- Date posted
- 4y
- Date posted
- 4y
I'm a little familiar with the feeling you're describing, and I have a theory that a lot of this despair comes from the way we treat ourselves. It's not our fault, of course - it's a situation we contribute to without realizing it. We are unbelievably hard on ourselves relative to the way we treat others - we refuse to let ourselves celebrate little victories and successes because we become fixated on our failures. If I had to give my unprofessional advice, I would suggest that the first thing you do is forgive yourself. You are human - you are not a machine. You are not perfect - no one is, and if someone seems perfect, then that means you're not seeing them in their worst moments. You have a debilitating disorder, and you are in survival mode right now. That is okay. Accepting where you are, in this moment, is the first step. Secondly, change your habits, beginning right now. Speak to someone about what you're dealing with - give yourself permission to ask for help. Get off your phone, and especially stay off of social media for a bit - it can worsen anxiety and depression. Decide to do one thing every day, or half a thing. Take a shower, go for a walk, do an assignment. When you've finished what you're working on, give yourself permission to feel pride - after all, every task completed, no matter how minute, is an act of progress. Fair warning - you will not feel anything at first. Give it time. Third, you are going to make more mistakes, and you will experience more failures - don't let these destroy you. Progress is not linear, and a single setback won't undo all of your hard work. Keep fighting and moving forward, and living will become easier with time.
- Date posted
- 4y
Wonderful advice!
- Date posted
- 4y
I relate completely, our situations are almost identical, in fact. I can't say for certain how things will end up, but as long as you have a good support system, you will not fail! Things will turn around for you, and everyone else in similar situations, I'm sure of it! You are not alone, if that takes your worry away a little bit!
- Date posted
- 4y
I think we’re strongest when we feel weak but keep going! You’re much much stronger than you think! You can become and do anything you want in life. Believe in yourself! Try reading about conscious manifestation and reprogramming your subconscious mind. Abraham Hicks says, Your beliefs are just thoughts you’ve been thinking over and over again until you believe them to be true. Highly recommend Abraham Hicks videos on YouTube, EFT Tapping videos on YouTube, repeating affirmations like I love myself, I believe in myself, I accept myself unconditionally etc. These things have really really helped me get through depressions and helped me love and accept myself more.
- Date posted
- 4y
I completely understand that feeling! I'm much older but I've always felt like I'm wasting my life and just going through the motions. Have you considered medication? For me, it's the only thing that helps me focus and actually accomplish things (even just basic tasks).
- Date posted
- 4y
Have you spoken to your parents or a counselor at school about how you feel? This may sound like a totally dorky answer, but if you have OCD, depression, or a learning difference that can be addressed, speak up for yourself even if it’s scary. I suffered through high school and college in a way similar to what you were describing and if I could go back, I would advocate for my needs like crazy until they were met.
- Date posted
- 4y
This is how I feel aswell, Im freaking turning 23 soon and instead of working on my skills and life, Im doing exactly what you said in your post. Everything is falling apart for me, it feels like Im starting from scratch again. I feel so far behind my friends, theyre all close to getting jobs and becoming settled in life and here I am laying in my bed all day with these mental ilnessses. Idk how I will ever recover
Related posts
- Date posted
- 21w
I’m 21. The 3 year anniversary of my graduation from high school is soon. Lately, I’ve been worried about where I’m going in life and if it’s even worth it because I don’t know why I exist or what my purpose is After graduating I lost a new job I loved due to poor management on my boss’s side, they failed to teach me my job then fired me for it, and moved from my mom’s house into my dads house due to issues with my stepdad, both of which put me into a depression. I got a new job 3 months later. But ever since being fired and moving out, I feel like I’ve been in a depressive cycle of Eat, Sleep, Work, Repeat. I’ll get home and doomscroll for hours, and occasionally play games with friends at nights. Occasionally I’ll do my hobbies but usually feel guilty for it. I don’t see my friends and family nearly as much as I used to. I want to, but it feels like everything I want to do, my intrusive thoughts find a way to keep me at home. “It’s a waste of time.” “You need to be productive on your time off or you’ll go nowhere in life so stay home.” But then if I stay home it’s “you need to go out and do something.” “You’re being unproductive sitting at home all day.” “Seeing them wont make you feel better, you’ll never be happy” My girlfriend lives 6 hours away and is usually the only time I’d go outside and live and feel in the moment, but even then I’d feel guilt. I feel like my OCD makes me feel guilty for everything. She’s helped