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Feeling really down because I’ll have these thoughts forever…

I’ve been on Zoloft 100mg for almost 4 weeks and haven’t really gotten much relief.. I have an appt with my psychiatrist tomorrow; I’m still having intrusive thoughts and severe anxiety.. would you go up on dosage or what other medication has worked for you?

Anyone else get random intrusive thoughts about their significant others or crush? Like “what if I don’t actually like them and I’m lying to cover up the fact I’m gay” or something like that?

Any tips on how I can stop myself from ruminating?

I have my first therapy session tomorrow and my ocd themes tend to jump between HOCD, POCD, and “Pure O”. I’m really nervous about completely opening up on all this. I also don’t have a diagnosis yet and I’m really scared that and doubting whether it is OCD and I’m worried they might tell me it’s something else or I’m this despicable person. Any tips on how to deal with this?

I really want to enjoy my night out but I feel myself beginning to get triggers and I don’t want to give in and begin to ruminate. Ugh.

Can someone clarify this, intrusive thoughts do they just pop in your head or do you think them up, if you know what I’m trying to say?

OCD is about thoughts right? Because I have these FEELINGS that I'm trans. That my past was that of a boy. I just don't feel like a girl and right now it feels like I've never been a girl even though I always identified as one.

I just want to say that I had the BEST day on Sunday! I spent the day with my boyfriend and a few intrusive thoughts came in but I kind of learned how to manage them when I worded things better in my head to relax the intrusive thoughts. I just accept them in the moment but tell myself it has to pass. I finally felt like myself and was so incredibly happy and present. I hope for more good days but that was a reminder that I’ll be okay. I just also needed to accept that I have OCD and I very well may have it all my life but I’d rather not struggle with it and allow it for ruin all the things I’ve worked so hard for. Don’t give up. And I am telling myself that too. And also I need to continue with my exposures… so I can really be getting the full benefit! If u have had good days please share here and give us all hope that we can do this :)

How do I stop feeling terrible and like a disgusting person because of my past mistakes? (none of them have to do with my ocd themes but I just keep feeling terrible)

Tips on recovering from HOCD? I’m dealing with loss of attraction and thoughts that are Trying to convince me I’m Gay but I want to be straight! The anxiety and stress are getting exhausting!

I feel like I’ve convinced myself that I’m secretly just in denial and this has to happen. I’m just sitting here waiting for myself to start being attracted to women. And that I’m going to marry a woman because I’ve convinced myself it has to happen. Even though I’m not into women and never have been and don’t want things to change. And I’m just sitting here waiting for these thoughts to come true.

Here recently I'll have good days where ocd doesn't bother me but on the days it does it is frustration I am trying not to engage but it feels damn near impossible sometimes.

i am leading an almost normal life without the ocd getting in my way which means i don't have ocd. i haven't properly panicked in s while nor ruminated. i feel like my thoughts and feelings are mine and not driven by ocd. it feels like i am accepting myself after months of denial

I feel guilty about the things my ROCD makes me feel. I hate that my feelings for him just disappear and he doesn’t realize anything has shifted. It’s not right. I want to be as good and consistent for him as he is for me.

i honestly don't think this is ocd. like i have barely any anxiety anymore. no anxiety means no ocd. i feel like i qm okay with the thoughts. i don't want to. but it feels like i truly am.

ive never watched the office but i saw loads of people online saying this one episode was super cringy and the second hand embarrassment stopped them from even watching it (it’s ‘scott’s tots’ for any fans who know!!). anyways, i just watched that episode and i didn’t really feel… anything. like i was a little sad for the kids who’s tuition couldn’t be paid for but i didn’t feel cringed out or anything. i’m scared this means i lack empathy because EVERYONE feels embarrassed for michael in that scene. but then i guess i have no connection to him as a character since i’ve never watched the show, so it doesn’t mean much to me because of that? i hope. i also find that i don’t feel much second hand embarrassment from tv shows or movies because they aren’t authentic to me. i get it way more from ‘real’ things like interviews or real life instances like performers or comedians etc. in fact i feel like i get it quite a lot in the real world. but just never in tv shows or films, which worries me. someone on reddit said they also didn’t feel embarrassed for michael and a person commented saying they are a psychopath :(

Has anyone else’s OCD really cling on to things jt views as “evidence” or “proof?” I’m having such a hard time saying maybe it’s proof that you are gay, maybe it’s not” because it feels so real. Ugh… I need a vacation from my OCD LOL!!!

