- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 4y
I was the same way for months! Have you tried breaking up exposures into baby steps? I find that it's helpful to take things slowly (rather than not doing ERP at all). Example: I have a ritual when I treasure my daily medication that involves washing my hands at 3 separate intervals for 60 seconds each time. My first step is to reduce each time to 40 seconds. Once I can handle that, I'll reduce to 30 seconds, and once I can handheld that, I'll continue to cut back so that eventually I can take my medicine, wash my hands once for a reasonable amount of time, and move on Werth my day. Breaking things down still challenges our OCD, but it's doable and not as scary as just diving in 100%. I have had success doing this, though my progress is slow. Better than staying stuck though! I believe in you and *know* to can do hard things. Best to you. 😊
*take, not treasure.
That’s a good idea. I think sometimes I judge myself for having OCD in the first place and think I should just be able to do the hard exposures and get over this already. But when I’m actually facing it, it just feels so tough.
ERP is never going to be easy. It is hard and uncomfortable. But you get out of it what you put into. So when you do an exposure your anxiety will surge, peak, and decline. You have to do the exposure more than once. The key with ERP is not doing a compulsion during or after the exposure. Doing so will make the exposure ineffective. ERP is the best way to achieve recovery from OCD. But you are going to have to fight for it. You can do this. Its okay to be scared. Better do to the exposure afraid than not at all.
Thank you. Yes, I think that’s what I’m dealing with. I’m at a crossroads, wondering if I’m going to fight for this or not. Both seem super hard. But I know I don’t want to live in debilitating fear anymore, so maybe ERP is worth it.
@mamabeloved It is totally worth it. But you will have to fight for it.
Please read this article on how ERP helps in the treatment of OCD. It explains how exposures help to change the brain and enable sufferes to change behaviours & emotion. https://beyondocd.org/expert-perspectives/articles/self-directed-treatment-for-ocd-the-irony-of-doing-the-opposite
Thank you!
Hello everyone! Just wanted to see if I can get some encouragement, hope, and love from the community tonight. I have been having racing thoughts and for years I thought the loudest most repetitive one's were just GAD or denial. OCD is scary and I am trying to get back into my hobbies. I am just exhausted and sad.
Hey everyone it’s been a while since I posted on here. Honestly, I try to stay off of this app unless I really need advice because I find it triggering at times. But right now I’m feeling pretty down and just would like some hopeful and helpful advice. Has anyone ever felt like they’re just not capable of getting out of this? Has anyone ever felt like ERP therapy isn’t working or that they just can’t get it’s a click? . I’ve been in ERP therapy for over a year just about a year and a half actually and I literally feel so stagnant and stuck still. I show up every week I do my exposures, but my body is in such a chronic fight or fight all the time that it feels almost impossible to apply the tools. I’m super sensitive to begin with and I feel things very deeply and because of that it feels like I’m not gonna be able to ever change. It feels like no matter what I do or experience I’m just gonna always feel it so deeply and it’s gonna just rattle me all of the time. I’m honestly so frustrated. I’m tired and I’m overwhelmed. I so badly wanna change these patterns that I have and grow and be out of this OCD spiral, but everything just feels impossible. I’m just wondering if I’m alone here?? Has anyone ever felt this way? Has ERP taken a long time for anyone else or am I the only one that just can’t get my brain to click with it? Any encouraging and helpful words would be greatly appreciated thank you 🙏
Feel like I’ve been stuck in a spiral for a while. My OCD has come in waves over the years but this time it has been so debilitating. I’m in therapy, but I really struggle with sitting with uncertainty. My therapist will tell me to say, “Maybe, maybe not”. But so many of my fears and so much of my uncertainty feels too risky to just, “not figure out”. And if it’s not just thoughts, it’s actions or events. Whether it’s an event from years ago or 5 minutes ago, I feel like I’m ruminating and trying to perform memory recall. I analyze every action, thought, decision. I’m full of guilt and dread all the time. And then I realize how much it’s affecting my family and ability to be a fun and present parent. Most days I’m hardly functional outside of meeting my kid’s basic needs. I feel like I’m wasting so much time, but I just can’t get myself out of this constant loop. Every day brings a new event or theme or thought. I know I need to sit with the uncertainty but it’s so hard.
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