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I’m meeting my bf’s family tomorrow and, should time allow, his coworker friends. Unfortunately I’m approaching my period, so my OCD symptoms are spiking. His friends especially have been a huge trigger for me. I’m really really hoping I can confront this important meeting with a clear and sound mind, but I know the nerves will be there there regardless. Anyone got any tips?

Every time I feel like I'm doing something major that OCD has held me back from, or even just in a good headspace, something else will happen that sets me back of triggers my anger and hopelessness. This morning I felt so hopeless and didn't want to get out of bed. But I made myself get up, and order some groceries because I hadn't been eating much lately. Having a hard time with food prep and making sure everything is clean enough to use and eat. Anyway I ordered some stuff to have delivered bc I knew the stores would be packed on Sunday morning. I made coffee and started feeling like I could get some things done today I'd been avoiding, and that I could handle things. When I went down to grab the grocery bag that had been delivered, it was on the ground outside my building and it had some red spot on the outside, which is my biggest trigger with contamination right now. It was really discouraging and I got so, so angry. I know that there's not OCD god, and that things happen, and that I don't know what the red mark was, but I also don't know how to not worry that the person delivering it was bleeding or that I could use anything I got without worrying I'm in danger. Ive been desperately trying to find help and a therapist, even switched my insurance to see if it helped but I've had no luck and my life is unraveling right now. If anyone has any advice or encouragement, It would be greatly helpful.

I wash my hands More thank 10 times, I go to the bed and now, after 15 minutes, I want washing again ;( I feel I can touch everything way to my room: the door handle, the trash of kitchen, anything and my parent get mad about that and she gonna angry if I wash again now...I feel sick

It feels as real as it can get today, I’m in such a bad flare with my ocd lately and I don’t know what’s happened. I was doing so so well and I’m back to this horrible place. Everything is getting to me, the real details especially. It’s all just consuming me today. I feel terrible.

I want to share some thoughts that might resonate with those of you grappling with intrusive thoughts or lingering regrets from the past. First and foremost, it's essential to remember that our thoughts are not definitive representations of who we are. They often stem from random electrical impulses in our brains and can feel overwhelming at times. It’s important to acknowledge that these thoughts do not define us. Instead, they are just passing moments that we can observe without judgment. Secondly, it’s crucial to realize that past events would have unfolded regardless of our actions. We often believe we are the main cause of certain outcomes, but many events occur independently of our choices. Think of your life as a storybook; while you can read and reflect on the pages, you did not write the narrative that led to those moments. This perspective can help alleviate feelings of guilt and self-blame. Lastly, let’s remember that we are all human, and making mistakes is part of the experience. It’s vital to forgive ourselves for past errors and recognize that these experiences contribute to our growth. The mere act of reflecting on our mistakes shows that we have learned and evolved. To foster healing and personal growth, consider incorporating some positive habits into your daily routine: Get Outside: Aim for daily walks in the sunlight. Nature has a remarkable way of uplifting our spirits. Pursue Hobbies: Engage in activities that bring you joy and fulfillment. This can help redirect your focus and energy. Volunteer: Offering guidance to others who may be facing similar challenges can be incredibly rewarding. It not only helps them but also reinforces your own lessons learned. By taking these steps, you can create a meaningful path toward moral repentance and personal development, freeing yourself from the burdens of the past. Remember, healing is a journey, and every small step counts. Embrace it with kindness and patience towards yourself. Have a great day all 😊

My whole life I’ve found reasons to not like myself. Whether I thought I was weird or ugly or overweight. Because of this, I’ve always sought the acceptance of others which sometimes made me do things, that looking back, wasn't who I really wanted to be (drinking, being intimate with someone, saying I like things that I don't, not standing up for myself, etc.). OCD hasn’t made liking myself any easier. The awful thoughts and false memories have made me dislike myself more because they’ve made me feel like a disgusting monster. They’ve made me feel like I don’t even know who I am, which is extra scary because even without OCD, I’ve struggled with that as mentioned above. OCD has tried filling in the gaps and has preyed upon my insecurities and it's terrifying. Now that I’m taking the steps to learn to love myself, OCD is gripping on even harder. It tells me I don’t deserve love because maybe my false memories are true or I don’t deserve love because of the horrible thoughts I have. It's really hard honestly, but I know I need to keep trying. I also wonder had I loved myself before, would I have even had an OCD problem? Because maybe if I loved myself and knew what a good person I was, the thoughts would have never gripped on? I don't know. Be kind to yourselves. It certainly is a journey.

Hey y’all this is my first post. I’ve known I’ve had ocd for around 6 years now, but haven’t had much specialized help (just a standard therapist, who is great, she suggested this app) I’m mainly just posting to vent and for people to hopefully make me feel a little less alone in my current situation. I’ve developed coping skills for many of my ocd obsessions in the past, but haven’t really made a dent in what I’m realizing is pretty bad ROCD. I was in an abusive relationship for about 4 years, and it was this weird thing where like I would not only be unhappy from the abuse but also have intense ROCD. Which is relevant, because I’m now in a super happy and healthy relationship, but am unfortunately still experiencing ROCD. And of COURSE that makes my brain feel either like love is just never going to work out for me, or that this new relationship is wrong for me, which I know isn’t the case. But it’s just so exhausting feeling like I have this horrible brain fog around my partner half the time. I never felt like this when my partner and I were just best friends for 6 months, and all that’s changed is that she is even sweeter and more attentive to me. This just all sucks so bad, and I think I should talk to a specialist about it.