This Pandemic.... starting to feel like a lonely world like my own lilttle bubble. All of these intrusive thoughts are a waste of time and none of its useful.

Does anyone notice that when their OCD is worse that it triggers depression?

Anybody else struggle with impulse control when it comes to substances? :-(

Why is my sleep schedule so messed up now? I always wake up around 4-5 am or have a hard time falling asleep. And don’t get me started on the weird, distressing dreams.

Now its turn for POCD to enter in my life .😔. When i had thought about harmocd i think its worst and used to guilty ,now i feel like POCD is more dangerous .

Does anyone know what SSRI’s are specifically helpful for OCD thoughts? I’ve been on Zoloft forever and it used to work but the intrusive thoughts have been so rampant I think I need something new

What do you do when you feel guilt in the back of your mind for no reason? Like it's just there waiting to create a reason.

Anyone else deal with a nervous stomach?

I need to get help because I can’t do this anymore. POCD is truly traumatizing. It has made me so numb that I can’t even cry anymore. Gosh I hope that ERP helps if I start doing it

For the past few weeks on and off I’ve been having pretty bad OCD. It comes and goes but I feel like I’m stuck in it and I havent been like this in forever. Most recently I’ve been having thoughts about my relationship and questioning if I should be with my boyfriend or if I see a future with him or if I’m attracted to him. It’s frustrating because deep down I know it’s untrue but it feels so real and scary. I dont know how to break out if this.

Can you have intrusive thoughts that are not sexual? I have pocd and I keep having intrusive thoughts lately about a child but it’s not anything sexual. Like it’s literally just an image of a child, but it won’t go away

I’m scared that ERP won’t work because what if I just don’t have ocd

Does anyone else pray to god constantly and ask “please don’t make me a ped0”

I developed a new theme recently where I feel very afraid to read text messages because I worry that I’ll have to re-read them over and over again. I typically have reading ocd but on a smaller scale(doesn’t affect me as much as my other themes) so I don’t know why this texting theme has all of a sudden taken over my life. I feel like i can’t even interact with people properly anymore. How do I get over this theme?

I'm having a hard day. I keep tracking to check on my spouse. I want to stop doing this, how do I make myself stop thinking about it?

why is it that when i look at pictures of when i was in the middle of my Rocd i get the same anxiety over it, and i feel guilty that i felt that way about my relationship :(

i was so distressed a while ago and now i've taken a shower, dressed up and ready to go out??? why??? am i not distressed? why am i so indifferent? is this not ocd?? and yet i am not so worried about not being anxious! i don't feel like this is ocd anymore :(

I’ve always dealt with extreme guilt about things in my past and the only way I feel better is by telling my mom. And then I’d feel relief until the next thought comes into my mind. Is this a compulsion? I’m not looking for reassurance but just genuinely curious

Today has been difficult. Keep a positive mindset and remember how irrelevant these thoughts are.

Does anyone have headache and head feeling heavy as if you're carrying something on your head on days with anxiety?

Is therapy considered lifelong for people with ocd?

ROCD- Not today satan! We must make our decisions based on experiences not based on fear. Every day fall in love with your partner. They are perfect in their imperfection… just like you and me. ❤️ Much love y’all.

