- Date posted
- 6y
- Date posted
- 6y
Hi, I had health ocd/anxiety pretty badly for awhile and at times it flares up ... erp exposures are 100% the best for this!!! I sort of accidentally lost my health anxiety by doing a very traumatic exposure I do not suggest going for something so big right away.. start with smaller exposures... try not to do the compulsions.. etc!! I decided to try an anti anxiety medication and had a terrible fear of medication almost any med that wasn’t Advil made me panic thinking I was going to get every bad side effect.... I took the anti depressant the first time and had crazy bad panic and anxiety but I kept taking it, exposing myself to something that was really hard helped me, the anti depressant actually did give me terrible side effects and I was off it within 3 days after that my health anxiety completely went away because I realized that even though I took the meds and had an awful experience I made it through, and I wasn’t afraid of feeling bad anymore!! I don’t recommend trying something that intense, I think that just sort of happened in my case, but you could try with doing exposures everyday until the fear is gone!! Good luck and definitely start erp !! You can download erp worksheets for free online too!
- Date posted
- 6y
I’ve had a health ocd/ phobia that my drink or food is drugged as it will make me go crazy. It’s definitely not as bad as a few years ago but now even when I think something is drugged I drink/eat it anyways and focus on my breathing and tell myself it will be okay. It’s hard but nothing bad has happened. I juts take a few little steps at a time. You are not alone. It will get better!
- Date posted
- 6y
What ERP exercises worked for your health anxiety? Thanks
- Date posted
- 6y
The basics of erp in general has really helped! I suggest reading some books on erp or whatever type of ocd you have! U pretty much have to expose yourself to the situations u fear regularly, don’t do the compulsion ( slowly stop the compulsion) and sort of let the uncomfortable feelings, thoughts and anxiety pass!!! So in general that exercise overtime has helped me the most! It’s very hard at first but with time it does help! Good luck!!
- Date posted
- 6y
How long did you do exposures to help start seeing benefits? The same health anxiety themes keep popping up for several months now and doing exposure scripts isn’t helping.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 25w
❤️we all just want it to be over already, but do not set a deadline for your recovery (e.g. "i give myself 3 months to get better") and let yourself go at your own pace ❤️accept that healing is a very, very non-linear process with highs and very dark lows.. it's a lifelong process for us those with ocd, when you stop suffering you start learning ! ❤️WITHOUT ruminating on this, identify the root of your obsessive themes. they hurt so much because they go after your deepest wounds. clearing out the fear or pain that stands at the base of your obsessions will help (e.g. my sexual ocd came as an emotional outlet for my inability to accept a new family member in my life) (e.g. my solipsism ocd came from the deep fear of being alone and abandoned) ❤️the truth will always surface. even if you have no hope anymore and not even asking for reassurance helps, put that last bit of your trust in the other people that are in good states of mind and who are trying to help you. remember that you're living by a distorted mind and if you can't trust your own brain, have trust in others. those who love you are your life net when you're down in the slumps. trust me. ❤️ocd can be caused by chemical imbalance. if you feel like you need it, don't be reluctant to try medication. it's important to have the correct dose and the correct meds. it may change a lot before finally being effective, but it can help A LOT. it was lifesaving for me. (I personally took 125 mg sertraline at 14 years old) ❤️cliche, but the exposure part of erp is in you already. we get exposed to relentless obsessions and terrors already by our minds, our part is the response prevention. throw yourself into the depths of uncertainty and fear by refusing to act upon your compulsions. any learned behavior can be unlearned, our brains are changing! 🧠 it does feel like we can't risk because we can't "know for sure" and we better be safe than sorry, right? well, screw this. unlearn these behavior and live life your own way. ❤️connect with other people with ocd. community is our pillar as humans, especially those communities who share our suffering. ❤️we tend to ask for reassurance a lot and other just reassure us because it's rational to them, not being aware thar it only causes us more pain as we have distoerted thinking. teach your loved ones to respond to your reassurance in a way that doesn't feed the cycle. (e.g. reassurance seeking- "hey, are you ABSOLUTELY SURE that I didn't hit an animal on the way back home??" ❌️wrong response- "no, you didn't, I already told you, I don't remember hearing or seeing anything!" ✅️better response- "I can see you are really distressed right now, why don't we go cook something together/watch a movie/paint together/etc.." ❤️keep your faith close to you. there is something bigger around us that surrounds us with love and takes care of us. even if you don't believe in a god, spirituality goes beyond religion. for me, this higher being was the sky, and everytime I saw the giant clouds I'd tell myself that they felt my emotions and they're watching over in my suffering. strangely enough, this pillar i built in the clouds was strong and really did give me a helping hand. who's to tell these connections we make are not real?
- Date posted
- 22w
Hello! I'm new here and have a nice, big grab bag of OCD sub-types, but the one I struggle with most is health anxiety. I would love to hear from folks who have had success with ERP and this subtype! Maybe without many triggering details 😉
- Date posted
- 21w
Hi! I’m new to the NOCD community, but I’ve been dealing with OCD since I was 12. I’m almost 29 now, and my biggest issue is health anxiety. It’s gotten to the point where getting work done is nearly impossible because i can’t stop spiraling. I’m lucky that i work remotely, but also makes it easier to be in my own head… Asking for advice - how do you all deal with the intense anxiety and are able to make it through a 9-5 work day? Any suggestions on how I can actually be productive? Thank you!
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