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Hello! 

I've been struggling with thoughts that I've assumed are harm OCD, the thoughts make me sick and I don't want them to pop in my head but they do. However recently a friend of mine told me I shouldn't be assuming I have OCD if I've never gotten it confirmed? Or tested? So how do I know it is OCD? I've just been in my head about it for a while worrying that maybe it is just me being crazy rather than OCD and I haven't recognized it yet. 

Any advice would be appreciated. 

Thank you. 

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Hey @benedictsoup,

firstly, I don't think there is really such a thing as just "being crazy". If you're suffering emotionally or having unwanted thoughts, worries or experiences, that is the sign of a mental health issue. If your experience aligns with some of the issues we observe in OCD, it's not unreasonable to assume that you have it. Are you getting any help for this? For me personally, having a diagnosis really helped but I had no idea about OCD or what it was before I was diagnosed. So getting a diagnosis and learning about the condition helped me understand my own experiences better. On the other hand, it seems like you're already familiar with this and it's really up to you if you want to get an official diagnosis or not. It may help you get access to help should you want it. I also suffer from harm OCD and it is really tough, but you can definitely learn to cope with it and get better!!

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@malina Thank you for the response! I will most likely be getting an official diagnosis hopefully, I just have to find the right timing. I’m glad to hear that it gets better its hard to find hope sometimes. 

Edited by benedictsoup
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I think being diagnosed can really help for some people. Would give you absolute clarity about what is currently ailing you, therefore clear next steps to take. I've never bothered, for my own reasons. (Ok it's too much money to tell me something I already know lol, but that's just me. I've had OCD my whole life, and if you are unsure, a diagnosis can be very helpful. Also self-diagnosing can be dangerous!) Whether you do or don't is a personal choice, I just recommend doing whatever feels right and whatever you feel will help with recovery. OCD, anxiety and depression are all cousins if you will, and many of the medications used to treat one are used to treat the other (if you were to choose medication and if it were deemed necessary.) If you're dealing with intrusive thoughts and you feel the compulsion to dig deeper into these thoughts and try to "solve" them and they are causing you anxiety, and you have a need for certainty on this "issue," dollars to donuts say you are experiencing OCD. It's extremely common. And if not technically OCD, then some cousin most likely. Cognitive-behavioural therapy is used to treat anxiety, depression and OCD. If you seek professional help, that is likely the type of therapy you will undergo, based on the symptoms you gave.  All this being said I am by no means a professional, and I do encourage you to seek a diagnosis if you feel it will help you!

Best wishes!

PS - I should mention that while OCD stand for obsessive compulsive disorder, many people have struggled somewhat but have not necessarily been deemed "disordered." To retrieve an official diagnosis, OCD will need to cause you a significant amount of distress and/or be disrupting your life in a significant way. But that's not to say that people haven't suffered who don't meet the DSM-5 mark for "significant."

Edited by hazydaze
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