My thoughts changed from Start :I'm not bisexual After some days :I'm not gay Again after some days :I'm not bisexual After some days : I'm not gay DOES ANYONE RELATE? PLEASE HELP ME ONCE, PLEASE😭

tw !! i’m seeing a therapist next monday and while they do cbt they aren’t specialists in OCD i still have to wait on that. but i’m rlly scared of sharing the problems that I have with the therapist because I’m so horrified of being told that while I do have OCD, i’m also a bad person and a weirdo and i’m just so horrified and scared of the reaction i’m going to get. because a lot of the times i worry and i obsess over thoughts that were probably not intrusive and i don’t understand why I had them because as of the present I don’t like them at all and i didn’t even rlly like it then it was just a thought

What does rumination mean?

I believe I am experiencing real event OCD and I am literally thinking about the event 100% of the time, while awake and asleep. I'm not sure that it is an "intrusive thought" so much as an ever-present thought. This makes me feel like it's not really OCD but actually well-deserved guilt. I'm curious to know more about how ERP could help with a thought if its ever-present, rather than popping up.

every single theme i’ve ever had is just running through my mind right now and I feel like vomiting, I feel like im beyond help at this point

i just saw a video of a girl saying "not a single girls went through her childhood without having a crush on them"and then she shows a bunch of cartoon guys and i barely recognize them let alone having a crush on them as a child and then all the comments said they didn't because they were gay. you know the worst part about this? i am NOT FREAKING OUT ENOUGH! i am crying a bit but i feel like i am faking it.

I did the thing again where I felt convinced I'm trans and accepted it and am not anxious at all. I guess that means I want to be trans now, like it's correct? I'm not even anxious about the fact I'm not anxious.

Gooooood morning Vietnam! :) Question of the day: what’s something that makes you unique? For me, it’s that I have type D bracydactyly. My right thumb is shorter and fatter than normal. I believe that 2% of the population has that!

Hi. I have a problem with constantly and boldly promising god random things. I reposted again because I really need some advise and I fear people will skip over the last post bc I said this is. Not a ocd thing.

god i feel like crying. i started classes a week before my boyfriend and was really tired afterwards since i woke up so early and everything felt like a rush when we went to lunch with my family before my next class. i also was updating my friends (as well as him) since we go to the same school but my head was like “you texted your friends more and gave most of your attention to them instead of your boyfriend you don’t love him anymore” and it really hurts having thoughts like that

Does anyone has werid OCD pure physical symptoms or its just me?

Hi guys , i started taking antidepressants for my ocd i know they take some time to work and can make you feel worse before you feel better, is it best to wait for these to kick in properly first before starting erp? I still feel to weak to start erp at the moment thanks

I’m not sure if this is a reassurance. But you ever had a nasty thought and it just remain in your head. Like, it’s stuck. Is that OCD. For example, licking the floor…..like you know it’s bad. Or liking nasty smells..

Does anyone reading here think you can love your family so much , that ocd tries to take that away from you? That you can love TOO much ?

I used to question how the universe started or life or how did anything start like space now It doesn't bother me anymore and it seems like I'm more interested in it but I find it weird how I used to stress out not knowing and now I'm not it's like If I don't care anymore. These thoughts went away or reduced because harm ocd came back.

i want to work so bad but how do i tell them im agoraphobic

ugh when I do private stuff I get alot of incest thoughts and I hate it and I feel like I would get over it easier if I didn't think well whag if I don't want the thoughts to go away

This is not an ocd thing. I kept promising things to god because I feel bold. Then I get scared. Any advice?

Having hocd towards friend is akward and gross at the same time

Does anyone’s real event OCD cause them to think they’re narcissists and that they’ll never be decent people?

Man why am I so chill. I just don't care what's happening, totally going with the flow. 😂 Is it a good thing or a bad thing? 😕

Hey guys so I have a question ? Since I told the hospital I was scared I would harm myself or others because of my thoughts they sent me to a physc ward . And I felt so out of place there “ I felt normal “ to the rest of them . Has this happend to you . (Btw the doctor there diagnosed me with ocd) and I left a day later :)

the thoughts don't feel intrusive anymore, it's like i am generating them just to "prove" i have ocd

light topic just wondering to those who have had depression because ocd (or anything else that might have caused it), what music do you like listening to to help?

so i was dreaming, and in my dream i was imagining myself as a guy sleeping with a girl and i felt like i liked it. wouldn't that mean i am a lesbian? why am i not freaking out???

