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Telling parents about OCD when you haven’t had a formal diagnoses, help. So, my mum is such a deeply compassionate person and she is so caring and has helped me in all the ways that she could with my obsessions, but, she absolutely will NOT accept that I have OCD. I cant even use the word in conversation without her getting heated up. She assumes that I have pulled this label out of nowhere to explain my ‘over-thinking’. I have openly suffered with health anxiety (OCD), and a theme that makes me scrutinise all of my thoughts to decide whether they were normal - it’s basically a fear that I’m autistic, despite having 0 of the symptoms (it’s hard to explain), but have privately suffered with SO OCD (sexual orientation), which I managed to basically overcome on my own with self-administered ERP. I don’t feel comfortable opening up to my mum about that, so she is only aware of my two themes. My mum has a habit of minimising everything, and despite suffering with severe-post natal anxiety and depression, she has a hard time grappling with labels. It was only recently that I found out I was likely struggling with OCD, seeing as I had EVERY SINGLE SYMPTOM OF IT. In order for her to even open her eyes up to the idea of it, I have to say “look it’s not that serious, it’s fine I’m fine it’s just a label”. She hates if I try to say that I’ve been really struggling. She hates it. I laugh (A lot) with my friends, and to her that is direct evidence that I haven’t been suffering. But trust me I have been absolutely miserable. I’m almost tearing up writing this. I cant get her to accept that I likely have OCD, she just says I’m on over-thinker and it’s all because of quarantine and I’ll be fine once we’re back in school - yeah, more distractions from the issue, but will I really be fine?? Probably not. Just like the last time. Anyway, any thoughts?

I managed to overcome my trans theme in a matter of days, just by agreeing or accepting that there’s a possibility that I am. Now I don’t have that theme anymore and I managed to make it last only a few days. I’ve had HOCD for 8 months now and every day if feels more real. I want to try what I did for TOCD because it worked well but I’m scared to because HOCD feels different and I so desperately don’t want my thoughts to be true. I don’t know what to do :(

Im hating my hocd is anyones hocd making them stare at places they shouldnt? Or try to avoid looking there?

Two things: How do you no longer worry about something people not only tell you that you shouldn't worry about this real event, but you don't even know exactly why you worry about the event? I've told all my friends about the event word from word and they don't even think I should worry about it because I didn't do anything, as most of them have said. So how do I just stop? Is it wrong to ask to talk to older girls on here as a guy? I feel like that's immensely wrong and I shouldn't do that, but I feel really happy talking to them because I just like women a lot. But I get uncomfortable with anyone lower than my age.

I really can’t get over this past « mistake » . I don’t even know if it’s a mistake or a bad thing anymore . I love live and i don’t want to die but i feel like it’s the only way because i’ve ruined my life anyway

HELP I THINK I MIGHT HAVE KILLED SOMEONE . When I was 8, I either picked on a boy or bullied him , I’m not sure which one. I was watching a video about a girl who hung herself over being bullied . So that reminded me of this . I know I made fun of the kid for being fat , but I CANNOT remember the intensity , whether I genuinely meant to hurt him or just was a kid teasing and annoying someone. . There’s no point in trying to recall cuz I’ll just make false memories . I know for sure that the kid cried to his parents and then at a parent teacher convention they told my parents I was being mean . I can’t remember if I stopped after that . My mom laughs at the incident, and was like “omg you’re face that day was so funny “ . So that makes me think it was probably mild . Besides if I bullied someone to death , I’d remember how abusive I was right ? I had a reputation for teasing kids , but I know I teased him more than I usually teased people . I can’t remember what my intentions were . I don’t know what ERP to do , or if I’m a fucking murderer . To make matters worse I went on Reddit , where people were remorseful over being former bullies and talked about how guilty they felt . I completely forgot about the incident . Now I feel like a disgusting evil murderer

I don’t think I could do this. It’s to hard. 😭

i was having this with a mate about crime and it got to the point saying that men are disgusting (not all of them. i don’t mean this to offend anyone) and it’s made me think that i now hate all men. like i see a man and i’m like “if you dated him he would hit you”

I'm worrying that my ocd hasn't been as severe recently. The anxiety and thoughts have decreased and I'm not obsessing as much. I think this is because of medication and learning tactics to fight ocd effectively. But as I said I'm worrying that my ocd isn't as severe and I fear I don't have ocd at all despite diagnosis. Anybody else experience this?