I am typing as I sit on the couch after a mental breakdown due to the frustration and fear I have with my Suicidal OCD intrusive thoughts. I know so much about why this is happening from therapy, research, and self help books that I feel like knowing this much about my condition is almost making it harder to recover. It’s like I feel like since I logically understand my problem, why can’t I change my response to it? I know logically that these thoughts are stuck in a loop because I have assigned meaning to them and am so scared of the concept of harming myself, yet ERP/CBT hasn’t yet helped much with my ability to tolerate the anxiety. I have moments where I feel good but the sense of impending doom and feeling like I “am bound to hurt myself” always comes back. At least for the last 2-3 months since this theme and OCD flare started. I don’t have any physical compulsions that me or my therapist have been able to identify except *maybe* researching too much. But other than that, my compulsions are all mental. However, I can’t pinpoint what exactly they are. It’s also important to note that I don’t avoid anything. I still use knives when I need to, I don’t hide them like others with this theme do. Yes they can trigger anxiety but I don’t actively avoid them or other items that trigger/have potential to harm me. When I do audio exposures (listening to my voice saying I am going to hurt myself), I hold a knife to my wrist to intensify the ERP, per my therapists request… and still the same or similar level of fear behind suicidal and harm OCD thoughts is there. Has anyone dealt with this and can help provide some insight as to what helped you? Anything is helpful here except negativity.

can NOCD therapists offer sessions that cover other mental health/life issues that i need to work on and fix? like just my day to day life, issues that I'm having with family or my relationship, ext. and school stress? as well as receiving treatment for OCD.

even though my therapist told me i have ocd i still feel like i’m not like “ocd” enough… especially cause some days it is better and some days it is worse 😔 and even though my therapist told me i have it i’m not diagnosed so i just stress about it ❌❌ i just want my brain to turn off i realized i have had a lot of ocd symptoms since i was a child so it just sucks and what if i don’t have ocd and there is nothing wrong and i’m just like this 🤔🤔🤔

Does anyone experience physical confidence issues that might be related to OCD?

I've made new friends and I feel really proud of myself for doing so. For having the courage to speak up when I feel the time calls for it. Sometimes, my confidence fades when my thoughts goes to the past about certain events, but then I just try to bounce back. What's been bugging me the most is this sinus infection I've had for a while in the summer. That and post nasal drip sucks.

I had a terrible graphic intrusive image. So why didn't I feel nothing? I should have been disgusted immediately. I was just passive, it didn't effect me as much. I'm currently obsessing about the fact that I didn't react. I don't know if I should be afraid of this. I know I didn't like that, but when things like these happen I feel like I never have enough confidence, like to simply say "no I was disgusted, I don't like this, I would never do that" end of the story, without any second guessing thoughts. I can never have that statement confidently without feeling that it might not be true. And sometimes when I try to answer to the "OCD question" my brain double downs and says "well what about this? how about that? would you like it that way? you've never thought about it that way!" My brain asks me "would you do it if it was like that? have you ever considered what would it be like? maybe you would like it?" What do I do? I think I know what should I do, but I don't know if it applies to this, if it applies to me at all, as sometimes I think that these are not OCD symptoms or it isn't OCD at all.

Hello everyone I was recently diagnosed with OCD. I’ve spent the last ten years battle extreme anxiety and obsessive thoughts. I recently started taking Prozac. For once in my life my mind feels calm. However, they just upped my dose and my anxiety is bad and I’m having trouble sleeping this is week 2 on the medication. Anyone else experienced this?

Ive had severe OCD for like 3 years now but today I had a moment where I was convincing myself of my thoughts really strongly and I started ro believe it- but it was really bad this time. Like I felt so anxious that I got nauseous and I felt like I was about to vomit😭😭😭 that has never happened to me… does anyone have a similar experience?

My brother and I (I’m 20, he’s 16 but he’s taller and heavier than me) used to get violent with one another. I had anger issues growing up in an angry home (our dad was just like this), and I would yell and shout a lot, and we’d get into physical fights. I’ve been a LOT better about it over the past few years especially since I moved out to college, but yesterday as I was laying on the couch healing from my wisdom teeth extraction, he started hitting me with a plushie and then wiped his boogers on it. I tried really hard to ignore him but he just kept going and going, and then i tried to leave the room but he followed me and kept bothering me. I finally slapped him, he punched me with what felt like full force in the back (causing me to tear up from the pain), and I ended up scratching him so hard that it left a big mark. He punched me in the back again really hard and I ended up just crying. I now feel really really really horrible. We talked it out and both apologized and said we loved each other. But now i’m really worried. I’m concerned that I’m an abusive monster, that I have a personality disorder, that I’ve traumatized him over the years. I don’t know if these sorts of fights are normal between siblings or if there is something seriously wrong with me. Things like this have happened before. I keep googling scary things.

Hi I’m getting my period in a few days and I always notice my OCD spikes but I’ve just been feeling very very down, thoughts feel very sticky and real. Not much is making it better and I just feel super out of it. I also had a few dreams the past few weeks that relate to one of my ocd themes which is psychosis and I keep thinking I’m going to develop it. And I’ve also just been so on edge and scared even of like myself and people and reeling down and sad. Any advice? I don’t even like talking abt it rlly bc it creeps me out I feel like nothing is helping.

Anyone else so used to making / hiding their OCD, that it’s hard to take it off and actually talk to your therapist about it?

I was reading on another group where someone said OCD was a neurological disorder. I thought it was an anxiety disorder? 🤔 which is it?

scared i believe the thoughts make sense and that im in denial. i dont want to think they. make sense. I’m scared