I am in week 5 therapy. My thoughts are going all over the place. I would say one theme every 15 min. Every theme I though I was done with are coming back. Working hard on using ERP. But I’m not perfect and if I don’t even do what I was doing before (reinsurance with my boyfriend or googling) I still do some digging or self mental reinsurance. I don’t know what the ratio but it would say 65/35( 35 I handle thoughts badly). This morning I feel exhausted and very down. Kind of demotivated. Thoughts don’t stay as long as they use to but it’s like firework. It is such a hard period right I feel I have to tell myself be strong even though I feel so weak. Any people in recovery or recovered who have been through the same period and would have some motivation words for me :) ? Be brave all!

OCD is wickedly clever. It will look for the smallest window or crack to find a way into your thoughts. It also makes you question whether you’re getting better and if you will ever be free. As soon as you make progress in one area, it finds another to make you obsess about. It does whatever it has to keep your mind in chains. That’s why it’s so important to acknowledge even the smallest progresses you make. “Thoughts don’t stay as long as they used to but...” No buts! The fact that you can resist a compulsion and the obsession goes away in shorter time, even if it doesn’t feel like much, is a success and improvement. Whether it’s getting physically or mentally healthy, the people who are doing the work often have the hardest time recognizing progress. I know it’s agonizing and frustrating to feel like you’ve been doing the work but still struggling. I had been doing well during my treatment, finally felt like I had my life back, and then bam! Something happened that made me feel like I was back at square one. But, although it was a challenge, I realized that it wasn’t as devastating as my mind made it out to be, and I’ve come through better than before. My advice: 1. Be kind to yourself 2. Recognize and celebrate even the little successes 3. Accept that OCD will do whatever it can to make you ignore tips 1 and 2.

Handling the thoughts well 65% of the time after just 5 weeks indicates very good progress. When I was where you are, I tried to avoid the black-and-white mindset in which I judged treatment success more by how many times I did not successfully manage an intrusive thought than did manage it well. I think you are on the right track. You are still on that upward climb in the process. But, you will reach the mountain's apex and the downward side will provide you with the momentum to take on the OCD on your terms. These ten weeks are teaching you how to confront the OCD bully. It takes practice. After the 10 weeks, you will continue to use the tools you have learned and become more and more proficient as the weeks and months pass. Keep up the good work!

I would say that I went so bad in January until May I couldn’t go out of my house, take metro, go grocery store... Now I’m going to my appointments to my therapist on my own and I’m able to go shopping on my own. So it is improving definitely :)) Happy to hear I’m on the right path !