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Thank you so much for your encouragement, Christina! That makes sense - thank you for helping me challenge my distorted thinking, Jack. I really appreciate it!

In truth - there may be slight remnants of urine around. The point is that whilst yucky, this is almost certainly not going to hurt you. This is all OCD making you over react and over inflate the danger.

Hope you'll find out a way to navigate this - if you have made progress before, you can do it again

I think you know the answers - you’re just in pain and want a sense of relief. We understand - it is very uncomfortable. I get into cycles like this about my contamination fears. The horrible truth is you have to take the yucky uncomfortable medicine - ie. sit with the pain, or indulge in compulsions and make it worse. Took me long enough to realise deep down too…. Either take a stand - or get worse. Our choice. Not one I want to make but still…. Maybe start with smaller tasks and build your confidence up and it’ll get easier. You’ve got this - you can do it. Sending you strength and good wishes.

Hole

Thanks for sharing that, Christina. I’m glad it didn’t drive you apart - and even better that it doesn’t bother you anymore. Really encouraging to hear

My creative brain tells me it'll lead to rainwater leaking into the car and destroying it in harmful ways. Just that... I really appreciate your carefully considered answer. Thank you!

Been there, done that... And then I got married and found out that...you can probably guess... I tried to change him, control him, and I found out pretty soon that it didn't work - I had to let it go, just leave it behind me. It wasn't easy - but now I don't bother at all. The only behavior I control is my own - not others.

Hi Snowbear, I really appreciate your perspective - thank you! How did you know I mentally track everything and feel the urge to clean it all? That’s exactly what happens. I’m going to try to work on not acting on those compulsions. It’s helpful to hear that this is OCD and not something I need to follow through on, even though it can feel really stressful. Part of me still feels like there are remnants of urine, but I’ll do my best to sit with the discomfort and resist the compulsions. Thanks again. Roami

The objective view would be that not washing hands after going to the loo is unhygenic (and for many people that's a bit yucky.) But it doesn't make surfaces the person touches 'contaminated' in the OCD sense. So any mantal tracking of where might have been touched and any worries over 'needing' to clean everything that might have been touched by the unwaashed hands is OCD. Normal thinking would simply carry on without thinking about it and wash their own hands after touching the toilet flush themselves.

Thanks for your response. What kind of stuff comes up if you don’t mind me asking.

Hi everyone, I'm hoping to get some objective input. I’ve made a lot of progress with my contamination related OCD, but I still struggle a bit when it comes to things like bins and toilets. One situation that continues to stress me out is when people don’t wash their hands after using the toilet. It leaves me feeling like they’re contaminating everything they touch. This becomes particularly hard when I visit others or have guests over - like my mum, who tends to skip handwashing after going to the loo. I’m trying to understand whether this is a valid concern that many people share, or if it’s OCD driven. Has anyone else dealt with something similar? Thanks for reading. Roami

Giving 'common sense' input can tip very easily into giving reassurance, so I'll be careful here If I say: "Cars are designed to move around outside, lasting years, sometimes decades, without damage." How does your brain respond? I'm guessing it says something like "But what if XYZ scenario means that trapping something in the door DOES cause damage?" If I'm right, ask yourself how I guessed that correctly. Spoiler - it's because that's how OCD gets us. It's NOT because your worry is particularly threatening, likely to occur, or an exception to the rule. A more interesting question might be - "Why would it matter if the car was damaged?" Or, "Why do I feel I have such a responsibility to prevent damage, that it is causing me distress? Or even, "How would it feel to let go of this idea, and allow my brain to engage with something else entirely?"

So you’ve moved to a new place. Do you use communal washing facilities or do you have your own washing machine? When I used a commercial washing and drying space I took the washing in a suitcase and packed the newly cleaned clothes, sheets and towels in the same case. But I don’t have contamination OCD. I used the laundry for longer than needed because of OCD. My washing machine had an unknown leak which eventually caused the ceiling in the flat below me to collapse. My checking regime did not cover this contingency. Luckily nobody was injured. The insurance paid. I rectified the plumbing but the fear remained. As my old dad said it is not our fears which cause us real trouble. But the unexpected which shocks us. The same applies to our fears of illness. Don’t play the OCD game. When and if a real problem emerges you can handle it.

Hi I just cannot understand how I've got the worry that I've got. Can ocd muddle things so much at the time, then when it comes clear you think how did I think that? The problem is because it doesn't make sense anymore I'm worried I've missed something. I know I shouldn't be trying to work it out but my mind is stuck on this bit and I dunno how to let it go? - I had an intrusive thought against my beliefs - I had further thoughts and then I'm convinced during those further thoughts that somehow I'd agreed to the first thought? But it doesn't make sense! The second lot of thoughts although similar theme were not the same, so how do I think that if I agree to something within those ones that I was 100% certain that I'd done wrong and agreed to the first one?! It's hell thinking you are to blame for something when it's totally against your morals so the guilt is unbearable I feel like ocd immediately filled the gaps in at the time as I remember it not quite adding up so it sort of said "well you must have agreed to it in anger" and I was like no? So it said "well you said you did in anger and that's bad enough" Now I doubt all of the memory and i can't even tell if part of its even real or not. I know this doesn't matter, I know I have to stop figuring it out, but I don't know how it's just so important to me, I don't know what to do to get away from this, I feel to blame and I feel responsible for solving it, and I then feel a failure posting on here knowing I'll be told to stop and I know people are helping me on here etc and I appreciate it but my head is so mixed up I can't absorb it, I'm not trying to be rude I promise. Bottom line is - whatever did or didn't happen, I need to know it doesn't matter because if you think something you don't mean in a state of frustration it cannot be controlled and it doesn't change the real intention or what's really in your heart and the core of who you are, which is why I'm in such a mess - but the guilt just won't stop!

Man

Bean

Lean

Bag

Dean

Paper

Totally misses the point!

Definitely another compulsion. Not a recommended way of treating OCD.

Totally unnecessary and not a good way to treat the problem. ERP doesn't have to be so literal Handy. @Roami gave good advice ERP can be about learning not to react to the thoughts.

Is that an OCD therapist? Did you ask her what her training is & what education she has? She would answer these. I ask all my doctors these. OCD is getting stuck on thoughts. Ever notice?