer from an anxiety disorder and many of the tools I've learned in therapy are targeted towards that disorder. Evidence based thinking, cognitive distortions, thought records etc. Its possible that those tools aren't as helpful for someone with ocd, even though for me personally they help put things in perspective and move on.

@Leah?? But maybe just being okay with the thought existing is a better approach. I'm still new to specifically working on my ocd

@Leah?? I so agree with you Leah. Rational thinking/answers does have its place, especially after we have done ERP and are accustomed to riding out the question without relying on compulsions. But it can take a long time to get to the place of mentally being able to hear and accept "this probably isn't true" without it spiking back into OCD.

@Leah?? Thank you! That makes sense!

Thank you for your support! :)

@Scoggy Thank you all, @positive manifestations @Leah @Scoggy for your advice and support! Sending love❤️ it really means so much:)

@Positive Manifestations I totally get you!! These are extremely helpful, rational approaches to normal scenerios!! Ocd doesn’t let us use them and it’s extremely frustrating and difficult. But always possible?❤️

@Scoggy Yesssss! Exactly what I feel and what happens to me too. ❤️

@sophie02 you got it Sophie!!?❤️

@Leah?? Thx!?

@Scoggy It took me a year to get to this place and I still struggle without doing rituals. Thank you for this post!

Thank you so much for this advice! How do I get it to feel like I’m okay with it? It’s so hard to be indifferent about it. Again thank you?

@sophie02 ?❤️ You do not have to force yourself to be okay with psychopathy. All you have to do is make space for the idea that there’s always a possibility for anything- and that does NOT ever speak to its probability. All of our ocd themes are fueled on over-exaggerating the possibility that everything has. Key word: over exaggerating. We underestimate our brains ability to make things feel real allllll the time. I mean I’m consistently wondering if I dreamed something or if it actually happened! That should speak to the power our brains have to go outside of normal realms of possibility. So if you’re brain is shooting out signals of fear from your amygdala when you have a thought, you do NOT have to take it for face value. You do NOT have to believe everything you think. Don’t try to disprove it because that’s like going ‘against the grain’ of your brain and it won’t respond appropriately to that. Amygdala’s, which are the fear center of the brain, are not always tied to logic. You cant fight it with logic. Just go with it. And know that in this moment- YOU ARE SAFE. Nothing is happening outside your body. Nothing is happening in your environment. Neurons are just firing in your skull. Nothing catastrophic will come from that. Promise?❤️

@sophie02 So something like: “Okay brain. I’ll let that scary idea be there. I won’t push you out, because you’ll just come back with a bull dozer. So I’ll let you chill there. I’ll wade in the waters of uncertainty knowing full well that I am safe the entire time. I don’t have to disprove you. That isn’t my job here. My only job is to be compassionate to myself. To hold myself. I’ll let that scary thought be there, and I’ll hold myself. I love you, self.”

@Leah?? Thank you so much! This is the best ocd advice I’ve ever gotten. I really never had a full understanding. I cannot thank you enough for your kindness and wise words! Sending love?

@Leah?? I cannot thank you enough I really needed this! I literally took a screenshot of this. This has helped me immensely! ?

@sophie02 Aw no worries friend!!!❤️ sending love right back!!!❤️

Erp yay!