- Date posted
- 3y
- Date posted
- 3y
I can so relate to all of this! I have pure o and major avoidance compulsions as well. I have had thoughts of making people sick. Its hard when someone you love doesn't understand or support you. But you are not alone. Do you have a therapist that understands OCD and specializes in ERP? It has made a huge difference for me. ERP is hard and terrifying, but it does work. Even if your husband doesn't support you or understand. All of us here do! We are here for you.
- Date posted
- 3y
So sorry to hear. Are you in therapy? Seek help. Can you show him some website with info about OCD? "When a family member has OCD" is a great book. But if he dont want to understand at allš¢ its hard, but you are still responsible for how you handle your suffering, you can learn, and you can practice exposures, I hope you'll find a therapist, and maybe you can find support in a friend or another relative.
- Date posted
- 3y
I do have a therapist but idk if she's licensed in ocd stuff. We've talked about it but I've also gone through some big personal traumas in the past year and we talk mostly about that. She tends to focus more on the anxiety. But we've done some erp therapy but it seemed to make my ocd all I'd think about. Like it was running my whole life in a different way. So I avoid. I don't go to therapy much anymore. I stopped erp. And it got better for awhile thinking I could control my own life but it's come back stronger and more frequently than ever. I never even told my therapist about the poisoning thoughts bc I didn't want her to have child services take my children away. (Can they do that?) So it's mostly my fault therapy wasn't working bc I wasn't completely honest with her about how bad it is. My husband is a good man. He really is one of the good ones. He just doesn't experience any mental illness so if I even bring up mine he thinks I'm just making excuses. It's tough. I just want there to be a way I can make him understand so he can be in it with me and for me instead of feeling like we're against each other with it.
- Date posted
- 3y
Ok...I think its important to be honest with the therapist. Can you seek put to find a therapist with OCD competence? You have to make decisions about how to manage life with this condition. OCD doesnt get over by itself. If your husband is a good one, thats great! Show him some good website with info. Buy Jon Hershfileds book for relatives. Go to therapy again. The worst thing we can do is to let time pass and just think about what to do...There is hope for you! Take care.
- Date posted
- 3y
ERP is definitely not fun or easy, but it does work. They cannot take your children away because of a thought. There is a big difference between having an intrusive thought and intention. Everyone has intrusive thoughts. The problem is not the thought. The real problem is the weight and meaning we give the thought. One of my major themes were harm and suicide OCD. I was terrified to tell my therapist about some of my intrusive thoughts. I thought for sure I was going to end up in jail or involuntarily committed to a psych ward. Her expression didn't even change. I guarantee you a therapist that understands OCD has heard it all before. They won't be shocked by anything you tell them. Recovery is possible. But it takes time and a lot of hard work. If you aren't willing to do the work, then nothing will change. OCD is a chronic condition. It won't just go away on its own. Believe me, I know. I lived with OCD for over 30 years because I didn't know I had it. OCD wasn't even on my radar until last month. You can never get back the time OCD has taken from you. But you can make a decision to not allow it to take any more time from you. ERP is the best treatment for OCD.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 25w
Every day my ocd makes sure thereās a new reason for me to stay trapped in my mind rather than being the mom I want to be that my kids need. Instead iām stuck in my head depressed and pushing them away. The other day I was braiding my daughterās hair like I always do and her hair is really long so when I get to the end of the braid I can see her butt in my peripheral vision and I looked down and I immediately got upset asking myself why did I look down?(the ocd has made me question everything I do now). I know itās just because I was at the end of the braid and I just looked because I was already looking in that direction. A normal person wouldnāt even think twice about it. There was no inappropriate reason behind it at all but of course my ocd latched onto the situation and said I looked down because I wanted to look at her butt. I was so upset and said to myself āI donāt understand how the ocd started an intrusive thought because she was wearing baggy pants. I could understand if she had on tight pants and her butt was more noticeableā and the only reason I said that is because usually the only time my ocd starts intrusive thoughts telling me iām looking at my daughter in a wrong way is when she has on leggings or a crop top or bathing suit ect. Now my ocd twisted what I said to mean that I like looking at her in tight pants. Nooo! Thatās not what I meant but now the ocd wonāt stop trying to make me believe that. I donāt ever look at my children in any inappropriate way. I hate this. I hate ocd and I canāt live like this anymore.
- Date posted
- 25w
Since I developed ocd as postpartum my ocd has mostly always targeted my kids. It started as harm and then switched to pocd. Both are equally very painful. For years I was mostly able to keep my ocd at bay but when it comes back itās so bad. I have a son and a daughter and my ocd switches back and forth from kid to kid with horrible intrusive thoughts and now even intrusive ocd dreams. With each thought I get past and start to feel relief another one pops right up. The thoughts feel so real and true even though I know itās just the ocd and not how I think or feel, the ocd always makes me doubt myself and question everything I think or do. I know other moms/dads go through this too. Please anyone who has or is going through this please tell me how you deal with this. šŖ
- Date posted
- 19w
Please read this. Iāve had ocd pretty much a lot of my life but never knew what it was until my senior year of highschool. Iām 21 with 2 kids and i believe iāve 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. Iāve been thinking if iād 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). Iāve 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. Iāve 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 iām a complete fraud of a dad. I cannot look at my kids or be around them a lot of times. I canāt hold my daughter right. I canāt 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 itās 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 couldnāt be more thankful at all for them. Iām just so lost and stressed right now that i just donāt know what to do anymore
Be a part of the largest OCD Community
Share your thoughts so the Community can respond