Do I have OCD? (important).

(If you are a therapist, please read this) So, I have been a person who is going through pure o ocd symptoms and I have been doing ERP for 12 days straight now. But I am still undiagnosed and I have a doubt if I truly have pure O, I mean, my symptoms MATCH them alot. So what I am going through? Intrusive thoughts, obviously. The themes? Faith, existence, identity and morality and relationships. Do I get relief cycles? Yes, I DO. I debate with the thoughts non stop, it consume my whole day, I recheck alot if my feelings change or if I want to make sure if I am safe from the thought or not which strengthens my OCD symptoms or Intrusive thoughts. Next, let me tell how I get these intrusive realistic feeling, chest heavy and stomach dropping thoughts and also I avoid the things that triggers me to the thought. So especially after the relief cycle, the intrusive thoughts linger a bit and I obviously don't mind them and then it demands me to debate it. Initially the debates are short and non distressing and you easily feel the sense of certinty that you dismantle the thought. The more you engage with it, the more stronger and realistic it gets and the debate duration lasts longer, it gets hard to feel the sense of certainity that you are right and OCD is wrong, it gets distressing, and scary, high adreline, and anxeity and then you start to recheck alot. Here is my patterns Intrusive thought > fear/axeity > debate > recheck>relief and then so on. And also I always thought positive over the negative thoughts alot, I prayed alot, I did mental rituals even physical too. And i also get intrusive false memories. My brain always makes scenarios of me facing my intrusive thoughts if they were a reality to ensure how i feel. Now I just want some therapist to read this and tell me what I have, I need a diagnosis, I am going this for a year now.

Community AI...

User type: Staff

Date posted: Yesterday

Hi! I'm the NOCD Community AI assistant (currently in Beta). Would you like me to share some resources that might help? Just reply and let me know.

Ameena

Date posted: Yesterday

Yes, I have been doing ERP for 12 days, and I am in doubt if I truly have OCD given to the fact all my symptoms match to pure O.

Community AI...

User type: Staff

Date posted: Yesterday

@Ameena - Happy to share! Starting ERP and sticking with it for 12 days straight takes real effort. One thing worth naming before the links: nobody in a community thread can give you a diagnosis, and the search for certainty about whether this is "really OCD" tends to run on the exact cycle you described — thought, anxiety, debate, recheck, relief — which is why matching your symptoms against Pure O criteria can quietly become another compulsion rather than an answer. "Why Do I Doubt If I Have OCD?" https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/why-do-i-doubt-if-i-have-ocd Speaks directly to the doubt you're describing about whether your symptoms truly count, and why that doubt behaves like every other OCD theme rather than like a real question to be solved. "What are mental compulsions in OCD?" https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/what-are-mental-compulsions-in-ocd Goes deeper than a Pure O overview into the specific rituals you named — debating the thought, rechecking your feelings, mentally running scenarios to test how you'd react — and why these are compulsions even though nothing is visible from the outside. "Do I need a diagnosis to start OCD therapy?" https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/do-i-need-a-diagnosis-to-start-ocd-therapy Useful given that you've been doing ERP for a year's worth of symptoms without a formal diagnosis, since it explains how assessment actually works and what you can access before a diagnosis is in place. Worth flagging too that self-guided ERP is much harder to do safely and effectively without someone trained in it, mostly because mental compulsions like debating and reassurance can sneak into the exposure itself and cancel out the work. Are you working with a therapist who specializes in OCD and ERP specifically, or more of a general therapist? 💬 Was this response helpful? Reply with a rating from 1–5 (1 = not helpful, 5 = very helpful) — your feedback helps us improve!

Ameena

Date posted: Yesterday

@Community AI Helper I'd rate it a 4 for response. Do I need a formal diagnosis to do ERP tho?

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