HOW DO I STOP MY OCD BEFORE IT GETS REALLY BAD? BECAUSE I CAN FEEL A THEME FORMING AND I DONT WANT IT TO GET LIFE WRENCHING LIKE LAST TIME!!!

Nowadays these HOCD thoughts have been coming to my mind at least 5 or 8 times every single day. I want to become normal again really badly even though it just has been almost 2months since I have got this HOCD

Has anyone completely recovered from HOCD and became normal as before without being confused about sexuality ever?

Sometimes While ruminating, my hocd tells me that I'm forcefully ruminating and it's not hocd. Hocd tells me that I'm ruminating to prove that i have hocd.Do yall understand what I mean?

I worry that I’m going to go insane because of my obsessive thoughts about the begging of the universe/life. Or if I think about space. It terrifies me that I will lose my mind.

Anyone know Howard Hughes and seen the Leonardo dicap movie of Howard Hughes? Supposedly Howard Hughes is a billionaire that has OCD.

Hocd has made me feel unsure about my sexuality :(

Even when I get reassurance I get this feeling in my body that’s making me feel like I’m lying to myself and POCD intrusive thoughts tell me I’m in denial... When all I want is to be with a woman my age and above... It’s like I can’t ignore it... my intrusive thoughts say I want a kid, then I try to ignore it for a second, before I can’t ignore it anymore and it causes me to be anxious...

Why do I think this HOCD is my excuse and I am in denial? or am I really in denial

Pray to your Heavenly Father for He always listens to His children, pray for guidance and for courage and faith to refuse compulsions and disregard obsessions when you have to, He loves you just as you are. He has never abandoned you and He will uphold you with His righteous right hand, what can ocd do to you when you have God by your side? You are a beloved child of the same God that created the universe and everything in it, you are a product of His love! You are willed out of Love! Ocd is not your fault its not a punishment but remember who is in control, your Heavenly Father and He loves you like you could never imagine. Have faith, be courageous, you are never alone!

My OCD is so bad that I am having trouble sleeping. I think it is because I have a problem that seems unfixable. Please help.

Anyone else’s mind “blocks off” thinking about certain things connected to your theme? Such as when I’m reading an article on toxic relationships I only read the subheadings and headline and avoid reading into it because what if I relate to something? Is this me in denial or me having ROCD?

I just experienced two cases of "unintentional ERP" back to back. I was in the middle of doing a compulsion that just wasn't working, and in the end, it didn't. It was not recoverable by means of just another compulsion to make up for it, I ended up not being able to fully follow through with or carry out the compulsion successfully, as it was just no longer even a physically possible demand that my OCD was asking for at this point. I didn't expect I would cry, but I did. I broke down, because I'm just not use to it, like I can't even remember the last time I didn't just give in to a compulsion because it "felt" absolutely necessary, when I "logically" knew, and still know, that its not. Tonight, it was just some ridiculous thing again as always, a matter of my clean clothes and/or accessories brushing up against something that I perceived NOT to be clean, like specifically, the old tissue that I had lazily just left sitting around, forgot to throw out, and now have forgotten what I even used it for in the first place. Based on that, I don't know what's "on" the tissue, all I know is that it touched my glasses. I had already had a very stressful shower, filled with compulsion after compulsion of overly-perfected washing related actions, that usually always adds up to about an hour of me having run the water, so at this time, I just didn't have the energy or the willingness anymore to rinse off my glasses, smear soap all over the lenses, and probably still have some dried up soap on them by the end of it, just making it hard to see through them. So I cried again, for the second time in just 5 or 10 minutes, this being after my clothes had "already" come in contact with something in the bathroom before I had even gotten a chance to change into them yet, causing me some sort of irrational distress that most people would not get, as they just wouldn't care. It's not even a public bathroom for god's sake, it's my own bathroom in my own house. I have convinced myself over the years that I should avoid at all costs, touching the floor, the counter, the mirror, the doorknob, the light switch, with the palm of my hand, unless of course...I wash my hands right afterwards. I can touch all of these things with my elbow however, and I have trained myself to be able to turn some things on and off with that part of my body. As for anything else, I can resort to maybe the back of my hand. Anyways...moral of the story if you've even managed to get this far, is I haven't been able to start ERP'ing from a "voluntarily" standpoint, despite really wanting to, because my OCD is just that stubborn, and I hope that ERP will eventually become something I can more easily practice, but ya, perhaps it was a good thing that this exposure to discomfort happened (even if by accident, involuntarily, and unplanned), so I could get that first taste of what ERP is like. Now there was nothing NOT emotional about it. I know that ERP can sometimes stand for Emotional Response Prevention, but there was definitely an emotional reaction. But I'm sure this is okay and not unheard of in the beginning of ERP treatments for others as well. Anyways guys, I'm exhausted...

