- Date posted
- 5y
- Date posted
- 5y
Lol I've discreetly masturbated while family and friends were in the room because I was stuck in that situation. I mention it just in case you didn't actually have the knowledge of other people's experiences which are similar in some way- cause I think the fact that that sort of thing isn't discussed can potentially make us feel like we alone. But anyway, the memory provokes shame for you. The best thing you can do for it is let yourself feel ashamed without delving any further into it. It's just the way you're feeling, nobody is saying that you should or shouldn't feel it- feelings are transient, you feel bad for a while, and then it goes away. And that's appropriate, you know? We all have memories which make us cringe. But there is no need at all for it to be a perma-cringe. There's no need for a memory like that to have any power over you or over how you see yourself. So cringe a bit, and instead of replaying the memory or reassuring yourself that you did nothing wrong, just let the cringe happen and then go away again. We OCDers have a way stronger shame response than the normies do, so it probably feels overwhelming and itnense and physical, but the fact it feels physical makes it a great opportunity for focusing on accepting the feelings we call 'shame' in your body, giving them time to exist there and then fade away, without going into the thinking mind about the situation. There's nothing in the situation to solve. It doesn't "mean" anything that's worth your time in figuring out. Let it come and let it go.
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- 5y
omg hahaha that’s so funny!! i guess it is pretty normal. also i love that u said normies omg hahaha i love that!! but thank you, i feel like the shame and embarrassment is definitely being amplified. thank you for ur response!
- Date posted
- 5y
@ocdsvcks Heh yep goddamn normies. It honestly is normal, it's the kind of thing you share at a sleepover and everyone cringes and gets the giggles. It's cool that you recognised your emotional response to it was over the top, my own embarassed reaction to being caught in a super harmless lie was what made me initially realise that something was actually up with me mentally, because days of bright red shame and adrenaline and replaying it and feeling like I wanted to disappear truly isn't a normal response. Idk if it's having OCD which makes our brains respond so strongly or if it's just some part of the brain makeup which contributes to OCD or what, but we definitely have stronger, longer and more easily triggered guilt and shame buttons, which then trigger our overthinking and other compulsive attempts to do anything to get rid of the feeling. The best thing I ever did for myself was getting a book called Letting Go by David Hawkins and using the method in it as a guide for emotional processing. It gets you to keep the focus on allowing emotions and away from trying to label or solve them, I actually managed to eradicate several themes using it before even finding out that I had OCD, it's that effective. I highly recommend!
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- 5y
@Scoggy thank you so much!! i’ll be checking that book out for sure!!
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- 5y
there’s also little things that i can’t remember if i did or not like masturbate, but i can’t remember 100% if i did it or not. i never even thought about this until right now.
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- 5y
Welp, if it helps. I have masturbated with my mom in the room. Obviously very discreetly. I was across the room in my own bed, we lived in a studio and I never had privacy. I was a dumb teen. Things happen and there’s nothing you can do to change it. This doesn’t make you a bad person. I am embarrassed but I wasn’t caught or anything. Sex is just human nature.
- Date posted
- 5y
same! i wasn’t caught or anything but i still feel really weird about it ://
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