Girls only please! So I’m talking to a new guy and we’ve hit it off pretty good we have a lot of in common as well as beliefs etc.. And he talked about how he supports lgbt community because he has a cousin that is gay and idk I thought that was going to freak me out because of my hocd but it made me feel like less worried like I’d not be judged by him. We have had some deeps talks already and he told me he feels like he can be himself around me and I told him how I’m very intrigued with psychology etc. But I feel like with all the guys I’ve been I’ll be able to tell him about what’s been going on with me, but I still have these thoughts of if I tell him he’s just going to think I’m bi and in denial like I fear being rejected. Like there’s some days where I think what if it’s not hocd and I’m just in denial? Like this makes dating for me so hard I hate it. I start therapy on here next week but I feel like it’s not going to work on me because what if I’m just in denial. But going back to the guy he told me that he can see himself with me which made me happy but then I feel like I’ll be burden which is another reason why dating for me is hard. One thing that makes me so upset is that I actually had my first boyfriend after I had a what if I’m gay thought so I feel like it ruined my experience and also guys didn’t start noticing be after this happened to me like why?? Hopefully someone on here can relate?:/

I just worry I’m not feminine enough or I lack ‘what it means to be a woman’. And I also feel like I don’t seek female companionships enough which makes me feel so bad. Like I guess it’s easier to be around guys because I don’t have to compare myself to anyone (bad trait) but I WANT to built strong bonds with other women. I don’t know what all this means but honestly it gets me down.

I wish i could go back in time and change my past. Remove all my mistakes. My life would be perfect right now

Somatic OCD- It doesn't get mentioned much on here, but The OCD Stories' latest episode discusses it with Dr. Steven Phillipson ☺!

i slept terribly and now i’m anxious. can someone help calm me down?

I'm trying to do something to distract me from a thought I don't want. I'm having intrusive thoughts that what I'm thinking isn't an intrusive thoughts cus I'm not stressing over it enough, it's really weird, just feels nice to say out there. Currently hiding from my brain through pokemon.

I need help with something. I have severe OCD. To the point where I will start at 7AM and won't stop until I go to bed. I have a fear of the number 6. Also, I get the word "devil" and "God" stuck in my head. It is intervals of 9 and at 6PM I started a habit where I have to say "devil" and "God" over. But the main one is saying "God" over a bunch of times until it feels just right. I'm scared of stopping my habits at anything with the number 6 because that will really be the day I stop the 6th? If that makes sense. In all honestly I know nothing bad is going to happen and I know I will be fine, but it still gets stuck. I am interested in exposure therapy. So with that being said...would people think it would be better to stop at the number 6 so that way the fear will go away or should I try to stop around 7 or 8? What would be the most helpful?

I’m very grateful I have such an amazing mum, but she really clearly doesn’t understand OCD. Today, she said that we don’t need labels, and that everybody has a little bit of OCD, then said it was only important to label it if it was BAD (she doesn’t have OCD), and then in the same conversation she said she’s shocked I’m having any problems dealing with my OCD because I’m smart... she also bought a book to help me deal with it (it’s actually a pretty good book so far) and she claimed she read part of it, but later in the day had the conversation I just mentioned. I’m so fed up of her not understanding, whenever I try to explain it she pulls the “I’m older therefore wiser” card and is basically refusing to learn about it. It’s a bigger deal for me than she thinks and she needs to point out every little compulsion I do, like I don’t understand that I’m doing them, even though I’M the one who suffers with anxiety after not doing a compulsion, I’M the one struggling, she acts like an expert and tells me that I’m not trying hard enough

I don’t want to get too reglious but a quick question. Like ima teen and hella scared of teen pregnancy and never will have sex in high school because I don’t want to have a baby. but like Vigrin Mary she never had sex like me but got pregnant is that possible for me as well? Should I be worry about being a virgin that can get pregnant I’m scared

So you think it might be a good idea to stay away from social media during PMS? I noticed that it's much more likely that I get sucked into obsessing or rumination right before and during the first days of my period. And social media can be a major trigger during this time. I already deinstalled the Instagram app and only go there via my browser because then I spend less time there and it's been doing me a great deal of good. But I am not sure if this is avoidance. I don't mean to avoid ALL triggers because that is impossible and I am going to accept and sit with the rising thoughts and anxiety during that time but social media is nothing I need to succeed in my daily life and I wonder it might be good to detox for a few days each month when I know that those will be harder anyway and maybe it could help me to get through them more smoothly

Do any of you spend way too much time on your phone? I spend so much time on Instagram scrolling. And some of it is good but it is just too much and it makes me feel not good enough. And obsessing over whether one can have a good life without a popular account on social media. I don't know if the scrolling is compulsive, but I often want to stop and keep doing it still. It feels like it gets in the way of my normal functioning and being out there living my life. I also spend a lot of time figuring out what other people spend their time with. And feeling like whatever I'm doing is not good enough. Don't know if this is obsessive compulsive? It feels like I have to do it, figure it out so I don't know if it's not OCD and something I should contemplate as my life really isn't that good or it's just OCD tricking me again. Often the SoMe is avoidance so I won't have to do things and and be triggered I guess. I just wanted to chat with others who have the same problem with too much scrolling without it giving them something back? What have you done to help yourself stop etc. Feeling low. Hope to hear from someone struggling with the same thing. ❤