With intrusive thoughts…I know I’ve read a few things on dealing with them.. mainly, naming the thought and sorta saying “this is ocd, not me”…and then I’ve heard to try to sit with the thought, doing nothing, just letting it be there.. now are those conflicting..? is naming it and saying like ‘this isn’t reality’ actually doing something or are they complimentary? How to utilize both of these techniques?

"Pure" OCD

Lms526

Date posted: 3y

So the best way to deal with in intrusive thought is to acknowledge it and say "This is an intrusive thought." Then completely ignore it. Don't try to reason, argue with, or disprove the thought. Your anxiety will go crazy at first, but then it will peak and decline.

AutumnOK

Date posted: 3y

Someone else should jump in (I've only been doing ERP for a couple of months) but I think it's fine if you acknowledge or realize that it's ok and even to tell yourself that. Where it becomes problematic is if you need to say "this is ocd and I'm actually ok" as a way to avoid/push away the obsessions. Put another way, if you're saying it do sooth yourself and to counteract whatever you're obsessing about then that's bad. If you notice, you're repeating it over and over and that you feel an urge to say it, then saying it is just validating the obsession and making it worse.

Jakiss12

Date posted: 3y

Without acknowledging or telling myself that it’s ocd or it doesn’t mean anything (“it’s just a thought”) then it’s hard to understand how to let it be there without becoming fused or identified with the thought itself and basically just continuing the intrusive thought pattern

Rayanswaid

Date posted: 18w

Realizing That Thoughts Are Just Thoughts.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how OCD changes the way we see ourselves, but I recently realized that I am not my thoughts. Just because a thought pops up doesn’t mean it’s true or that it defines me. I’ve started learning how to see OCD for what it is—just a disorder trying to trick me—and I’ve become stronger in dealing with it. Has anyone else here had a similar realization? How do you handle these thoughts when they show up?

Conquering_OCD

Date posted: 15w

Knowing the difference

Does anyone have any advice for how to know the difference between ocd and real feelings/thoughts? Sometimes an intrusive thought will come in and I immediately know it’s ridiculous and I can just leave it alone and it won’t bother me but other times I really really don’t know. It’s when ocd hijacks and twists my real feelings and thoughts and tries to manipulate me into believing they’re something they’re not or something that doesn’t align with my true morals or intentions. But since it’s twisting and mixing with real feelings I get so confused and scared. Everything gets jumbled and I feel like I can’t trust myself or my own mind. Yet other times and other topics I can laugh off and push away just fine. Make it make sense. And then I start to think well maybe I don’t have ocd at all and I’m just in denial because I don’t want to accept that these scary/concerning things are true about myself. Or maybe that’s just the ocd talking.

nae nae

Date posted: 7w

"I am" statements?

Is it okay to use "I am" statements when intrusive thoughts come up? I'm afraid of telling myself the wrong things and it becoming a compulsion. If anyone has advice, I'd appreciate it! 🤍

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