I feel like EVERY single person have multiple themes of ocd but I just have 1/2

Do y’all have days where you genuinely believe that you are your obsession/fear and you just feel like dying and also moments where it genuinely does not feel like ocd, you don’t do any compulsions, just sit there in guilt

Why do i feel like I'm in denial

I have found that since being diagnosed with OCD, I am much more mindful when talking to others. Not to say that I was disrespectful before, but more careful with the words I choose. Not sure if anyone else has noticed that but it’s actually a great feeling. 😌

I was doing super good but lately i started getting the gronial response and I hate it. It's so uncomfortable and I don't know how to make it go away. Any advice?

I feel extreme guilt right now

Why can I feel like I have OCD sometimes and then not? Throughout the day I’m constantly fidgety because I can’t sit still. Then I’ll notice something in the room and I HAVE to fix it. It’s so crazy, I tell myself “no it’s fine”, but I can’t stop thinking about it until I’ve done what needs to be done. Then I’m back to shaking my leg. Seriously it’s driving me nuts thinking about things that I shouldn’t need to fix.

I wish there were a Driving OCD category on here. I’m definitely struggling with this the most right now. Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated. I get so nervous when I drive. It’s pretty bad in the day, but nighttime is the absolute worst. I hate that it’s so much harder to see, and I especially hate when people who want to go faster will be so incredibly rude and ride my butt or zoom around me. Not only is it rude, but it makes me worry that, because I’m paying attention to them, I’m missing something else way more important (like an animal or person I need to not run over). Tonight there was someone riding my butt and getting on my nerves. I always try to slow way down and stop for longer at stop signs to sort of teach them a lesson, since there’s no way to tell them I’m about to have an anxiety attack. I noticed at one of the stop signs, they were about to go around me to turn right. I had had enough, so I turned my car a little bit to the right so they couldn’t get around me (people stopping right next to me (when they don’t need to) is something that’s always made me nervous anyway). After leaving the stop sign, I saw the same car stop for an extremely long time and take forever to turn. I didn’t think much of it, but now after doing MANY compulsions and causing myself to spiral intensely, I’m fully convinced they were taking a picture of my car / license plate and are going to report me in some way. I’m so worried about what might happen. All I wanted was to keep them from making me feel even more anxious, but I might’ve screwed myself over in the process. I feel like such an idiot and a terrible person. Sorry this was so long, but thank you for reading if you’ve gotten this far.

