- Username
- Madina Alam
- User type
- Therapist
- Date posted
- 3y ago
Maybe I was misdiagnosed; perhaps more so misunderstood. I tried to get help from a pastor regarding my POCD years ago. Ended up losing my job as a tutor. My pastor “made me” quit immediately, since I was treated as a threat. Never felt so destroyed. Still trying to recover.
I'm so sorry that happened to you. Definitely sounds like a major misunderstanding of OCD. Unless your pastor is also a licensed therapist who specializes in OCD, it is unlikely he or she could truly understand POCD or be able to offer you any real help. Glad you are here in the NOCD community and hope you have found some real help from people who truly understand how to treat OCD.
I thought I had (only) GAD for 20+ years. I couldn't figure out why the things that worked for other people with GAD weren't working for me. I felt like I was not trying hard enough and that it was my fault I wasn't getting better. Now I get why talk therapy was getting me nowhere with certain things. I have made more progress doing ERP in the last month than I have in 20 years of trying everything under the sun to manage my anxiety.
Same
I was misdiagnosed as having generalized anxiety disorder. I never questioned until about 2 months ago. I heard a guest on a podcast share about her experience with OCD. I was shocked when I realized I could relate to a lot of what she shared. Prior to that, I knew very little about OCD. I thought it was just about excessive handwashing and liking things neat and organized. I didn't do either. The more I learned about OCD, the more things started to click. Once I knew what to look for, I realized I had struggled with OCD for most of my life starting around age 8. I was diagnosed in August at age 45. I did about 10 years of talk therapy. I did everything I was supposed to, but never made much progress. I tried several different therapists. I eventually got frustrated and quit. All together, I did about 10 years of therapy. I would go weekly for 2 years. I felt worse than ever. I am so incredibly thankful for my NOCD therapist. ERP has been lifechanging for me. I've made more progress in 2 months than I did in 10 years of talk therapy. I haven't reached recovery yet, but I am determined to get there.
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