DC82

I think you already know the answer. David Hume states (Enquiries p. 115ff) that “no testimony is sufficient to establish a miracle, unless the testimony be of such a kind, that its falsehood would be more miraculous, than the fact, which it endeavors to establish”. What’s more likely? A (very possible) mundane coincidence, or the laws of science have been broken?

Thanks. I hope so too.

I wondered if there are any updates on the conference? Does anyone know what time it will start and finish? I presume it will be a daytime event?

This is a good thread of posts. It’s very motivating to read these day to day successes.

Sounds positive! Well done on the progress. Hopefully those fears will become weaker and weaker.

I think that sounds sensible. We can all find coincidences if we look for them. I do not think they are messages from a God. You could also chat with your GP about your situation.

The OCD-UK website states: “Although there are infinite forms of OCD, it has been traditionally considered that a person’s OCD will fall into one of these five main categories, with themes often overlapping between categories too”. Checking Contamination / Mental Contamination Symmetry and ordering Ruminations / Intrusive Thoughts Hoarding I read the section called ‘contamination’ on the website - not sure if that helps you. You could see what your psychiatrist/therapist thinks. https://www.ocduk.org/ocd/types/

You have posted about this before. I think you would be helping yourself if you visit your doctor and explain your situation. Don’t be afraid to learn Korean and Japanese. There is zero evidence to support your fears about being punished by a God for learning a language.

@mchmis26 It is probably a good idea to go back to your GP if you feel you are struggling. You cannot get a diagnosis of OCD from a forum. Even if something in a forum post sounds like OCD, I don’t think it provides enough information to diagnose OCD - and the majority of people aren’t qualified to do that anyway. I don’t think self diagnosis is a good idea. Only a trained medical professional who is qualified to diagnose OCD can formally assess you and diagnose you. There is a reason why they study for years. The medical professional is trained in assessing you, and is skilled in asking questions (looking more closely into what you say) to ascertain a more accurate understanding of the nature, frequency, and severity of your problems (among other things). The medical professional will have knowledge of different mental health problems, and how they sometimes link together, or look similar. My suggestion is to go back to your doctor and explain your situation in as much detail as you can, in the time that you have. Perhaps you could request an assessment and diagnosis by a qualified professional. Hopefully you can then get some help for your problems.

@Handy makes an important point. He does not say that the root of the problem is not OCD (which it may or may not be - you would need to be assessed by a medical professional). He states that drinking might cause you to obsess ‘more’. According to Healthline “Alcohol changes levels of serotonin and other neurotransmitters in the brain, which can worsen anxiety. In fact, you may feel more anxious after the alcohol wears off. Alcohol-induced anxiety can last for several hours, or even for an entire day after drinking”. @Nirvana_29 You could explain your problems to your doctor or therapist. They can assess whether you have OCD, and if you do, they might suggest CBT. But, I think it’s clear that an attempt to address OCD (if that’s what you have been diagnosed with) could be slowed down if you’re drinking alcohol. Higher levels of anxiety probably aren’t going to help. WebMD states that “even moderate drinking [of alcohol] can exacerbate anxiety after a few hours“.

That’s not so bad. This is good too - It’s great to have people around who understand, especially when OCD and anxiety becomes challenging.

Yes. I wonder what percentage of people find a medication with no side effects at all. I’d guess low. I do prefer medications that allow me to eat and drink ?

Sounds terrible. I think I’ve been lucky with it.

I don’t think you will do that. You sound very strong, organized and determined. You clearly care and are taking steps to help yourself. Do you have any family who could look after the 4 of them for several hours if you need to take a walk or have a rest? Do you mind me asking what side effects you had? I am on fluoxetine (Prozac) and have recently had to increase my dosage. I’ve not experienced any side effects that I am aware of (except decreased libido - but I don’t mind that if it means I am less anxious).

I think this is a nice reply from @hazydaze @rebecca23x It sounds like you’re feeling anxious about being anxious. Try not to become worried about waking up anxious - it will make you more anxious in the present. Whenever you have any annoying feelings, try to think very, very positively (don’t allow yourself to entertain any negative ideas in your mind) and be strong and determined not to be beaten. Easier said than done, I know - but you don’t have to put pressure on yourself to achieve perfection straight away. It’s not your fault if you do feel anxious and it’s not a sign of failure. It takes a bit of time - but I think it is important to focus on positives. You’re taking steps to beat it which is excellent; I think you deserve to feel good about your positive intentions. Everything in life (even anxiety) is temporary. Feel assured that your doctor is helping you and is on your side. Are you having any counseling or therapy?

I love this too. Reminds me of when i was a boy, sitting down in an armchair by the TV with a cup of tea and biscuits. I loved this show. These days, anything with Karl Pilkington makes me smile. Podcasts, the Idiot Abroad Series, the Moaning of Life...I love all that. Very funny - recommend it if you need to take your mind off something.

I know what you mean. I’m in no way an expert and I struggle with it too. I find my OCD and anxiety correlate - when one goes up, the other tends to. I used to drink some red wine, but I decided the cons probably outweighed the pros - I don’t want to make the anxiety worse. Although, sometimes I see a bottle of wine in the supermarket and ask myself if I should drink to escape.

