Welcome to
the NOCD Community

I always feel the most anxiety and dread in the morning. That’s when I start overthinking a lot, and it becomes really hard not to seek reassurance on the internet and so on. What do you all do to ease the morning anxiety a bit?

I’m trying so hard to feel normal again but i cant i keep feeling like im being dramatic and that my symptoms aren’t real and im tricking everyone, even on here i feel like im tricking you all into believing i have OCD when i don’t. Plus all these other types thoughts im having all meshing together its so overwhelming and i dont know what to do. My therapist appointment isnt until next week and idek what shes gonna tell me or if she’ll even think i have OCD. i keep thinking about my other posts on here and wondering if i even meant what i said in them. this is the worst ive ever felt i think i might even be going through depersonalization or derealization but im not even sure about that i dont even know anything about what im really going through cause ive never been given any kind of formal diagnosis its only ever been depression and social anxiety but ive always had a feeling it was more but i keep doubting myself. maybe if anyone wants to look at some of my other posts and tell me what u think in general? or would that be reassurance seeking? i feel like most of my posts might be but im not sure.. IM NOT SURE ABOUT ANYTHING! this is so annoying

I know that sounds a bit harsh, but people with OCD think very differently then everyone else and we do strange things. I used to think OCD was just that we overthink to much and have compulsions to fix it, but its kinda alot more than that i realise. Like peoples lives are legit debilitated from this thing. Thats serious and i dont think others realise that. Mabye im concerned too much idk.

I've been having a really tough time lately with a recent workplace interaction that occurrd today, and my mind just keeps replaying the events over and over. It feels like an endless loop, and I'm finding it incredibly hard to let go. I'm trying to figure out if this intense replaying is more about my OCD, or if it's a typical reaction to a stressful situation that's being amplified by my OCD tendencies. The specific details of the incident involve a colleague engaging in a racially insensitive discussion that I tried to disengage from. Despite my attempts to steer the conversation away and remove myself, the situation escalated with direct confrontation and accusations. This led to significant emotional distress for me. Later in the day, the same colleague misunderstood another conversation, making baseless accusations and publicly confronting me in a very aggressive way. I kept quiet throughout, just a bit of muttering. The emotional toll of these interactions has been immense. Now, my mind is stuck. I can't seem to stop dwelling on every word, every gesture, and every imagined alternative outcome. Hoping I'm not viewed as the "angry black woman" which is such an affair narrative why can't I state grievances of racism, without this narrative. * how do you manage the relentless replaying of stressful workplace interactions? What are your go-to coping mechanisms when your mind gets "stuck" on these loops? * Have you found any specific strategies helpful for navigating interpersonal conflicts at work when your OCD makes it difficult to process and move past them? * When you're feeling emotionally vulnerable due to work stress, what helps you prevent these situations from turning into prolonged rumination cycles? Any advice or shared experiences would be incredibly helpful. I'll be so grateful for any assistance. I just feel like I'm not good at life.

My boyfriend is telling me every time im anxious, that if i didnt like him (i always think that i dont love him) i wouldnt suffer this much over my thoughts, and i could have just leave him. Its very true but i dont feel better at all and im thinking that i dont want to hurt hum or that im used to him and dont want to accept the reality and thats why i suffer because i am a good person???? im so sad and scared and anxious.

I’m definitely having an episode right now. A few times I’ve thought about coming onto this app and writing something but then I spiral further and further and I forget about anything except what’s triggering me. Then I think about this app again and intend to write a post… but again I’m spiraling too hard to focus on anything else. But I finally ended up here because I got an email from NOCD. I opened it and read about someone who ‘overcame their OCD.’ It made me spiral harder, because I genuinely don’t understand how someone can control this. How do I stop? How do I silence my brain? I was told to sit with my thoughts and not try to divert them, but if I do that I have an extreme episode so bad that I feel disconnected from myself. I looked at myself in the mirror and it felt like my eyes were seeing someone standing in front of me and not my reflection. It scares me to think that I will be experiencing these episodes forever. I literally just put my phone down twice because I thought my cat was choking to death because he had a hairball (he’s fine) I just feel like I can’t see a way out of this. It’s not curable, and I don’t understand how someone can ‘conquer’ something that feels so out of control Obviously it’s possible, but unfortunately that reassurance doesn’t always break through the most awful thoughts Sometimes there’s nothing that can make me calm down, I just have to ride it out I hope there’s never a day where it’s so out of control that I can’t keep it in at work, and I ruin my own life by having a severe panic attack while I’m there and being fired. If I had the type of episodes at work that I have consistently at home, I would be so humiliated. It scares me. I’m trying so hard to be normal like everyone else. I just want to be happy. I just want to live.

