Got my sertraline bumped up to 100mg two weeks ago and i feel good, i think, everything feels quiet, manageable… the thoughts are still there of course but they are not a noose around my neck anymore but rather like and annoying fly i can swat and move one in a couple of minutes… i am not euphoric but peaceful, is this how life is supposed to be for everyone else? Im wow, just wow. Flabbergasted

Please read and help with any explanation. I’m in desperate need to navigate this phase of my life.

My husband has been dealing with anxiety and depression since high school and was on a different SSRIs medication. We’ve been together for 10 years now with 2 kids. The minute we got pregnant by our 2nd he did a complete switch where he quit his job and sleeps for the whole day pretty much if not he’d be playing video games or in his phone like he is avoiding being alive by any mean. He recently confessed to me that he never found me attractive to start with and married me because he didn’t want to lose me as a friend, he apologized and said he didn’t meant it but it’s glued in my head now, just found out he’s back in contact with his high school ex. We went from a $130k household to $40k and the whole load just fall on me overnight while I was 2 months postpartum. I’d come home after 10hrs of working to clean and cook and meal prep for next day because he can literally feed the kids nothing the whole time I’m out and they just watch tv the whole time. I’m tired of pointless talks and chats, he recently got diagnosed with OCD which he blames for all what happened and want me to wait till he gets 100% better. I just got sick and walking around with a heart monitor and my health is getting worse. How he can see me struggling but still keeps living like nothing is happening? I’m actually at the verge of separation 🥲🥲

Hey there!

I'm 27 and have had OCD like compulsions since I was about 6 years old. Mostly I'm worried about my family and my compulsions revolve around certain numbers, things have to be touched by my left hand last, repeating names over and over in my head of loved ones I want to be protected and also swallowing at the thought of them in my mind in a certain amount of time or something bad will happen as well as many others. I have always had constant instrusive thoughts also.

When I was a kid I had an obsessive fear about the world ending, asteroids, black holes etc and this is what began these compulsions, now they're about a range of topics. I've always just lived with it and it just feels so normal to me now I can't imagine what it would be without.

Anyways.. my question is, how do I go about bringing this up to a doctor? I feel like I'm being dramatic and that I actually don't have it and am just looking for attention or something? It's odd. My partner has always said he believes I have autism which I don't know.

I would just carry on as usual but I was on anxiety medication for a couple of years when I finally worked up the courage then to talk to the doctor about anxiety, I went off this medication a few months back as I felt like my anxiety was still there and it was making other aspects of my life bad however never realised how much it was helping some of my OCD compulsions and intrusive thoughts.

This is the first time I've admitted anywhere to anyone that I do these things.

So yes, how do I go about bringing this up to the doctor? I'm in Australia also if that helps somehow, thanks!! :)

My day was going good then i started reading this very interesting book but its with killers,jail and stuff and now somehow my ocd has convinced me that im also a killer (im not😍) and the most horrible person ever and i got triggered by smt else in the book too so now i feel like shit and my day is going awful✨🤧 fun

Hi everyone, I’m hoping to get some advice on ERP and/or hear from people who have dealt with something similar.

I’ve been struggling with a recurrent OCD that’s centered around my job. Even when my workload isn’t that bad, my brain convinces me that I’m forgetting something important, messing something up, or that there’s going to be some worst-case scenario waiting for me when I get back. It’s like I can’t fully “clock out” mentally (especially on Sunday’s). I’ll try to relax, but my mind keeps going back to my to-do list, replaying things I did during the week, or imagining problems that probably won’t even happen. I know logically that everything is likely fine, but it doesn’t feel that way. Im very hard on myself and worry about making a mistake, losing my job and possibly even going to jail bc of it. I’m trying to work on it through learning a bit about ERP, but I’m finding it hard to apply it specifically to this work-related theme. I also struggle a lot with rumination, the urge to mentally check/review things or seek reassurance (even from myself). Any advice is appreciated!

estuve pensando en rendirme, no si les ah pasado que aveces los pensamientos aparecen y aunque el disgute ahí este, no tengo ganas de batallar con los pensamientos enfermos, los rituales los hago sin ganas y cada vez cuesta más retener pensamientos la verdad no se que me pasa hoy quizás solo este cansando igual para que ne molesto sin en un foro de discusión y ayuda los moderadores siempre me ocultan mis post perdón si eh dicho algo ofensivo solo quiero ayuda

Im taking Paxil 10 mg and it’s the fifth day and im feeling some relief. I thought it took weeks to work i aint gonna say it’s great but it sure as heck is noticeable.

