i really need to know if God is real. It’s the root of my existential ocd if god isn’t real nothing makes sense.

i love being muslim but it makes me doubt the thing that i always lean upon. we are not allowed to have sex before marriage or drink, and i get bothered by what if god isn’t real and i’m doing all this for no reason

@shahsand That’s the risk you take with faith! You can’t be sure you’re right. And you have to simultaneously make peace with potentially being wrong. If being Muslim is important to you though, who cares? You’re part of a community who have decided to live by these rules and find meaning in doing so. Even if there’s no God, it doesn’t necessarily have to be for “no reason.” It can simply be because you’ve decided that it’s important to you and in line with your personal sense of morality.

@pureolife ur right. i’m just so confused as to how i can remove this ocd thought. Do i force myself to not deep think as soon as the question pops up or do i stop myself and leave the anxiety at the point of deep thinking where it’s the worst

@shahsand You can’t remove the thought! And actually, trying to remove it is exactly what’s causing you this problem. That’s a compulsion and it’s feeding your obsession. Let the thought be! Let it be exactly as it is. Don’t argue with it, trying to prove/disprove it, wish it away, try to neutralize it, try to change it, or anything else. Those are all compulsions. What you need to do is to let the thought be, feel that doubt, and let it dissipate and leave on its own.

@pureolife Doubt is a natural part of life and faith. We have to accept that these thoughts will come and to let them happen. We also have to choose not to engage in compulsions when they make us uncomfortable and distressed. We are so much more capable of handling that discomfort than we think. And, these thoughts tend to not feel like such big deal when we do.

@pureolife thank you so much

@pureolife what technique would u recommend me to do with this thought to make it easier and make the anxiety lower

@shahsand I would recommend doing nothing! You’ll see the most progress when you stop trying to making things easier and better. Just have the doubt and accept it to yourself “I’m having a doubt that my faith is real right now.” And just sit with it. Feel it be there until it leaves on its own, which it eventually will.

@pureolife so don’t ruminate it at all?

@shahsand Exactly. Don’t engage in whatever mental gymnastics your ocd wants you to do (like figuring out exactly how sure and exactly how right and exactly how much you believe etc.) don’t answer the doubt, just have it. “I am having this doubt.” Period. Sit.

@pureolife sounds good just one last question do i want to sit with the anxiety just when the thought pops in or go to the point of deep thinking about it where the anxiety hits me the most where i feel like i’m beyond this worl and sit with it?

@shahsand Deep thinking about this is probably a compulsion. Just sit with the initial intrusive thought and go no further.

@pureolife ok great thank you. are you doing therapy with nocd

@shahsand I have an ocd specialist in my area (not through the app)

@pureolife oh how’s it going with it fo u do need or just erp

yeah but i love islamic prescience within my life and childhood i don’t wanna lose that and thank you so much for the advice

thank you

i believe in God but my ocd keeps giving thoughts like scientifically do u really even think god is real

@shahsand The answer to your troubles has been answered by yourself in the first four words of this comment, you believe in God period, I’m Catholic we all have doubts from time to time but faith means moving forward through the uncertainty all you need is to believe in Him He knows you love Him and trust me God is real and he saved me from the darkness I was in months ago due to ocd, I’m not much better thanks to God and the therapy He sent me, remember Jesus’s words, Have faith in God. Bless you friend

@sesr bless you too even though your catholic and i’m muslim i think i just realized that all of us we’re not that different because at the end of the day we all believe in one God

@shahsand You’re right, we are all created by the same God and loved by Him equally font give up faith