18+ so, i just had this memory pop back into my head after suppressing it and now I’m obsessing over it and cant suppress it, it feels so weird that i dont think i can even tell my therapist. so a few years ago, i was high, and laying in bed and my dog was laying in front of my face back to me and i kissed his back like mimicking making out, and dont get me wrong this is not a zocd concern it was not attraction im not worried that i touched him sexually im just really weirded out by that memory like someone gauge how weird and immoral that is for me and like i was not a kid, i was an adult its freaking me out like??? tf i do not know how i manage to suppress shit like this like i didnt think it was weird when i was high and i think i remember waking up spiraling about it and then decided to shut it down bcs i had what felt like bigger ocd shit fish to fry and it just popped back up and im spiraling

i just thought about something that happened between me,my sister, and brother when we were younger and im pretty sure it was COCSA and im getting scared thinking about it. I’m the oldest and the biggest age gap is three years so we’re all fairly close in age and this happened when i was around maybe 8 and im not going to discuss too many details here because im scared but im just thinking about so many things from my childhood that could be signs i couldve been SA’d and its making me think what if i was and i dont remember and thats why that situation happened and the other ones im thinking about ? cause there are a couple situations im thinking about but i dont even know if theyre real. the only one i know is real is the one where i think i was apart of COCSA because i distinctly remember my siblings and i joking about it some time after it happened a few times. im scared of what my siblings might think of me if they remember it now after its been so long. like do they think im disgusting? i dont even remember how the event had started or if i was the one who made the suggestion but i just remember laughing when it was being done. honestly idek if it could be considered COCSA and im scared to talk to anyone about it in too much detail. this is really scary posting this i feel like im in trouble or something but idk i just need to vent. last post for now i just keep thinking too much today.

Does anyone ever feel like you know you have OCD, but at the same time you think it might actually be you connecting to a higher consciousness or vibration that is trying to control your decisions so that the outcome does not turn out bad kind of like the butterfly effect. It drives me crazy because I know I’m conscious that it’s OCD but at the same time I overthink and feel like it might be a higher power trying to warn me that I’m not doing something right, like example; if I flip the trash can lid a couple more times it’s going to pervert something bad from happening and that why I’m sensing I’m not doing it right, because if I spent a little more time there and if I would have left earlier the outcome would’ve been different. Or say I just fight through it and choose to ignore it, but then I’ll carry that negativity/worry of not feeling like I did it right and will project it out into existence because the thought won’t leave my head and in a way your seeking it out into existence since you keep thinking about it, kind of like an affirmation?