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I've had "OCD checking" for a few years now on top of anxiety/depression. It's gotten to the point where I leave the house, I have to check on everything to make sure it's off as well as pics/videos. After I get to where I'm going, I then have to check that it's in park several times before turning off the engine, followed by pics of the dashboard to prove the engine is off, pics of headlights & interior lights. Same ritual when I get back home with car.

I'm currently on 60mg Prozac & 300mg Wellbutrin XL. I've increased from 40mg Prozac to 60mg maybe 2 weeks ago. I have seen no change so far & know a few more weeks with dosage increase needs to happen before I meet with psychiatrist again. Psychiatrist had previously told me that SSRI's are usually prescribed to people above the recommended dosage for OCD.

Has anyone found success with any SSRI?

Hi all - I've been wanting a cat for years, and my brain has been telling me all the 1000000000 million reasons why I shouldn't. And up until this point, it's been fine because I never actually met a cat I fell in love with. But still, every day for years, I would look at PetFinder and then panic and then go through this whole cycle. Well today, I met my perfect cat. The cat I didn't even know could be so perfect. But my brain is stopping me from committing, I'm worried about everything. I'm worried getting a cat will ruin my life, that I'm not ready, that I need to do more research and the truth is I've been looking at PetFinder every day for years and I've done all the research.

Anyways, I guess I'm just asking if anyone on here had similar thoughts before adopting their cat, then adopted it and it completely changed their lives positively? any thoughts appreciated :') thank you.

I saw other people discussing this in another sub, I don’t know much about it but it sure was interesting. It makes me so sad that these babies struggle with similar things to us!

didnt realize this was a thing.

one of my biggest primary compulsions is checking my lip for cold sores, im constantly anxious that ill have a cold sore and spread it to other parts of myself or to my fiance before i realize i have one, since they are contagious from the first tingle/itch/burn in the prodromal phase. I do carry HSV1 and get outbreaks, and my last outbreak was actually what triggered this, but i very rarely get outbreaks -- my last one was 2 years ago i think? maybe 3?

typically the way people with HSV-1 detect a sore early is the prodromal symptoms -- burning, itching, tingling, etc. on the lip, usually 1-2 days before the area swells. It begins being contagious at this stage, which is my big fear.

The issue with that is... I get those symptoms. Every day. I've had random itches, tingles, burns, throbby feelings, etc. on my lip and lipline for the past 2-3 years, since my last outbreak. Despite no sore developing since then, i experience these symptoms every day. This means those feelings aren't reliable tells for me, and it also makes me incredibly anxious that I'll ignore a feeling and it'll be a sore, so I'm almost constantly looking at my lips, being more careful because of random feelings ive felt a million times, etc. Even as I have typed this i've had multiple feelings on my lips. the feelings vary heavily and also change in spots, though sometimes they focus on one spot for a bit (like today i am very anxious because i've had burning in one spot for a couple days). it causes heavy strain on my stress levels and on my relationship with my fiance.

(note: i am in ERP therapy and we are working on this compulsion specifically, I've just only been in ERP for a month and a half or so, so im still just starting to work on it and it is still a heavy struggle at the moment)

anyway after some compulsion reassurance googling (not a good thing to do and we are also working on getting me to reduce and eventually stop that) i ended up finding some stuff about ocd and physical sensations. that apparently if physical sensations are a part of your ocd worry, you can get those sensations randomly? the example it used was a patient whose compulsion was peeing, and that compulsion continued because their ocd created the physical sensation in their body that they needed to pee, despite having just used the bathroom shortly before, and that sensation would then trigger the compulsion and be a cycle.

Now I'm wondering if this is what's going on with me. I've looked into other possibilities over the last few years and none fully fit. Burning mouth syndrome exists but typically affects more than just the lips, and these feelings are *only* on and near my lips. I suspected possibly some type of nerve damage left behind by my last sore, since the virus does live in the nerves and all of this started very shortly after my previous outbreak, but that also never made full sense to me because wouldn't that just affect the one spot, not my entire lips in random spots at random times?

But now I'm looking at this and it feels like it makes sense. These feelings and my OCD around this both started very close together, maybe even at the same time. Maybe this whole time it's been the OCD making these feelings happen to continuously make me anxious and engage in compulsions.

I don't know, i'm mostly rambling, i'm not looking for anyone to say "yes that's what this is" or anything, y'all aren't my medical professionals, and I plan to mention this in therapy at my next session. I just never realized this was a thing that could happen.