I do this too. But the in for 3, out for 5 stomach breathing really helps me - when I feel anxiety is taking over. I always try to go to bed thinking about something I look forward to the next day. Sometimes that helps me drift off to sleep. Anxiety is a real pain. I think the key is to send messages to your mind that there is no danger or reason to be fearful. Excess saliva while chewing gum probably helps send that message because we don’t usually eat or produce excess saliva when in panic mode. While breathing in with my stomach and out, I accept the anxiety is there (My old friend anxiety is back) instead of panicking that I need to get rid of it immediately; and in my mind I watch it - imagining it (like a piece of paper or a twig) drifting off down a stream of water away from me; I act as normal as I can, visualizing myself looking calm - telling myself calmly in my mind that everything is fine and will be fine.

I don’t know what is normal, but I do get waves of intense anxiety sometimes - not always immediately following an obvious trigger I am consciously aware of. It tends to happens to me in the evenings. Sometimes I do breathing exercises, placing a hand on my stomach as it rises and falls (in for 3 seconds, then out slowly for 5), which helps me. I do that for 20 minutes, after about 10 minutes I feel better. When I’m anxious I think I tend to do lots of smaller, quicker breaths with my chest (not my stomach) without realizing - which I think makes me more anxious. Slowing it down, using my stomach to breathe, extending the out breath longer than the in breath, seems to help me. Or I distract myself by reading some articles or focusing my thinking on something that I would usually (when not anxious) find interesting. You could also chew some gum. I think it helps you produce saliva, something I think we don’t do so much when in panic or danger mode. I think the production of saliva helps send a message to the brain that you’re not in danger. Not sure if there is evidence to support that, I’ve not looked it up - but I feel chewing gum helps me sometimes.

This is very sad. It is pleasing to read that OCD charities seem to be helping people in these situations. Perhaps OCD charities could unite on this issue and work together to help. Maybe an OCD fact sheet could be produced for suffers to carry when meeting nurses, social workers, etc. It could bullet point (all fully referenced) explanations of OCD, established evidence about the risk of acting on obsessive thoughts, and reminders from medical bodies about how to assess OCD and address risk. Despite these stories, people who need help still need to seek help. It is great that the BBC published this article. I hope the OCD charities continue to help people in these situations.

The probability of something you think is improbable happening (within the laws of science), may be statistically a lot higher than you think. It may feel improbable, but it is not impossible that you would check the time at the same time several days in a row. You don't need to infer anything supernatural. I think humans sometimes jump to the conclusion that everything happens for a reason, or that it must mean something. There is probably good reason for humans seeking a reason - if you read into evolutionary biology. We think about "why" - but there may not be an answer (just like there is no answer to the question - what is the sound of a one handed clap?). "How" is a more useful question in my view. The law of large numbers tells us that if we wait long enough, something that is possible (even if it is unlikely or very, very, improbable) will happen eventually. E.g. there is 1 in 135,000 chance of three siblings in one family sharing the same birthday. In the UK there are about 1 million families with three children under 18. So you could expect 8 family’s to have 3 children with matching birthdays. It happens – it does not need to be a special sign from something outside science. It is just probability. Another example – if you have 23 or more people in a room (selected at random), it becomes more likely that (i) two people in that room will have the same birthday - than (ii) them all having different birthdays. That probability grows as you add more people. Having a birthday match with someone else in a room of only 23 people sounds unlikely – but it is actually more likely than not. If you, I, or anyone, look for coincidences or things that feel unlikely, we will all find them. Especially if we haven’t calculated the probability. Something could be possible (in the laws of science) and improbable - but that does not make it impossible. Consider the improbability of a person being born. One sperm, from millions, fertilized one egg at a specific time on a specific day. If it hadn’t, then that person wouldn’t exist. If a different sperm (a fraction of a second later) or a different egg (on a different day) had been fertilized, then I wouldn’t be who I am now. My hypothetical sibling might be doing something else right now – playing professional football for England maybe. But – I am here, it was possible, however improbable. It happens, it is life. I don’t think you need to worry about checking your phone at 11:11 or whether it means anything. Not sure about the logic of this bit. Studying Korean and Japanese sounds like a great hobby - it seems a shame to give that up. I don't think there is a God that wants to punish you if you learn Korean and Japanese. If you are worried about something bad you did before, address it and sort it out if needed, accept what has happened, you can't change the past, move on, and do good things in life - like learning Korean and Japanese. I hope you continue learning languages - it sounds like a great goal.

If this is correct then you obviously need to check this with a doctor. I’ll stick with my previous suggestion. The NHS website states: “Blue skin or lips need to be checked urgently in hospital”. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/blue-skin-or-lips-cyanosis/ It doesn’t mean that there is a need to worry - just let the medical professionals check it out and see what they say. You don’t need to think the worst or anticipate disaster. Just have it checked with a medical professional. We all have medical issues at different time points that need checking. It is a part of life.

I am not a medical doctor. I don’t think it is useful to panic or make your own diagnosis (that’s why doctors study for so long - so that they can make diagnoses). It won’t help if you assume the worst. At the same time I wouldn’t ignore this. I think checking this with a doctor would be a very sensible thing to do. I hope everything is fine.

Good luck with it. I think I would try to relax and reduce feelings of anxiety around the issue.

I think you can apply this to your opening post! Difficult, but I think you have to listen to the rational side of your mind. It’s just a thought & you love your partner. Even if your mind drifts to a sexual fantasy or scenario, I don’t think it’s a crime or a sign that you’re a bad person, or that you will cheat.