I was first diagnosed with OCD at the age 19, the same time I first entered treatment for substance abuse. At that time, practitioners were focused on treating my SUD; it would be another 14 years until my parents and I, with the help of Dr. Whelan (UCLA, PANS/PANDAS Specialist), discovered that my OCD is (at least in part) the result of Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infection (PANDAS), a condition that went untreated since the onset of OCD-like tics that I had developed after repeated strep infections ages 6-8. Throughout my 20s, I struggled with constant feelings of inadequacy and shame, and would often turn to substances to manage the anxiety and hopelessness that lay in the wake of unmet expectations of perfection. My symptoms would fluctuate greatly as I got older, but about 3 years ago, my OCD took a dramatic turn for the worse. I was living with my boyfriend (now good friend), who helped me the best he could as he watched me decline mentally and deteriorate physically. I would spend 8 hours rearranging a bookshelf, or begin wiping off the bathroom counter, only to realize 4 hours later that I was still cleaning and had moved to the kitchen. There is a palpable sensation in my body when recalling the moments during compulsions where I was so unconscionably angry, exasperated and physically exhausted and starving, but I couldn’t stop. “I’m almost done!” I would cry out to my boyfriend, who knew that meant anywhere from 30 more minutes of cleaning to 4 hours, moving room to room as I discovered more “dirt.” My ocd had become completely debilitating. I couldn’t cook due to fear of contamination, I struggled to sleep, I NEVER arrived on time to anything, and I was at constant ends with myself. Finally, about 4 months ago, my therapist, boyfriend, parents and I made the decision that I should move home. I had been seeing a complex disease specialist who discovered reactivated CMV, requiring me to be on aggressive antivirals, and exposure to toxic mold, necessitating a long detox protocol. Within 3 days of finally agreeing to start the antivirals, I went from physically ill to waking up and suddenly realizing I was habing a clear thought. My mom noticed that I hadn’t hesitated or gotten side tracked, and arrived promptly - within minutes - following my typical “I’ll be right there” (aka in 2 hours) response. I hadn’t even noticed it, but ever since that day, I have been noticing small improvements; even my tolerance or threshold for discomfort has increased. A week ago I told my parents it was the first time since high school that I was able to execute a task from beginning to end, without distraction and with a relatively clear mind. I say this because I want others to know that no matter how hard things get, don’t ever give up hope. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but in the words of Winston Churchill, “if you’re going through hell, keep going.” I believe having OCD has also made me incredibly resilient. I feel a sense of responsibility to share my story in hopes that it might help someone suffering from OCD, or a family member struggling to understand a loved one with OCD. NOCD is a great resource for those with OCD, as well as family members and loved ones struggling to accommodate or understand. My parents are currently going through SPACE, a program for family members to help them better understand how to navigate and gradually reduced accommodations that may have been a point of contention. I have seen huge growth and my parents in it has been beneficial in helping us set goals and objectives, as well as having an open conversation about what I’m going through and what they are going through. Thank you to NOCD for all of the education and support you provide the community for free!

TW: SEWERSLIDE WARNING I’m scared to continue living because I don’t want the worst to happen. The worst being me discovering I’m a sociopath, pedophile, ephebophile etc… I have people I don’t want to disappoint. I keep looking for an excuse/something wrong with me so that I can decide whether I want to continue living or just end my life and save myself from the embarrassment of my loved ones finding out. At the same time I’m afraid to die. I feel like I’m not making a lot of progress in therapy. The only thing keeping me going right now is the thought that maybe one day I will find out that I’m not a creep, a sociopath &/or an ephebophile. At the same time living everyday is hard with all this looming over me. Some days I feel like I can continue no &’s ifs or buts. Other days I feel like im my own cheerleader & i am actually this bad person i think i am. I am so confused. Yesterday this thing came up where i suddenly find myself thinking a 17 yr old actor is attractive mind you im 21 yrs old.. idk if this is arousal nonconcordance or what it is honestly..I’m just afraid that it says something about who I am.. maybe that’s why I like guys my age with smaller bodies because it reminds me of a younger person??? Idk

Intrusive thoughts are supposed to be unwanted but when I’m mad I’m saying out loud “ I wanna stab them” and I feel rage. That doesn’t feel like ocd anymore I’m stressed and my brain also wants me to cover my dogs nose and suffocate him . I’ve covered it before and got anxiety and I’m scared I acted on an intrusive thought by doing that so I’m just psycho I guess about to snap

My brain keeps telling me to cover my dogs nose and suffocate him.:. I’ve covered his nose before for 10 seconds and idk why I kept doing it like am I trying to kill him is it a compulsion UGH I CANT LIVE LIKE THIS , I’m trying not to post on here but it’s nice to know others input if I’m a psycho or not …. Reassurance is sometimes needed idc what anyone says .

my father was never that good of a person to begin with as he beat us when we were kids, but today as he was pissed as he was repairing tubes in the sink my cat was meowing and in the way and he got annoyed and basically kicked her away with the shin. I have moral scrupolosity ocd, and when people do something like these it irks me to the core. I tolerate my father, but after this i feel like a moral obligation to not accept him. but i physically can't, he's my father and also the only economical provider for us, i have to go to him to learn to drive and etc. i don't know. what should i do? isolating him is not an option, i just feel like i cant be friendly with him anymore. if he gets angry at me and screams i dont really care, but to do that to my cat idk.

