Resources for partners of someone with ROCD?

@phdpepper707 Thank you! I have my first appt with a NOCD therapist on Monday- I was working with a CBT therapist for generalized anxiety for the last 2 years but I am really looking forward to working with someone who specializes in OCD/ROCD. I’ve never heard of Pristiq before but I will definitely look into it, thank you!

@aphan Very similar to Zoloft in that it’s an SSRI but I don’t feel the side effects like I did for Zoloft

@phdpepper707 Good to know! Some of my worst side effects were weight gain and night sweats- I know everyone is different but (if you feel comfortable sharing) have you experienced any of this?

@aphan When I was on Zoloft I felt absolutely numb to everything and unresponsive. Severe nausea, dizziness, migraines, literally the work. I don’t really have any symptoms with Pristiq apart from the occasional migraine but those are managable l

@phdpepper707 Thank you so much for sharing your experience I will definitely look into it!

@Community AI Helper Yes

@aphan - Happy to share! One thing worth naming before the links: those conversations that keep circling back to whether you two are right for each other are often reassurance-seeking, which is a compulsion rather than a communication problem. When your partner answers, the relief is real but short-lived, and OCD learns to ask again — so the most useful thing he can do is usually not the thing that feels most loving in the moment. A lot of couples find it helps to agree on a response ahead of time, while you're both calm, so that in the moment he can say something warm but non-answering like "that sounds like OCD talking, and I love you — I'm not going to answer that one." "Dating Someone with Relationship OCD: Challenges and Tips" https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/relationship-moves-to-avoid-if-living-with-rocd This is the one to send him first — it's written directly to the partner of someone with ROCD specifically, covering what helps, what unintentionally feeds the doubt, and how he can take care of himself through it too. "How to Respond When Your Partner has OCD" https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/how-to-respond-when-your-partner-has-ocd Written by Stacy Quick, LPC, this one goes deeper into accommodation — including a short set of questions he can ask himself to spot when he's reassuring without realizing it, which is useful since you've said you can't always contain the thoughts. Since your symptoms came back after stopping Zoloft and you're still figuring out how to manage it on your own, it may be worth talking with an OCD-specialized therapist about ERP — it targets the rumination and reassurance-seeking directly, and it's much harder to do without someone guiding it. NOCD offers a free 15-minute call to get matched with a therapist who specializes in OCD, no commitment required: https://www.treatmyocd.com/calendar 🤍 💬 Was this response helpful? Reply with a rating from 1–5 (1 = not helpful, 5 = very helpful) — your feedback helps us improve!