Grapejellyjar
- Date posted
- 3y
StefHStefH
- Date posted
- 3y
ERP is exposure response prevention. Now I was to make it clear I’m on a therapist but for example your exposure would be the thought you touched her and your brain is probably telling you that you did (side note, that’s the ocd monster who tries to make you believe the opposite of how you truly feel) so your response was to tell yourself over and over that you just picked up your phone, but here is the hardest part, the prevention. That means you want to prevent yourself from that compulsion of telling yourself your okay and that you were just getting your phone. Because when you feed into your compulsion it’s like your feeding the ocd monster and when you feed something you’re giving it nurishment which makes it stronger. What you want to do is not give in and starve that ocd monster (aka not give into your compulsion). At first it is going to seem like the hardest and I can only speak from experience, but for me it was literally the only thing on my mind, my anxiety went through the roof and my chest would feel tight and sometimes even had chest pains. But strangely enough, when you don’t give in to your compulsion and you ride out the anxiety and intrusive thoughts and try to occupy your mind by doing something else that you enjoy doing. It will take time and truthfully it isn’t easy but if you stick with it those thoughts will becoming meaningless.
GrapejellyjarGrapejellyjar
- Date posted
- 3y
Okay, I see thank you for the reply. I just don’t think I’ll see a point where that fear will become meaningless…
StefHStefH
- Date posted
- 3y
@Grapejellyjar I know right now it feels that way and it is going to take time. But giving into that fear and assigning meaning to it is only fueling it. You just have to allow that thought, because that’s all it is, is a thought, in the background and go on with your day. One thing I read somewhere was something along the lines of if what we are fearing was true to how we feel why would we fear it. So in other words if someone really felt that way (no matter what is it about) they wouldn’t have anxiety or whatever over it, They wouldn’t feel uncomfortable because that was how they truly felt. Therefore, the fact that you are anxious/ uncomfortable/not okay with these feelings is a very good sign that it is your ocd trying to make you miserable because that’s what ocd thrives on.
StefHStefH
- Date posted
- 3y
Ironically I got on here to occupy myself because I am currently trying to not give in to a compulsion and let me tell you my mind is whirling with intrusive thoughts. But I am sitting with the uncomfortableness and uncertainty. It’s hard as hell and my heart is racing and I don’t want to touch anything because I don’t want to “contaminate” anything else. But I read somewhere that with contamination ocd you should rub the “germs” all over yourself and all over everything you touch on a regular basis.
GrapejellyjarGrapejellyjar
- Date posted
- 3y
I can’t imagine that at all that’s awfu
StefHStefH
- Date posted
- 3y
@Grapejellyjar Yeah your telling me, and the thing with ocd is how tricky it can be. Because I KNOW I didn’t touch that contaminated area but my ocd is fighting back with “well WHAT IF you did…” like I can physically feel the “germs” on my hands.. even though I just stood and washed them 4 times in a row (before I thought I touched the contaminated area) and I could of given in to it and got up and washed them but I decided I’ve had enough. My hands are raw and so dried out from washing them 30+ times a day to the point where they physically hurt and are cracked and bleeding. So I know i am stronger then this. So I am going to accept uncertainty and sit with the uncomfortableness
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Anonymousssssss
- Date posted
- 21w
Help
I deal pretty heavily with this. The last couple days, I’ve had what I think are urges. Something pops into my head intrusively and then what stems from that is me WANTING to just indulge in it even though it’s gross. I get worried bc I used to struggle w thoughts about my dad for a long time until eventually I just purposely thought of him while self pleasuring and got off to it. While that’s something I did, it is NOT me. It all stemmed from my mental health declining a couple years back, I was never this way before. So I get worried that it almost happened or might happen with my pocd cuz I could never live with myself if it did.
Anonymous
- Date posted
- 14w
Need help, PLEASE +18
I got diagnosed with OCD (variant POCD) about 3/4 yeats ago. Lately I've been really confused and makes me uncomfortable this ideas that I've had dreams in my sleep where I have romantic/sexual interactions with my older sibling— I know it's disgusting, and I don't know what to do. Recently I got a boyfriend after years of being without a partner, and he makes me so happy along my friends, but sometimes at random points of the day I have this episodes with minors or my sibling, and the ones with him start to go heavier when I'm at home or alone. The first thing that comes to mind for me to do is always how much I don't wanna live, harm myself or what is my purpose at this point (22fem) having this problems. I feel weirded out when I pass them over, and suddendly think about not giving them the atention because how important they are in a negativa way. I'm just anxious writing this, I need help. Is someone living the same? How do you work on it? I will always be like this from now? — thanks in avance and sorry for mistakes, english isn't my first language
ughhhh
- Date posted
- 14w
Coping techniques before i freak out?
Advice, coping techniques, just distraction needed. Yesterday night, my parents asked me if I could take care of my baby brother and I’ve been wanting to help them out so of course I said yes, and I was taking care of him with my other brother. A big fear of mine that I’ve told my therapist about is that my OCD will latch on to my new baby brother. It hasn’t happened since he has come home with us, but now I feel like something is brewing. My little brother is prone to throwing up so he already got the shirt He was wearing all dirty so I went to my mom‘s room and decided to change his onesie. I called my other brother for help by helping me sit him up while I put the shirt over his head after the shirt went over his head. My other brother was walking out and that’s when I clipped the buttons on the bottom of the onesie and continued to carry him around the house, but it’s that action that my mind is obsessing over. Me clipping the buttons of my baby brother’s onesie. I can’t get over it. My mind keeps replaying that one thing because my thoughts are saying “oh what if you accidentally inappropriately touched him “ and I even went out of my way to avoid touching his diaper because I knew my head would start spinning shit like this. But ever since last night, I can’t stop thinking if I accidentally traumatized my little brother some how. I know I didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve helped my mom change my brother‘s clothes before. My parents literally check his diaper if he soiled himself, but when I do anything that has to do with making sure my brother is clean and healthy my head tries to make me feel sick and crazy. The thoughts are getting worse and getting to the point where my head is trying to make me feel like I’m weird for wanting to change my brother out of his dirty clothes. I’m just so scared that these thoughts are gonna get worse and I’m trying not to freak out right now so I went for a walk outside. But im still getting such intense anxiety. I dont know how to cope or what to do advice coping techniques would be a such a help ive been doing so good with avoiding compulsions. I just need help to ground myself. I dont want to go to my mom with this ill feel worse. Is me writing this a compulsion?
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