Same theme of harming my family member in a similar way the details what I said and what was shown to them and the environment around me but that’s all I can get it’s hard to focus on the environment only what I said and what I did. This memory keeps coming up and leaving its instant. They seem to be ok the one in question I also don’t have a timeline if I harmed them no timeline like I did it this time or I don’t remember. I don’t rmemenr actually ever doing this. I felt like a creep because this woman days ago made me feel like one I internalized that and now my mind has been picking up thoughts or “memories” of harming my family member but I can’t ever rmemenr doing anything like that plus the dream or “memory” when I had it was in another state years ago but it only came up now.

i’m in college and on my summer break now. i don’t have a job yet or much to occupy myself with and im finding it really difficult to keep my ocd under control. if i have nothing to do, i find myself sitting around and ruminating heavily and getting severely anxious and my thoughts just keep wandering. i don’t really feel peace of mind unless im with my boyfriend or my best friend, both of which i don’t get to see often because they’re very busy or live far away. im not sure how to keep myself busy and how to occupy my brain with something other than worries :(

I am having a real hard time with meta-ocd and thoughts about feeling depressed and be like this forever. Or the thought I never feel normal again or never feel connected to normal life things and normal people. The intrusive thoughts are here like the whole day and they are all about my mental health. And I obsess about how I feel and what I feel with everything I do. It’s so hard to explain. If someone- a therapist or someone who dealt with this has tips or word of encouragement right now, that would me great. I feel like everything I want to learn myself about ocd and coming to this forum also is a bit compulsive. It is so confusing 🫤

I have been really really struggling for the past 3 months and haven’t been able to stop intrusive thoughts/ rumination and confessing. It’s making me question my entire life, my relationship and even who I am as a person. It’s mainly effecting my relationship, I am so afraid that I did something or think things that are definitely hurtful to my partner. I know my brain is contorting my own memory and making things seem so much worse. I also know I haven’t done anything bad, all my things I’ve confessed about have been considered “normal” and I’ve been told that “you’re normal, you didn’t do anything wrong”. But I have felt this intense sense of guilt and shame and it doesn’t go away, I can’t even be a normal person anymore. And I keep searching for “just one more thing I need to tell” and I don’t want to keep searching my brain of every time I’ve said or done anything that I can distort and make seem 1000% worse. I’m isolating myself and just feel like I’m a bad person. I keep confessing my thoughts, feeling, urges, etc. to my partner and while I know I would never do any of these I feel like my ocd is trying to convince me that maybe I would because “why else would you think it or feel guilty” and that makes it so much worse. I really need guidance on how to handle this. What do I do to stop feeling like this and heal?

i was recently diagnosed with ocd and i think im having a hard time identifying what is my ocd and what isn’t? or im not really sure how to express myself but i feel like i still don’t really know much about ocd and feel like an imposter saying i have it because i don’t know enough about it to really understand it? like all my life these things i would do or say or think or feel were i guess “normal” to me,, so how do i move forward when i don’t know really where to begin?

So recently I have been talking to this guy and I really like him and for the past week I felt really good and happy about it, but then a sneaky intrusive thought popped up about what if in the future when and if the time comes to sleep in the same bed, I inappropriately touch him while he’s sleeping. Now I’ve struggled with sexual intrusive thoughts like that before so my brain just kept reminding me of how that thought felt the last time it came up, and the thoughts of sexually harming this person started snowballing and making me feel worse and worse. I spent most of the day crying and panicking wishing my brain could just shut down, and now all I want to do is hide from this person so I don’t get the chance to hurt him, which makes me feel even worse because I had been feeling so good about him just the other day. I was just wondering if anyone else had experienced this and if they might have any insight