- Date posted
- 5y
- Date posted
- 5y
I think wanting to like things 100% can be a kind of perfectionism. I spent weeks shopping for the perfect dishes. It’s a commitment buying dishes (because I’m a frugal minimalist). I opened them and felt disappointed. They weren’t the right blue. The blue made me feel off/anxious. But, I know that I’m this way, and so I knew I needed to sleep on it. I love them now. I think in a weird way you can become “compassionate” toward inanimate things like dishes and tattoos for not being perfect, and even come to like their imperfections.
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- 5y
I never even knew this was considered perfectionism but I relate a bunch with what you said, being disappointed or panicked but later on growing to love it, thank you a bunch for your answer!
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- 5y
Yes I also do have perfectionism.I always used to to asses each and everything as very good or very bad.There was no way for me judge anything as moderate.This always increased my anxiety.I also can not tollerate any change in anything.
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- 5y
Good lord I can barely decide what to make for dinner these days. I have one tattoo. Got it when I was 15 somewhere the wasnt legal. Thank goodness I still like it. But if I didnt it would still be fun because it would remind me of the free-spirited person I was or the head space I was in. However, there are tats I have wanted to get and decided against and am glad I dont have those ones. They were crummy, pretentious ideas.
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- 5y
That’s the hard part with tattoo ideas, we like them one time in our lives and later on have the chance to not. I guess we just have to decide on something we like and go for it sometimes ?
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- 5y
@Evelyn4416 Agreed! To be fair, art is always going to be fun!
Related posts
- Date posted
- 24w
Anyone else really wanna pursue their dreams, but imposter syndrome and OCD thinking holds them back? For me, it’s my art. I’ve had some success with my art, and it’s been really exciting, but then I think of all the things I regret and the mistakes I made, and I’m terrified, so I recoil. I never feel like I deserve it. All those artists who’ve been praised for their art by the masses, I imagine them as being perfect. I know it’s not true, but I mean, how can you put yourself out there these days and not know you have no skeletons in the closet?? I see people making reels and they’re so confident and carefree, and I think, “I bet they’ve never made any really big mistakes, or else they’d be terrified of having themselves out there.” I’m probably projecting. Maybe they’re just as terrified deep down. Maybe that’s what drives them. Maybe that’s what makes their art so touching. All I really wanna do is impact other people with my art. Maybe there’s a selfish part of me that relies on the praise, and that’s the part I need to let go of. Whether I get praise or not, my art should just be something I’m proud of. If I can help someone with my art, that would be amazing. Like you guys. I feel like this community is my demographic, and even if the rest of the world turned away from me, the ones who’ve been in my shoes are the ones I should write for. Anyway, this is a huge issue for me and my OCD. If anyone has any words of wisdom, I would really love to hear them, because I feel pretty stuck.
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- 24w
Hey everyone, I just wanted to share something I’ve been struggling with, especially around making decisions. It’s really hard for me to feel confident in the choices I make, even when I know what the right thing is. I constantly find myself needing validation from others—whether it’s about something small or something really important. For example, at my job, I might know exactly what I’m doing and have done it right a bunch of times, but I still feel the need to double-check with someone or ask if it’s okay. It’s like this fear kicks in, and I start imagining worst-case scenarios—like what if I mess up and someone gets hurt, and then I get blamed or even end up in jail or prison. I know that sounds extreme, but these thoughts just come automatically, and they feel so real in the moment. This has been going on for maybe a year or two now. Even outside of work, the same thing happens. Like recently, I’ve been trying to figure out a gym schedule—my girlfriend wants to go with me, and I’m trying to plan the times and make it all work. But instead of just choosing what works best for me, I overthink it. I go back and forth in my head, and I ask other people what they think, even though deep down I know this is something I should be deciding for myself. It’s my life, but I still need that reassurance from others, and I don’t really know why. It’s exhausting to always doubt myself and to feel like one wrong choice could lead to something terrible. I’m trying to work through it, but I just wanted to put it out there and see if anyone else deals with this or has advice. Thanks for reading.
- Date posted
- 23w
Hey fellow OCD warriors! Wanted to ask if anyone else’s OCD tends to latch onto change and catastrophize with all kinds of worst-case scenarios. There’s a lot going on in my life, and even though they are all exciting things that I truly want and am happy about, I’ve had moments of deep fear at so much change happening and even a sadness that I can only think is a kind of grief of entering a new stage of life/a new me and leaving the old one behind. I am in my mid-20s and a lot of this centers around nostalgia and fear and intrusive thoughts of changes like my parents getting older, myself aging, friendships growing apart leading to loneliness, etc. I know I need to treat it as any other OCD flare-up and do ERP, but it also feels different than other OCD themes because I feel blue and like existentially sad. Even as a young kid, I always hated change and the thought of growing up (even if exciting things were happening) - like I cried when I turned 10 because I was leaving the single digits behind forever! 🤦♀️ I feel like I’m preemptively mourning things like losing my parents or my health even though I am healthy and my parents are too. I don’t want to waste the time I have ruminating about the future. I haven’t heard this kind of theme mentioned a lot so just wanted to see if any others could relate.
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