New here...son was diagnosed OCD at age 6. Now he is 16 and has POCD and he is absolutely spiraling right now. I feel helpless because I cannot relieve his anxiety. He is convinced he is a sick person no matter how many times i tell him this is the OCD not him. He is physically sick from the worrying. NOCD therapist cannot see him until next month and i have no clue what to do. Any advice on coping mechanisms?

Nica

Date posted: 3y

First off, you have to stop reassuring him as of right now. Answering his questions = reassurance, and that makes things 100% worse, not better. I suggest Dr. Martin Seif’s book on Intrusive Thoughts. He needs to read it and so do you. Maybe read it out loud together so you’re both on the same page.

Orange-Color...

Date posted: 3y

I enthusiastically second Nica’s advice about reassurance! It sucks to not be able to help your child feel better right away, but sitting with him in his uncertainty and letting him know it’s ok to feel his feelings is the best thing you can do for him. Maybe you could watch some videos together about OCD and reassurance so that he fully understands how you’re trying to help him. If you’re very concerned about his physical symptoms (e.g. if he’s having serious trouble eating or sleeping), visiting a psychiatrist might be necessary so he can get to a place where he’s physically ok. He doesn’t need to tell the psychiatrist about his OCD theme; it should suffice to say that he has an OCD diagnosis and is experiencing a lot of distress right now.

girlanon

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 3y

Before I realized I had OCD I sought reassurance from everyone. Now that I've stopped I'm doing 10x better. It's counter intuitive but it's the best thing to do for him. Unfortunately, this is something only a therapist is 100% equipped to deal with. In the meantime, I'd say educate yourself and your son as much as you can and just be there for him. He's lucky to have a parent who loves him as much as you!

John Gavin M...

Date posted: 3y

Thank you so much....I will get the book immediately!

Nica

Date posted: 3y

He’s the first doctor I found about OCD and his book was my first introduction 7 years ago!

hunty

Date posted: 3y

you can also get the book on Audible book

Maybe,MaybeNot

Date posted: 3y

Look up other ocd specialists online or in your area. Have him listen to OCD stories podcast on Spotify, there are many episodes on POCD

UnknownPersonel

Date posted: 23w

Dad with pocd

Please read this. I’ve had ocd pretty much a lot of my life but never knew what it was until my senior year of highschool. I’m 21 with 2 kids and i believe i’ve had pocd a little bit before my daughter was born (which was 8 months ago). It made me start looking at all kids differently and i hate it. But it really started triggering me about 3 months ago. I’ve been thinking if i’d intentionally touched or harmed my kids the wrong way, or any kids for that matter. This started giving me false memories (or at least hope they are). I’ve been having panic attacks, yelling at myself, punching walls, praying, and even thoughts of ending my own life. I grew up in a severe toxic household throughout my childhood and teenage life. I’ve never wished that on my kids since i became a dad. I wanna give them the life i never got. I look back my photos of my children and i feel like i’m a complete fraud of a dad. I cannot look at my kids or be around them a lot of times. I can’t hold my daughter right. I can’t change their diaper when they need it. Even my son came and was hugging on me the other night while i was watching tv and i acted like a stranger to him. I can very little do this stuff sometimes because it’s either i get relief or i push my thoughts as far back as i can. I get scared if i did something to not just my kids, but any other kids in the past. I have such a a great life and such a beautiful family. It was hard and stressful at first being young with a family but i couldn’t be more thankful at all for them. I’m just so lost and stressed right now that i just don’t know what to do anymore

Anonymous

Date posted: 20w

My daughter is spiraling

She's been dealing with this for years but I've never seen her like this. She has her first visit with a nocd therapist tomorrow. How can I help her?

Anonymous

Date posted: 20w

I am the mother of an adult child with ocd.

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