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the NOCD Community

“Sitting with it” does not help. Our space at home in flux because of my boyfriend moving in last April. I constantly hear that the treatment for OCD is to not engage in the compulsions, but it doesn’t work AT ALL for me. I have “sat with” the disorganization in our space for months and it continually makes me feel very stressed and, in turn, depressed. There are times when I finally can make an improvement in our space to make it more comfortable and there’s a noticeable uptick in my mood and my stress goes down considerably. Isn’t there anything else I can do? This “sit with the anxiety” it bullshit for me.

I can not stop obsessing that I’m going schizo... I keep thinking that I’m going to lose my mind any day now. I also keep obsessing over suicide.. I know I don’t want to do it, but with my Harm OCD I’m worried it’s the only way I can prevent myself from hurting others. This disease is so fucked up

Is anyone else a nurse? How do you deal with the worry that you will make a mistake. I do check things repeatedly and am trying to cut down. I just worry that because of this I have so much anxiety about my job and that i shouldn’t be a nurse anymore.

Anyone know how to know the difference between real and false memory because I don’t know if it’s false but feels real it’s fits in with what happened in the best and it’s just the worst to deal with

Anybody ever take Wellbutrin? I started lexapro a month ago and the side effects were terrible. My doctor put me in Wellbutrin. I’ve been on 150mg for 4 days now... yesterday all day it felt like it was maybe working. Or maybe it was just a good day. I’m not sure. But anyways, last night I had a full anxiety attack. And I spiraled so so so so hard. Maybe I’ve been bottling it up and it just all came out? Or could it be a sign that the new meds and making me manic or not working right?

Is Ali Greymond a scam?

Trigger warning: POCD; I want to make a post about how much better I’ve gotten to inspire hope in others. About 6-7 months I had a horrible intrusive thought about pedophilia. It was just one thought that came into my brain while others were talking about it. It caused panic attacks and all I could do was cry and beg God to make it stop. I started getting other types of intrusive thoughts but they weren’t as bad as this theme. I was suicidal because I didn’t think I deserved to live if I was having thoughts like this. It was extremely debilitating and my anxiety was at a constant high. Im better now though. I’m definitely not “cured” or completely over it. But I’m always surprised when I get a thought and I’m able to label it as OCD/intrusive and move on. I still have work to do but I’m so much better. I wanted to tell you all this because i know how it feels when the thoughts are constant and anxiety is high. It’s like a lens that changes your perspective about everything making you scared to even leave the house sometimes. You’re not alone and you’re all wonderful. What helped me was ACT and radical acceptance. Every single time I had a thought I wouldn’t react. If I even suspected a little bit that it was OCD, I would not react to it. It took time and it is still hard but it’s been working so well for me. I’d practice ERP by not avoiding kids or situations where I might see one. I know who I am and I know I’m not what OCD tries to protect me from. I stopped looking at OCD as a monster and started understanding that it was just trying to protect me and those around me. But I just reminded it gently that I didn’t need it to protect me, I’d tell it “I got this”. Sometimes I’d even make little jokes about it, like “oooh OCD you’re so scary”. That actually is really helpful. Give it time because CBT does work. I wish you all the best and stay strong. The strength is inside you, you just have to find your courage.

Tips for stopping ruminating?? I’m my head all day every day. Also has ocd convinced you, you are this person?? I can’t look at triggers for fear of being this person, pocd ??

Anyone else listen to the ocd stories podcast? It has been super helpful...the interviews with mark freeman and Jon Hershfield are inspirational and give a lot of hope but I was listening to the one with Aaron Harvey on intrusive thoughts and I found it incredibly triggering and brought me to tears at how incredibly graphic it was. I’m doing everything I can to not seek reassurance cause I know it’s a compulsion but I stopped listening after 20 minutes of out fear that he’s just going to say he still has the thoughts and no treatment has taken them away.

Do you think that is ok for ROCD to think that your bf enrages you? Sometimes I just don’t feel any emotions toward him, just don’t care I’m afraid of these thoughts

I babysat a kid that’s not mine today. He mentioned private parts, more than once. He needed to change into PJs, he’s like are you gonna watch me? Nope, you can do it on your own and I will step out of the room. He changed and then mentioned he wasn’t wearing underwear under his pants because he doesn’t like it. He’s six. I got through this with lots of intrusive thoughts, but I got through it. (This has been a share)

what’s wrong with being gay? why are people afraid of being attracted to the same sex. i’m sorry i just don’t understand the meaning of HOCD.

Has anyone experienced sexual side effects while on sertraline? My doctor prescribed me 50mg but I’m scared to death of the sexual side effects, which I hear are common. I’m already anxious and depressed enough, I don’t want impotence to add to it!

I’m one of the few people who gets anxious and worried about being anxious and worried. And then I obsess about it and have intrusive thoughts about being aware of being anxious and jittery and that I’ll never get better. Which of course makes me more anxious and jittery. ???

I've had multiple themes including HOCD, POCD, etc. But the worst and most debilitating one for me has been Real Event OCD..the immense guilt, and the extra doubt that comes with it, especially because with this theme it's based on something that actually ocurred..

When did it start for you? What age?

I’m confused. I don’t know how this is supposed to work. Can anyone relate to this??? I don’t have anyone who understands just what my ocd is. I barely understand it. No matter what I do and where, my thoughts hit me. I can be blinking the wrong way and I have to blink until it feels right.. same for swallowing, touching things, light switches and setting down cups. I have to sit and stand up multiple times until it feels right. Step on certain things like cracks in sidewalk as many times I feel is needed. Wash my hands multiple times. Even when texting, I can type out a whole paragraph and my mind tells me to delete it all and start again because it’s not right. When something isn’t right my mind tells me that someone I love is going to die or get hurt. And for some reason I obsess over certain days, like a day someone I love it born. I will sit there and flip a light switch with that date in my mind and a bad thought that something will happen and I can’t stop until I feel that person in my head is safe and everything is fine. In a way I feel that I am saving them and myself from something bad. Can anyone relate? And maybe share how you’re dealing with it all? Please and thank you.

What if you’re not sure if it’s OCD or something else? Should I still see an OCD specialist anyway or a regular psychologist?

My anxiety/OCD is getting worse every single day. Noises trigger it and the noises never end in my house. I can’t remember the last day I wasn’t crying from being so overwhelmed

Anyone on birth control here? Have you noticed a correlation with your OCD and birth control? I’ve had OCD my whole life but I’ve been able to manage it quite well. I switched birth control pills in August. I noticed that my relationship OCD increased. I recently changed pills last week in hopes my OCD will decrease.. seems like it’s doing the job so far. It was bad earlier this week but probably because my body was adjusting to the hormones. Anyone else have experiences like this?