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If You Could Give Just One Suggestion, What


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Would it be?

Let's leave out the obvious of going to the doctor and getting diagnosed, and applying for/seeking CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy). 

Mine would be don't connect with or give meaning to OCD intrusions. When we do that, it makes them stronger and they are not going to go away. 

Rather, just note them - see them for the OCD they are, and gently but firmly ease your focus elsewhere, preferably back to where you had been, or towards some activity involved and beneficial. 

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Ask a difficult question why don't ya? :a1_cheesygrin:

Probably, note that when you do compulsions you feel worse, have more doubt etc. and when you don't do compulsions you feel better. It'll help when you get to therapy to already have evidence that your problem is a one of worry :)

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I would say don’t engage with any intrusive thoughts, and explain that everyone gets them, they’re just dealt with differently by someone with OCD.  

It’s just a shame though that in the beginning OCD sufferers usually don’t know it’s OCD they have, and by the time they seek help they’re already in the habit of ruminating etc. As we all know once you start it’s so hard to stop :(

This is why there needs to be more awareness and knowledge about it in the media. I wasn’t diagnosed until I was about 26, and I’m pretty sure mine began at about 6 years old. 

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8 minutes ago, Dragonfly said:

I would say don’t engage with any intrusive thoughts, and explain that everyone gets them, they’re just dealt with differently by someone with OCD.  

It’s just a shame though that in the beginning OCD sufferers usually don’t know it’s OCD they have, and by the time they seek help they’re already in the habit of ruminating etc. As we all know once you start it’s so hard to stop :(

This is why there needs to be more awareness and knowledge about it in the media. I wasn’t diagnosed until I was about 26, and I’m pretty sure mine began at about 6 years old. 

I know right! I got my first obsession when i was at that age. When my mother left me at school did i felt like i had left my mother and i got really bad feelings like i was bad. Guilt. I don't think i have ever got such huge guilt with my obsessions after that. I also got stuck at words, i could repeat words over and over and over again. Then did it go away til i was around 15. Then did i get depressions and my OCD came back. It got really bad when i was 20+. 
Pretty funny because this is how Ali Greymond is describing the typical OCD-suffer. DO NOT take this as it needs to be this way! Because that is not true.

I don't remember when but i figured out myself i had OCD, it was probably when i was 15, because i told my friends i had OCD. 

 

I am around your age now. 

Edited by Isthisreality
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Well as it's my thread I can allow myself the luxury of a second thing. 

Document your problem. Not as an aid to connecting and compulsing - far from that. 

Piece together an overview - a "map" - of your difficulties - the obsessions, the false exaggerated or repulsive core belief upon which each obsession is founded, and the resultant compulsions that you carry out. 

Separately, put together a blueprint of the various strategies and tools that you have learned about and find helpful, when faced with an outbreak of, or relapse caused by, OCD. 

Keep these documents live and amendable in your computer. 

They are powerful psychological tools to help your understanding of how your OCD works, and how to go about tackling it. 

I rarely ever need to look at mine now - but earlier on in treatment they were really powerful aids. 

 

Edited by taurean
amendment
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Hi,

My suggestion is to give it a try stepping away from the whole theme of OCD, post CBT/ERP.

I truly believe that getting too immersed in everything OCD after CBT could be counterproductive and prolonging the agony, as you may subconsciously be keeping the OCD wheels in motion, and it an obsession in itself!

I just think it may in some cases be holding certain people back, particularly those that are long term sufferers who have had multiple sets of CBT.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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6 hours ago, felix4 said:

Hi,

My suggestion is to give it a try stepping away from the whole theme of OCD, post CBT/ERP.

I truly believe that getting too immersed in everything OCD after CBT could be counterproductive and prolonging the agony, as you may subconsciously be keeping the OCD wheels in motion, and it an obsession in itself!

I just think it may in some cases be holding certain people back, particularly those that are long term sufferers who have had multiple sets of CBT.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good point..

hey how are you felix was shock to see your name come up haven’t seen you on here for a while.. I’m still on here trying to get help and not cause no trouble :lol: I’ve changed my name on here so prob won’t be to sure who I am now :tongue:

heidi x 

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Acceptance that we will always have thoughts, that’s inevitable it’s part of how the brain works, these are something we cannot stop. But we can start to change the way we percieve and react to the intrusive thoughts that causes us distress :yes:

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21 hours ago, taurean said:

Would it be?

