Hi everyone. I'm wondering if anyone has any tips for dealing with religious OCD. I'm a Christian and I struggle with Harm OCD but then somehow, my religious beliefs got mixed into this where I am suddenly asking all these questions on whether God/Jesus is even good. And as a result, I feel so distant from my faith which makes dealing with my harm OCD so much harder š¢ Any advice would be appreciated.
I have this as well. For me I had to undergo a deconstructing period to open my mind up to doubts and other possibilities and while it was hard it helped in the long run
I liked this book by a pastor for helping me wrestle with theology https://www.pastortrey05.com/book
Thanks for the comment. Hope you're doing ok. Praying for you š
@Anonymous Thanks! Remember doubt is also in the Bible. Job, Jacob, the psalmist, Paul all wrestled with God and whether he was good or not. He is not afraid or angry at doubts
Mark DeJesusā podcasts, YouTube videos and books on religious ocd Jaimie Eckert (scrupulosity/religious ocd coach) does private and group coaching sessions - https://scrupulosity.com Dr. Ian Osborn blog (https://ocdandchristianity.com/category/dr-os-blog/) and book - āCan Christianity Cure OCD?ā
Hey, You have fear and anxiety and harm and doubts about religion great! 1. Change your opinion on having doubts Say to yourself, this is sign of God to test me or to put me closer to him through your research Or say this Norhing wrong is with doubt. God wants us to research and explore because it will eventually make us Closer to him So the point is To change your opinion on "Having doubts about religion" Dont be "i dont know is there a god" I feell horrible oh nooo .. Be this "I dont know is there a god" Good God wants me closer to him through knowledge God doesn t want you to be just a Sheep he wants you to be Active and find him through his holy books that he gave us Its completely fine to have doubts But keep this fake meaning of ocd In mind Just because you havd doubt dont BELIEVE OH NO EVERYTHING IS OVER, thats Ocd wanna convince you that one doubt everything is bad Why?? Because your inner Opinion is this It must be perfect So ocd attach itself on perfection and what does it mean So thats why you feel this way If you for example say if there is something that i cant understand in the books it doesnt mean its bad or not perfect it means that i am just a human and divine and i am not meant to
I have found that the most powerful tool in fighting religious OCD is focusing on Godās grace. The reason being that OCD wants us to feel responsible. For example - did I pray enough, are my thoughts āright enoughā, and on and on. But grace is COMPLETELY UNDESERVED and takes all the responsibility off of us to make things right. Once we grasp that in our hearts - even a little bit - the grip of fear starts to lessen. I wrote a book āWaging War Against OCD - A Christian Approach to Victory,ā you may like - itās on Amazon. Also - you might like Ian Osbornās website - ocdandchristianity.com Mark DeJesus also has amazingly good resources - books as well as many you tube talks. I hope these help.
I don't really know if it's OCD, but lately I've been thinking a lot and in a very obsessive way that every single one of my actions, words or even thoughts will affect on how God will make decisions about my life. For example, if I lie to someone or yell at them out of anger, God will make happen something bad to me as a "punishment". I know it might seem silly, but it really really freaks me out sometimes... Does anyone feel the same? And if so, do you do something in particular to feel better? Thanks for your understandingā¤ļø
OCD has decided to latch onto my religion (Christianity) and I find myself doubting my belief in Jesus Christ. Yet when I research, I even find myself doubting the atheistic and agnostic approach as well. Iāve been a Christian since I was 13, growing up in a non-Christian in truth but nominally Christian household. This is rough. Any advice?
So Iām not sure how many/if any of you are Christians, but Iām assuming this can still make sense to some of you. This morning has been rough. Iām constantly thinking, āam I saved? Have I never been saved and Iām tricking myself into thinking I am? When Iām listening to Christian music am I doing for the right reasons? Is it too late for me?ā. Things I know the truthful answers to but yet I still think these thoughts. I donāt understand why. Why do I constantly think about these āwhat ifāās? My heart always feels so heavy and I feel as if I need to talk to God right then and there to make it stop and go away. But then am I talking to the Lord for the wrong reasons? And the cycle repeats. Thankfully, day one of my therapy is tonight and Iām hoping to find at least a little clarity on this stuff. Iāve had OCD for 7 years and I donāt even know how it works. Any advice?
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