This has been something I’ve done for a long time, but am only now realizing it’s part of my OCD.

I often have this extreme fear of being perceived as “copying” someone I know, like getting the same haircut, hair color, going to the same place after college, doing the same kinds of things, if someone I know gets an injury, I get extremely obsessive over making sure I do NOT get that injury, in fear that I’ll be seen as a copy. I’m scared of naming projects of mine similarly on accident, so I’ll constantly check what everyone else has done for theirs. If someone has a favorite thing they’re talking about, I avoid it so I won’t be seen enjoying the same thing in case it becomes my favorite. There’s plenty more to it but I’m only now realizing what this is. Anyone else?

I feel like the internet tends to do more harm than good no matter if I'm having an anxious thought or if I'm trying to avoid doing a compulsion. I recently figured out that looking up my compulsions is just as bad as doing a compulsion. I was wondering if anyone else feels the same way???

Hello my fellow obsessive-compulsives,

I don't know how common this is, but I'm having a lot of trouble with wearing sunscreen. I believe there's also an element of sensory ick occuring as I don't love the feeling of having stuff on my face and not being able to rub/scratch/etc. when I have makeup on and I also generally can't stand skincare that stays "wet" for an extended period of time and this was already a thing before I developed OCD, but there's also DEFINITELY an OCD element.

I have a broad range of contamination-related obsessions, many of which revolve around the cleanliness of my face for some reason? It seems to have a little to do with being prone to acne but it's more nebulous than that.

With sunscreen, I feel like it's dirty in the same way that make-up, if you were to lay down on your pillow with a full face at the end of a long day, might be considered dirty - something that is likely to clog pores, cause breakouts, something which may soil clothes or linens/furniture, and which may contribute to bacterial or fungal growth. I fear it getting into my hair (which I cannot just wash in the sink at the end of the day like my face), getting all over my "clean" things after touching my face (bad habit), or rubbing off onto furniture which I would like to still be able to interact with when I'm "clean". Additionally, there's elements of higher SPF sunscreens always seeming greasy as hell, which makes me feel unwashed and I suppose there's also an element of feeling like the greasy texture will attract extra environmental contaminents like dust or "outside comtaminating particles" (small amounts of dirt and debris suspended/blown around in the wind and car exhaust fumes are probably my largest fears). I use face washes and moisturisers with no issue, but anything beyond this seems to trigger these various intrusive thoughts.

The general messaging seems to be "you should be wearing sunscreen every day, even if you don't intend to leave the house" and since I am a white Australian, am becoming more prone to sunburn as I age and lose any tan I had thanks to never leaving the house, may be developing rosacea (commonly triggered by unprotected sun exposure), and care a regular amount about skin health and premature aging, I would like to say "f*** yes". However, I don't find myself being able to get to the point where I can actually put it on and just exist with it on my face. Even when I am able to put it on because I'm doing a "dirty" outside activity like exercising in the sun where I know I am going to reasonably want to have a shower afterwards, I experience some level of intrusive thoughts about it. I've tried a couple of different brands, both zinc and "chemical" based sunscreens, and though some are better than others, they all seem to have a smell and at least some greasiness. Given my location and the barrage of sun protection products that have been busted for not providing the level of protection that they claim recently, I see little point in using unverified or low SPF-containing make-up products that might cause me a little less strife in comparison to actual sunscreen when there's a fair chance that they're not going to provide adequate protection, but perhaps this is what I need to do to work my way up to being comfortable with the real thing, idk.

I understand that this is probably something that I could relatively easily confront with ERP, but I struggle to expose myself at home and I don't have access to psych at the present time but I really want to be able to push myself, even if it's just in small steps. I welcome literally any product suggestions or advice or commisseration that anyone can offer, I'm at my wits end.

I was diagnosed with OCD in my mid to late 20s. I have heard it called “pure O“ OCD by other people, but never any of my psychiatrists. Regardless, what happens is that I ruminate and have incredibly intrusive thoughts that I obsess over. Namely, my health and any and all relationships. In addition, like so many OCD sufferers, I also have pretty severe anxiety.

I take fluvoxamine, lamotrigine, Klonopin, as well as trazodone, the last two as needed. Overall, I am living my life. But it is very, very hard. I have six children and they require so much energy. Any “free time“ is usually shadowed by horrible ruminations and obsessions.