Let's leave out the obvious of going to the doctor and getting diagnosed, and applying for/seeking CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy). 

Mine would be don't connect with or give meaning to OCD intrusions. When we do that, it makes them stronger and they are not going to go away. 

Rather, just note them - see them for the OCD they are, and gently but firmly ease your focus elsewhere, preferably back to where you had been, or towards some activity involved and beneficial. 

What I don't get: isn't one of the most common pieces of advice they give to not try too hard to ignore your thoughts? But wouldn't trying to not ignore your thoughts register in your brain as trying to ignore your thoughts, and therefore fail in your attempts?

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Those are not verified thoughts of mine, hehe, and it doesn't work the same for everybody who have knowledge about OCD. But i find that the  more knowledge you have about OCD the more "advanced" will the OCD-thoughts get. The OCD comes from the same place as your other thoughts so this is no surpirse. 

The only thing we need to know is that OCD wants us to take it serious. That crippling anxiety can come from whatever thought OCD have picked up.

edited: i can't write today. well good luck everybody with today's recovery. I got triggered yesterday by the news so i will see how i do. Hope everybody can find the strength.

Edited by Isthisreality
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I don’t think it’s beneficial to ignore the thoughts, you should just accept them as thoughts :yes: in my experience if you try to ignore them and push them away that will give them meaning and importance and you will notice them even more.  Accept them as just thoughts like any other thoughts, I personally don’t find it helpful to label them as OCD thoughts ? But that’s just my opinion of course :yes:

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28 minutes ago, efes said:

It's giving me anxiety because trying not to notice thoughts ironically gets me to notice them. 

If you try not to see an elephant in the room, you will see lots. 

The trick is that, once you accept that the intrusive unpleasant thoughts stem from an OCD source, you don't need to give them any attention - as lost says. Just leave them, they have no relevance or importance. 

Separately, in structured exposure and response prevention sessions,, you can sit with them and stare them out - but only then is the way forward. 

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I did. 

The aim of therapy is that the intrusive thoughts that have caused us so much upset and distress just melt into the background and no longer cause us bother. 

To a non-sufferer, they have no meaning no relevance. 

Our aim is to get to that status. Giving them importance in any way strengthens them. 

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40 minutes ago, efes said:

Any attempts to accept them as thoughts only get pushed into the same umbrella in my mind as ignoring them. 

It’s always good to hear others opinions eyes :yes: it’s all part of sharing advice that could be helpful to another sufferer so can you tell me what you do with your thoughts? 

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16 minutes ago, lostinme said:

It’s always good to hear others opinions eyes :yes: it’s all part of sharing advice that could be helpful to another sufferer so can you tell me what you do with your thoughts? 

I dunno myself what the right thing to do is, I'm not super good at letting my thoughts float through and I could only do it when I have the mental energy for it, which is pretty rare. 

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5 hours ago, Snowdog said:

Good point..

hey how are you felix was shock to see your name come up haven’t seen you on here for a while.. I’m still on here trying to get help and not cause no trouble :lol: I’ve changed my name on here so prob won’t be to sure who I am now :tongue:

heidi x 

Hi Heidi and thanks! x

I am still suffering with OCD, but I am loads better than what I was! I have also recently managed to reduce the number of antidepressants that I take.   

I got lucky, because a clinic specifically for OCD was jointly set up in my hometown & neighbouring Brighton, & I attended group CBT with 3-4 others, along with 2 therapists who certainly know their stuff! As expected, the ERP side was not easy, but the CBT certainly took the sting out of it & has ever since.

As I mentioned previously, the only other thing that I have done different this time round post CBT is keep away from everything OCD related, such as OCD forums and stopped googling OCD related info.  

I hope you are well and keeping out of mischief! :a1_cheesygrin:

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10 minutes ago, efes said:

I dunno myself what the right thing to do is, I'm not super good at letting my thoughts float through and I could only do it when I have the mental energy for it, which is pretty rare. 

You need to do it if you want to recover

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