Sometimes I feel like I wake up and I have anxiety but it’s not even about my obsessive thinking, it’s like my body is waiting for me to start having my regular obsessive thoughts and it’s making my body stressed. I feel like I’m always waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it almost feels like this dwelling anxiety makes my body try and find something to overthink about. It’s very stressful does anybody have any advice or can relate?

@anonymous, learning how to sit with the anxiety (yes, including long term all day anxiety) without doing a compulsion to counteract it, is part of the treatment for OCD. this is what you're going to be advised to do in therapy. of course, getting through this part is difficult because certain things that are recommended for general anxiety, like challenging your thoughts, are not recommended for OCD. the basis of your response should be along the lines of acceptance. "maybe my thought is true, or maybe it's not." it may take a long time before you're able to sit with the anxiety with ease. (i'm still not completely there) but we take it one step at a time, no matter how small. my tips for coping with anxiety include progressive muscle relaxation, breathing exercises, and grounding techniques. keep in mind we are trying not to respond directly to our thoughts, but only to the anxiety that the thoughts are causing. if you feel your anxiety is so severe that you're unable to function, then you probably need medication to help. at least temporarily, so you can successfully go through with treatment, but many people find they need medication for their entire lives.