me a lot, but lately we’ve had a few issues we’ve worked past that made me fear for losing her too. I’ve felt depressed for years now. Before being fired, I usually felt pretty good and was almost normal feeling. I’d had control over my fears and intrusive thoughts of suicide and the meaning of life, and had accepted them and wasn’t afraid. I knew it wasn’t me. But lately I’ve been trying to push myself out of this depressive cycle, and it’s made my OCD and fears of suicide and if life has meaning, come right back. I’m handling it slightly better, but it’s still hard. I just want to move past this and stop questioning why I’m even doing anything, if I want to end it all, when I know for certain I don’t want to and that I get to make my own meaning in life. I have dreams, I want to get back into art. I want to move in with my girlfriend eventually and start a family. But my OCD makes me so scared to even try to make art, and it makes me so scared I won’t be happy or content with my dreams. I feel so alone and sad. I feel like life will pass me by while I’m stuck feeling this sad and scared. It sucks, but I’m trying my best to get there. Gotta keep moving
- Date posted
- 19w
(Long post warning) Hi, I’ve been struggling with severe OCD for six years now. it started in 2019 with my theme being getting sick/emetophobia. it devastated my life. I almost didn’t graduate high school from it. I remember washing my hands for three hours one day until they were nearly bloody while crying and asking why I could not stop doing it. I remember id have to write and rewrite sentences when I did my English homework and that’s why I nearly failed that class. I remember how I would spend up to thirty minutes to an hour pacing the halls of my apartment while my mom was asleep until I neutralized the thoughts about throwing up and I could finally go to bed. I don’t know when it happened, but my theme switched. Sometimes in late 2020 or early 2021, it switched to POCD. It started with a single thought, and I focused on it and it’s been my theme since then for four years. It has been absolutely destroying me. I feel so disgusted and lost and just tired. My compulsions are severe now. I thought they were bad before, but now they’re ten times worse. I can’t eat, drink, change my clothes, walk, or even do things on my phone normally. I’ve developed so many mental compulsions that it’s so intricate and complicated yet at the same time I’ve done them so much that they’ve become normal. An example I have is if im putting on a shirt and I have a “bad” thought, I have to take it off and put it back on two more times (that’ll make it 3 times I put the shirt back on - odd numbers are my safe number). I have to have a good thought on the third time otherwise I have to take it off and put it on two more times to make it five times I put on that shirt. If not that then I just put on a different shirt because the original is now tainted with my bad thought. I can’t open apps on my phone. It’s with the numbers again. If I open TikTok once while having a bad thought - I have to close it and open it two more times and so on. Sometimes I do it up to 30 times. So I just don’t do things usually. I don’t turn on the TV because I know I’ll redo it. I don’t open a book or grab it off my shelf because I’ll have to repeat the action. I can’t even lay in bed without getting up and redoing it even if im exhausted. I just feel so helpless. I don’t know what to do. I feel disgusting and even now my minds screaming at me that I am dirty and what I think is true. I just wish I was free of this, I wish I could just live my life. I’ve wasted hours and days because of my compulsions. I mask it so well around my friends. I don’t do them in front of anyone or I’ve learned to hide it well. But when im back home alone, it goes haywire. I just want to live again.
- Date posted
- 17w
I’m really depressed and lately life has been really really bad. Everyday, it’s like something horrible happens and my mind tries to make me forget it. My family life isn’t that great and everything is super tough for me. It’s like when I get better I go like a million steps back. I ended up doing something bad today:ended up becoming aggressive to myself and caused some ouchies) it hurt a lot and right now I’m really stressed and have been for a while. My mental well being has been extremely bad these days. I have obsessive compulsive disorder but for me it’s decently strong so it’s hard to contain, Complex-trauma, depression, and possibly ADHD. It’s an awful mix. My life is a living hell everyday. I’m not sure how much longer I can keep lying to myself to Myself that I’m getting better when in reality I’m in so much pain, it’s like I’m barely doing anything at all. Please, help, I’ve been acting not like myself. I want to live, even though it’s extremely difficult too and I rather much not be here, but people are counting on me and I don’t want to fail them. How can I convince myself to stay a little longer when I am fully burnt out from trying to get better? I’m in so much pain. I don’t know how to even deal with it. I’m so lost, I might lose it more, and I’m scared for myself. I feel like I don’t even deserve help. I’m so mentally unwell I can’t even think correctly. I hate everything and just want to sleep forever and ever. I’m so numb to it all. I don’t feel anything anymore.
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