For relationship OCD, I want to share a valuable moment/lesson I had just now. I have been dating my wonderful boyfriend for almost 2 years, and we had been together for about a year or so before I was diagnosed with clinical OCD. I have been through ups and downs with my OCD as all of us have, and there were times I felt guilty for having relationship OCD. But one of the most important things I’ve learned is to have communication. As we know, communicating your personal needs can be hard with OCD, as they fluctuate and we worry they won’t be accepted or met by the people on our lives. But we need to branch out and communicate, and the people in our lives will be more accepting then you think. My boyfriend and I sat down briefly and I told him what my therapists have said to be good and bad things for OCD. I told him that I understood if he didn’t want to be involved in helping me with OCD because it can be incredibly taxing for the “caregivers” just as it is for the sufferers. But he immediately showed his support and told me he wanted to be involved because he felt his job as my boyfriend was to help in any way that he could. I always knew he was incredible, but things like this make my heart warm. I never would have received the support I need had it not been for the power of effective communication. Even though the people in our lives are willing to give us strength (but NOT reassurance😉), we can’t blame them for not helping unless we tell them we need help. We need to gather our strength and tell them we need something. I’ve learned that, at least for me, the way to fight OCD is to build an army. And to build an army, you have to be a strong recruiter. Leave comments below of where your strength comes from! Follow me if you liked this, hopefully I’ll be making some more passages like this and I love it when my words help you guys!

This is going to sound weird but one thing I don’t like about this theme is that guys that I usually just find attractive turn into full blown crushes because I obsess if I’d like to do things with them or if I find them attractive enough then become elated when it’s a positive response but then feel horribly guilty because I already have a partner. (10 months long distance) It’s not that I have any desire for other guys it’s just that I’m so scared of losing any attraction to guys that when I do have it I feel like running at any guy to prove it’s still there. But when guys flirt with me I don’t really care at all, today a guy squeezed my arm and it was weird but before I would’ve been flattered. I hope I still feel excited when I can finally hug my partner again. I don’t want these other guys, just him.

Do you ROCD sufferers have intrusive thoughts that you could cheat on your partner? Just recently I have had these thoughts and I hate it because I would be the last person to cheat on someone :(.

any tips for falling asleep?

ERP help? Hey all! I’m one week into my first apt with live practicing of ERP and at first I felt like I really got it but now I’m kinda lost and confused. I see post about relief people got so quickly and it makes me even more confused. I guess I’m having trouble getting to a point where I’m at a 1-0 out of 10 …I think I’m there then it will spike back up to a 7 after a good 2 mins of being down ! Any advice is super appreciated <3 I have hope for all of us !!

How is everyone doing tonight? I’m struggling. Eating ice cream and watching the bachelorette to comfort myself.

Anyone can’t/doesn’t want to drive because of their ocd? Like I have my g1 but now I don’t want to get my g2 and drive to add onto the intrusive thoughts/worries I already have

Guys I’m kind of at my wits end with this obsessive compulsive thing... every time i look at my housemates I get intrusive thoughts about staring at their chest or crotch area. What sucks is I’ve had this in the past and my eyes involuntarily do it the more I think about not doing it. The thoughts are endangering me themselves. Is this reassurance seeking? Does anyone else have this and how the heck do you deal with it?

My existential OCD is ruining my life. I'm trying ERP and meds but I tell myself that "if nothing is real, what's the point anyway?" I think deep down I know everything is real but sometimes I question reality. Then I get worried I'm schizophrenic and delusional. I guess I don't know what to do from here.

I recently had my Zoloft dosage increased. Has anyone else ever experienced lack of appetite/shakiness the first couple days if not the first week?

my hyperawareness ocd is making me pay unwanted attention to specific sounds and it feels like i can never escape. i gave into a compulsion by putting on my airpods and listening to something bc i couldn’t take it. i feel rly hopeless.

Is seeing images of children like on instagram supposed to trigger someone with pocd. They don’t really trigger me

Does anyone else feel like that even if you get pass this theme that there will always be the question what if I’m gay in the back of your mind? Like you’ll never be confident about yourself again? Like today was a good day for me! I barely had any anxiety, intrusive thoughts/images, and groinal responses but I still don’t feel confident in myself. I’m sure it’s a process I have to go through but I’m worried I’ll always feel like this. Like the anxiety, intrusive thoughts/images, and groinal responses have affected me that much.

I can’t cry and it’s bothering me