Uncertainty

[Em00]

How do you even begin to accept uncertainty? This is a huge sticking point of mine. 

[Angst]

I think that it is about accepting risk and that any outcome is uncertain. For example if you have surgery the various probabilities are indicated of success and failure including the 1 in 200,000 chance that the general anaesthetic might be very bad for you. There is a risk of fire or flood in your home or eating contaminated food. It is a matter of what is probable and what is improbable. The chance that you might win the top prize lottery used to be 1 in 34 million with the increased numbers in the draw I think it is now over 1 in 50 million.

I think that it is a matter of thinking of your obsession and thinking what are the chances of them becoming true.

The obsessions in OCD seem to be about something bad or something bad happening. We pessimistically predict the future - too pessimistically.  But optimism has irrationality as well. As in the case of the lottery.

Edited October 3, 2017 by Angst

[PolarBear]

We accept uncertainty in our daily lives all the time but the key is, we don't dwell on the possibilities. We don't ruminate for hours on the likelihood we'll be hit by a bus today. We leave it alone. In other words, we don't do compulsions over the possibilities.

With OCD we are lied to by the disorder that there is a huge problem. We then go on to ruminate and do other compulsions, desperate to find an answer. So the key is to not buy into the lie and then treat the obsession like getting hit by a bus.

[Angst]

 Very good comment ‘we accept uncertainty in our daily lives all the time’. Yes I can well imagine that you could easily latch on a set of statistics - it’s the ruminating and compulsions.

[Em00]

2 hours ago, PolarBear said:

We accept uncertainty in our daily lives all the time but the key is, we don't dwell on the possibilities. We don't ruminate for hours on the likelihood we'll be hit by a bus today. We leave it alone. In other words, we don't do compulsions over the possibilities.

With OCD we are lied to by the disorder that there is a huge problem. We then go on to ruminate and do other compulsions, desperate to find an answer. So the key is to not buy into the lie and then treat the obsession like getting hit by a bus.

This is very true. And helpful. Thank you. 

It is so hard though. Some stuff is easier to let go off and other stuff your brain clings to like a vice. SO so difficult to take on board what other people see of the situation. Overwhelmingly so. Why does your brain spin such a different story? Psychiatrist says it can almost be delusion like. 

Therapy starts in a week. I'm terrified but desperately hopeful it can help shift my thinking. ?

[taurean]

3 hours ago, Em00 said:

 

Therapy starts in a week. I'm terrified but desperately hopeful it can help shift my thinking

Don't be afraid - therapy can be the best thing that ever happens to us - skilled therapists don't judge us for what we think, they recognise it is OCD at work. 

[taurean]

The OCD demand for certainty is powerful, but the understanding that therapy should bring will help you realise that the fears the OCD brings are false or exaggerated - and you can learn how the concept of probability trumps the OCD demand for certainty.