- Date posted
- 3y
- Date posted
- 3y
You’re not alone. I have a situation with similarities - and that twisting feeling in my stomach is one i wake up next to my partner with. Sending you love and warmth - meditation/square breathing has helped me a bit in the worst moments of struggle, dunno if that’s your thing. Regardless — you aren’t alone. ♥️
- Date posted
- 3y
Thank you so much for your kind words, I’ve never tried square breathing. But I’ll definitely look into it,some days are far worse than others. Today is definitely one of those days, I just feel like my world is falling apart and I hate it.
- Date posted
- 3y
So sorry to hear you're struggling with this - ROCD is the absolute worst. From the therapy I've done, I know it's tempting to want to challenge thoughts - but this actually encourages rumination and mental arguments as you try to find the 'solution' and convince yourself you are meant to be with your partner. Is your therapist an OCD specialist? I went to a few counsellors and general therapists and they said similar things to yours - which helped in the short term but not in the long term, as I'd then doubt my reassuring thoughts and get caught up in my thoughts all over again. I'd really recommend an OCD therapist and reading about ERP and embracing uncertainty. When I get doubts about my boyfriend I try to say 'Maybe we should break up...maybe not' and leave it uncertain as I move on and find something else to do which aligns with my values. I hope this helps and I hope you get the support you need ❤️ sending love. ROCD is hard - but you've got this!
- Date posted
- 3y
I'm so sorry to hear that. I am glad that you're seeing a specialist and I really hope that helps. With regards to the thoughts, intrusive thoughts aren't always 'what ifs' - they can definitely be commands too (scary stuff like 'you should dump him'). I follow a great page on Instagram called @obsessivelyeverafter and she talks about intrusive thoughts and their different forms - I find it helpful! Good luck with everything and try to be kind to yourself through this - remember none of this is your fault ❤️
- Date posted
- 3y
Thank you Katie, the therapist I saw was a volunteer consellor from a free trial pilot that they are doing across the UK. I’ve actually just signed up to a private theraphy service that had a really affordable payment plan, which I’m hoping will have more understanding on OCD & anxiety in relationships specifically. I have been doing really well with not challenging my thoughts, learning to let them go and not give it too much power, but when it changed recently from what ifs ? to you shouldn’t be together or you don’t want to be with him, it got hard to ignore because it’s like we’ll if my thoughts aren’t in a state of doubt and they are now telling me no this isn’t what you want, doesn’t that have to make it true ? Which then sends me into a tail spin because there’s a part of me that’s like but not being in my relationship isn’t what I want and then the mental arguments continue. I’m so exhausted with it, I’ve had a headache all day, which has only really just began to shift. I know with time and help this will get better, but when it’s a really really dark day it just feels too much.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 23w
For the past 3 months ish I’ve been struggling on and off with this anxiety and fixation over my relationship. To wondering if i still have feelings for an old friend, wondering if i actually love him, wondering if the thoughts are all real and im just trying to cover it up with ocd. It sucks, when im talking to my boyfriend i feel fine. The words i love you and talks about the future come naturally. I can’t imagine myself with anyone but him. But this constant rumination on my relationship is KILLING me and I’m scared it’s going to ruin what i have. It makes me numb and disconnected which therefore makes me believe the thoughts even more. They just feel so real sometimes and it’s so scary like why can i not just enjoy it. We’ve been together for a while so i know there’s periods of like feelings ebb and flowing but this is so much more. It’s just constantly sitting on my chest with anxiety. My compulsions are coming on this app, looking at photos of us and confessing it to him. He’s very understanding and helpful. I love him so much. I just need help / I’m also just starting new meds as well ..
- Date posted
- 20w
Idk if this post is even worth it but it seemed like a normal day for me, called off work due to the weather so I get to just stay home and play games all day. Easy day besides dealing with the constant and unbearable battle with my intrusive thoughts/feelings. Took a shower and I just had constant thoughts, (heart palpitations are pretty constant) ended up breaking down and bawling my eyes out. I was diagnosed with HOCD and ROCD about 2 months ago and since it's just gotten worse. It feels as real as it can get and after talking to my girlfriend about the anxiety attack, it feels even more real. I have no desire or enjoyment from what comes from my brain, and at this point I'm on my knees begging the big man upstairs for my old life back, how do I go from being obsessed with women (sexually and emotionally) to pretty much doing a 180 overnight (with the obvious anxiety and worry behind it. No real desire obviously). I'm just at a loss, I've done a little ERP and it seemed to help with the brain fog but besides that, everything that it does to someone, I have. And again there's the doubt I even have OCD and I'm in straight denial. It just sucks.
- Date posted
- 14w
I know I am going a bit cuckoo because my period is coming up, but lately it feels like every intrusive thought I have, I *like* it. Like I genuinely feel like I like it, and then I immediately panic because I start checking. Mentally, emotionally, whatever it is. And I know that is a compulsion. I *know* that. But it feels so real that I cannot stop myself. Every single time I check, it still feels like I like the thought, and it is driving me absolutely insane. It is especially the POCD thoughts. They feel so real. I feel like something is going on mentally, like some kind of confusion or glitch, because I swear I was not like this before. I would have intrusive thoughts, and they would feel real, but not *this* real. And I do not even know if this is normal. I know OCD is **supposed** to feel convincing. That is the whole thing. But I have never experienced it to this extreme. I have never gotten the same thought so many times and still felt like, “Oh my God, I did enjoy it,” even after checking a million times. It is like no matter how many times I check, it feels like I liked it. Especially during intimacy :( and it is making me lose it. Then I start thinking, “Well, I am in distress, so maybe that is proof it is not actually me.” But right after, I am like, “What if I am only panicking because I care about what society thinks and not because I actually have morals?” And then I spiral again, wondering if maybe I just care about how I am seen rather than who I am. I am panicking so much no today. I had to take my Xanax today for the first time in two months, and I needed three separate doses. I really need some support right now.
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