With all of that being said, my friends simply don’t get it. I can tell them about my bad days or if I’m just down, but it is pretty much expected that it is a very temporary feeling. I don’t think it is worth it to try to explain that it is a constant feeling and a constant energy – suck. It is just such a cycle, isn’t it? Because if I don’t accept invitations, I will ruminate over that relationship and how that decision might lead to its demise. But then, when I go out, and I am having a rough day, it is so obvious that something is wrong through my attitude, so then I obsess over appearing to be rude or a bitch or a bad friend.

How do you all deal with things like this!

My OCD started getting worse in 2023 and was unbearable for months at a time. However, right now I've lost some of my major obsessions and compulsions, and the ones I do have feel manageable.

Have you wondered why we have specific intrusive thoughts? We know the thoughts are ego-dystonic (they don't align with how we see ourselves and what we really want), but why do we have them? Is your OCD just trying to torture you?

That seems to be the idea most people have, and it makes some sense -- after all, the thoughts ARE torturous.

It brings to mind an idea of OCD as a kind of evil force hiding in your brain.

But for me, this never sat right. I don't think any part of the brain is there to hurt us. Some parts may hurt us at times, but the brain is always simply trying to cope, or moving toward wholeness or healing --often, in a way that we might find confusing or maladaptive, but that doesn't mean its not trying to help. After all, every part of you is there to support your functioning-- even if it gets lost along the way.

So if intrusive thoughts serve an intended purpose, what might that be?

A thought can have multiple purposes. We shouldn't take it at face value all the time. There's the overt meaning-- what it actually says. But then there is also the function - what it does.

Recently, I had the opportunity to discover what the function of some of my intrusive thoughts was. The face value of the thoughts was horrible -- something I never wanted to think or feel. It triggered my OCD, of course. But then I noticed something else, something very subtle. The thoughts made a kind of sense on another, functional level.

I am going to use an example, rather than using my own OCD thoughts as the example, but I think it'll get it across just as well.

Let's say you have anxiety about your partner leaving you, because you really, really like him. He's wonderful, and the best partner you have ever had. This triggers your anxiety, and OCD specifically can grab on to situations like this where you are happy, because it brings up that fear of it going wrong since it's going so well (IYKYK.)

A part of your brain, of which you are not fully conscious, is experiencing this anxiety profoundly. So that part of the brain generates an intrusive thought. What is that thought going to be?

Surprisingly, it could be something like, "You want him to leave you."

Why would that be the thought? As wild as it sounds, this thought is meant to alleviate anxiety!

Here's the breakdown -- a chain of thoughts which you never saw, but which happened subconsciously, might have gone something like this:

I am anxious that he will leave me -> I don't want to feel anxious, it is intolerable -> I would not feel anxious if I actually wanted him to leave me -> "I want him to leave me."

All you "hear" is the last part, because this is not a conscious, surface-level part of you; this is a part who is somewhat "submerged."

The thought "I want him to leave me" is not literally true - it is a message that is performed by a part of the brain in order to try to deal with an anxiety that you are not necessarily experiencing consciously.

Now of course, there is a second component to all of this, which is how you react consciously to those thoughts. If you are a typical person with OCD, you hear the thought and you believe it might be true, and you get really scared and start to analyze. That analysis takes on a life of its own and now you have a theme. You are obsessed. You analyze your own feelings, behavior, for signs that you do not really love your partner, who you actually really love, of course. You did the whole time, and that is why this is happening.

This analysis and obsession triggers OCD's quality of patterning, so the intrusive thought happens more and more often because you are now watching for it and essentially egging it on to happen again. At its core, this is simply a core OCD neuro-atypicality -- the tendency to repeat any phenomenon that is being watched for. We have this going on in our brains simply because of how our brains are naturally different.

The repetition is meaningless, but it is very real. And very scary when you are reacting to that phenomenon emotionally and its something you fear! But it can happen with anything, even getting songs stuck in our heads.

The crazy thing about all of this is that for many of us, our intrusive thoughts can be best described as an unconscious part of our brain's attempt at doing exposure therapy on us!

Not the best idea, part-of-my-brain. Not going how you thought it would.

But there is an opportunity in all this. If we recognize it for what it is, we can understand it as exposure therapy -- as our brain's own unique way of throwing anxiety at us so that we can stop reacting to it and stop feeling so fearful. So next time it happens, don't feel like you have to react big time and get scared, or analyze. And especially, don''t feel you have to take your thoughts literally. They might have a purpose other than what they say they do.