I'm convinced there's no beating HOCD. I just want to give up. I have no fight left in me anymore.

1. Identify thoughts that are intrusive. That is the OCD. Give the OCD a voice so you know when it’s talking to you vs. your mind talking to you. Remember OCD is a liar. 2. Let the thoughts pass as a cloud above would pass. Don’t stare at the cloud, just let it float by. 3. Anxiety, doubt and fear all all emotions created by the OCD. Emotions are not that important. What is important is how you react to them. Do not create a catastrophe. 4. Embrace uncertainty. OCD is a disease of doubt. If you embrace uncertainty rather than reassurance, your OCD will lose power over you. 5. Meds. and CBT. I’ve tried a number of SSRIs over the years and have yet to see them make any difference CBT (usually rolled into talk therapy) has taught me emotional management which is essentially like a superpower in life. 6. ERP is effective. I’m finishing up the program and my latest assessment says I’ve seen an improvement of 66%. The freedom is astonishing. I saw drastic results in just two weeks. 7. Practice ERP techniques, especially exposure. 8. Make a list of your obsessions and create a pyramid with you most stressful obsessions on top. Work from the bottom, one obsession at a time. 9. Trigger your obsession (preferably in a controlled situation). Set timer for 20 mins. 10. Sit through the anxiety or even carry on with other things. 11. If you perform a physical or mental compulsion (mainly reassurance) reset the timer and start over. 12. If in 20 mins you are still anxious, keep going. 13. Do this hours per day, everyday. It is a new part of your routine like the gym. Work hard and tolerate the pain. 14. Trip. Get back up and do it again. 15. Repeat for all the obsessions you think need treatment. 16. Return to practice on obsessions you already conquered. They can comeback if you don’t practice. Good luck!

Hey everyone! Dr. Patrick McGrath is doing his weekly Q&A on SO OCD, July 15th at 7:00pm CST. There will most likely be questions about HOCD. I highly recommend participating. It might help with some of the questions you all have been wrestling with lately. Don’t give up!

you are stronger than you think - worth everything in this world and you will get through this. it is so so hard but you can do it i swear.

I’ve been there. I promise there is hope for you. I have been so so lost but I found my way to who I am. I promise that there is hope for you