Unlike the most common types of OCD, my fears always come true. Let's take the easy example of turning off the stove 10 times just to be sure, it's all about the obession and compulsion. However my fear is to feel depersonalizated (i think i have this, not sure, for me it justfeels like being stabbed by 1000 knifes every second for weeks on end) so i try to avoid things that will make it happen. However, it keeps happening and it's devastating every single time, so much that i can't bear it at all. Your house catching fire likely won't come true, but me suffering intensely once i am triggered does, almost every single time, unless i somehow magically convince myself i just triggered myself and dp won't happen unless i let it by reacting strongly to the trigger. But it only worked like 5-6 times in my 4 years of suffering. I am still looking for a therapist to help me deal with this, but if anyone has any ideas as to what i could try or do i'd be grateful. Exposure doesn't work because the thing i am scared of comes true every time and i lose all control and cant think straight / really need guidance when it happens.

I get that you have a hard time with this! But I dont agree. Our obsessions can come true. For example I have found my stove on three times...but there were no fire... But the most important is that the treatment is the same. You have to learn to accept these emotions, it doesnt matter if you say they come true or not. I think a therapist can help you to find underlying fears also.

I've gone through periods of depersonalisation and the one thing which kept it going was being nervous of it happening. Increases anxiety which causes me to overthink and leads to it, so I can understand why that sort of exposures tend to make it happen. The first priority would be to cut out ruminating about it, which is that middle step where the anxiety leads you to choose to worry. Believe it or not, worrying is a choice, it's actually a mental compulsion, so when you feel that you want to worry because something has triggered the fear of it happening, refuse to scratch that itch. Notice that you want to dwell on it, and full on distract yourself with something else. At this point, worrying about depersonalisation is much more of a rumination compulsion than an effective exposure. Instead a good exposure would be to expose yourself to the kinds of things and situations which usually TRIGGER you to start worrying about depersonalisation, and when you feel that anxiety, instead of starting to think (ruminate) about it, do something else which takes your full attention. It'll be difficult to do because you're feeling the triggered anxiety, but you can get through it without dwelling on any thoughts that may pop up about depersonalisation. Notice that the thought happened, sure, but don't follow it down its rabbit hole. That's proper response prevention. It may also help to make some adjustments to how you see depersonalisation. It is weird, but not dangerous. Personally I like it now, it's a little bit psychadelic to suddenly see things from a different angle, it's an opportunity to think about interesting philosophical questions like the nature of self. That stuff doesn't need to be at all scary- I find it very freeing.

I would approach this as similar to panic disorder, only instead of panic attacks, you're experiencing depersonalization. Like panic attacks, the depersonalization is intensely distressing sensation. However, not everyone who has panic attacks has panic disorder. Panic disorder is when someone becomes so afraid of having a panic attack that they avoid places they think the attacks might happen. Invariably, the attacks continue, so they avoid even more places and their world constricts around them. Avoiding triggers creates more triggers, in panic disorder, in PTSD, in OCD, etc. The treatment for panic disorder is learning to interpret the sensation in a less scary way. The sensations stay unpleasant, but when the narrative around them changes and avoidance stops, functioning improves and habituation can occur