- Username
- m2
- Date posted
- 3y ago
There will always be “other things going on” in life…so don’t procrastinate! I had the same thoughts. It never feels like a “good time” to address ERP, so start now. My sister has very honest conversations with me. I often feel like people get frustrated and angry with me because I have ocd. She explained that my family members are not mad at me for having ocd, but do get frustrated when I do not use the tools I have learned in therapy to help myself get well. Ocd is a treatable disorder if I put in the work…they get frustrated when I give up on myself. So, no, there has not been too much damage done. But I think his attitude will change when he sees you trying hard to get well. I wish thought this way when I was married.
Yes! It not our fault we have OCD. But it IS our responsibility to start treatment and put in the hard work to recover. No one can do that for us and you can't just wish OCD away.
Your partner should be willing and open to understand what you’re going through. They shouldn’t make you feel bad for things that you do not ask for and that you can’t control. Even though they can’t fix everything for you and resolve things, they shouldn’t make you feel worse.
they worded it perfectly^^^ so sorry your partner doesn’t understand. it’s hard. sending you love
Yes I have contamination ocd and my partner sometimes says things when he is in a bad mood. He says things like get yourself together and your ocd is driving me crazy and more
Just because he is having a bad day doesn’t allow him to put you down and take his anger out on you. Not acceptable.
@🌜🌺✨🛼🛸❗️ Exactly and hes apologized for it but it’s sort of a habit now
No no no no no. I’m sorry but you deserve better. He shouldn’t be doing that to you. That is a problem.
Do you have a therapist that understands OCD and specializes in ERP? Have you done anything to help your OCD?
Thank you all so much for your advice, messages, experiences you shared, and nice comments! That means the world to me! I can definitely relate to those experiences shared. My partner in the past once made a comment when he was in a bad mood that I was ruining his life. He later apologized but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I have told him on multiple occasions that using language like saying how “behind we are in things such as chores” makes me feel completely overwhelmed, discouraged, and feeling down, and it makes it even harder to successfully accomplish things, and it would be infinitely better to phrase things in a more specific, bite-size, uplifting, problem -solving/brainstorming kind of way, yet he keeps using the same negative, overwhelming language and just doesn’t seem to care and can act very cold. If this doesn’t improve, it doesn’t seem worth it to continue things, since kindness/compassion/thoughtful and good communication are the number one things I look for in a partner along with the ability to make me feel emotionally safe and loved, and currently all of this is lacking and has been to some extent or another for awhile. I guess the question is— is it possible or realistic for him to change in this way in a sustainable way and has too much damage already been done. I haven’t yet done ERP with a therapist but I definitely want to do that in the future—at a time that feels a little less crazy with other things going on in my life. I can’t thank you enough for all your messages! I’m sending you all love as well!
Does anyone have any advice for helping your partner deal with your ocd? Mine is getting frustrated feeling it's stupid and finds intrusive thoughts I try and share hurtful.
Hi everyone. First time here. I suffer from Contamination OCD. I have a good support group in friends, family, and my boyfriend, but I have not met anyone else with OCD and I needed to reach out to others to find help. I first got OCD when I was 17 (I am now 33) and was able to go into remission, but COVID brought it back. I was struggling at work (which was outside with the public). I found a therapist and she wrote me a doctor’s note suggesting I be allowed to work from home. My work was not accommodating at all and only offered me FMLA leave, so I took it as my only option and eventually got on Short Term Disability. The whole process took forever and was incredibly stressful. My leave was supposed to be a time of healing and it just made my OCD symptoms worse. My employer basically treated me as though I was trying to get out of work and proved to me that though they talk about the importance of mental health, they don’t take mental health seriously. I ended up having to leave my job “involuntarily due to health reasons” as they would not grant an extension nor let me return with any restrictions/accommodations. My therapist seemed good at first, but it became clear that she wasn’t really helping me. She would often use our sessions to vent about the insurance company and in one session, she basically called me a hopeless case and kept saying “I don’t know. I am concerned. I don’t know how you are going to be able to function” and threw out the word hospitalization, though she did backtrack on that one. I struggle everyday. I am worried that something from outside of the home touched something clean and is now contaminated. I need help working through this. I am constantly looking for reassurance, question if things are clean, wash my hands, use too many disinfectant wipes, and take showers upwards of 50-60 mins. I feel like my mind is being taken over by my OCD, I’m losing time, and it’s straining my relationship. For anyone who is struggling with contamination OCD brought on by COVID - any tips? My therapist never gave me anything specific to work on with this - to help me focus on something else. I am in the process of finding another therapist, but until then - any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Hello, I do not have OCD but my boyfriend does. We’re both in our early 20s, we have been together for almost a year. I’m making this post seeking advice , thank you for taking the time to read. He’s always had issues obsessing over my past and asking me questions and things of that nature. I talk to him about it and answer when he wants to ask me stuff, but the problem is i don’t want to talk about these things because it’s really traumatic for me. He tends to obsess over my past romantic history which brings up bad feelings for me (SA, DV trauma etc) I want to help him but it’s VERY hard to stay patient when it’s triggering me. Every time he asks me about these things i either end up having a panic attack or getting so upset with him which ends up making him feel worse because he can’t control his obsessions and it’s a really hard cycle for both of us. I don’t understand much about OCD and it confuses me how one minute everything is fine and the next he is upset. and he hasn’t been diagnosed yet but is working on getting into therapy. He has his own trauma which i think is where this all stems from. But in the meantime I want to find better ways to help but also keep my own mental health in check. I’m willing to do whatever I can to help him with his issues. It’s also really isolating because it’s a difficult situation and i’m having difficulty finding anyone who relates and can help. Thank you for reading this. 🥺 And anyone who has advice would get greatly appreciated.
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