OCD and asking for the help you need

[Petal22]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to start this thread in the hope it helps someone to feel they can ask for help in regards to their OCD...

When you have OCD it can feel like a very overwhelming scary place to live in..

We have intrusive thoughts that can seem taboo to the sufferer to talk about with someone you know let alone a health professional who we don’t know..

We have the thoughts of “ what is this person going to think of me for having these thoughts “...... so some people suffer in silence instead of reaching out to a professional....

OCD is a condition that is very treatable..... our health professionals can help us.....

You can learn to get on top of your OCD.... with the help of professionals.... many people have this condition... choose to ask for help.... if you think you have OCD talk to a health professional about it.... try to be as honest as you can about the thoughts you are having so a clear diagnosis can be made, try not to hide the thoughts.... if we try to hide them OCD can be missed in the diagnosis and it can be be brushed aside as just anxiety.... so be as open as you can so you can receive the correct treatment....

OCD has a name, for me it was intrusive thoughts that seemed irrational but felt very real...... the anxiety with OCD is very intense.....

there is help out there available for OCD you don’t have to live with it... learn how to beat it with treatment because you CAN! Life can be great after OCD! Just be brave and ask for help....

im here if anyone wants to chat 😊

[white knight]

Hi Petal

I'm sorry no one has comment thus far. However 2 have liked your valuable thread and it covers a topic that I have little knowledge of.

My post here will cause the thread to go back to the top of the list of threads so hoping you'll get a reply.

When we post a new topic with valuable information many people later on google that topic eg OCD and are led to this site to educate themselves and therefore contribute so your efforts are not in vain.

TonyWK

[Gambit87]

Great post Petal!

OCD has a name, for me it was intrusive thoughts that seemed irrational but felt very real...... the anxiety with OCD is very intense.....

This was me, it got to the point where I was thinking maybe I should push a police officer or hand myself into the police station so they will lock me up. I would hide it and was afraid to ask for help because I thought I was a terrible person for having these intrusive thoughts.

Then I asked for help. So far im a year and a half into therapy and working on myself and I am so much better and in a way better place then were I was. I still get the intrusive thoughts but thats based on how anxious I get and I know that these are just fake thoughts or fake news I call them.

[Petal22]

Thank you White knight for your reply 😊 I appreciate it

My hope is that someone with OCD will read my post and it will give them courage to seek the professional help they need to recover....because recovery is possible...

thanks again

[Petal22]

Thank you Gambit87,

Congratulations on asking and receiving the help you need.... I wish you all the best for your future...

I did group therapy for my OCD this is we’re I learned to master my OCD.... I did my therapy almost 4 years ago and I’m still going strong in my recovery..... I work on myself daily and I know I now have the “ skills “ I need to stay recovered.... thanks to the help of our professionals...

OCD is a very cruel disorder, my hope is that if anyone thinks they have OCD to not suffer in silence.... seek the help from professionals because there are skills we can learn to help us deal with OCD and even beat it... we can get on top of our OCD....

Yes I still have intrusive thoughts but I’ve learned that this is completely normal I now just let them come and go and don’t put my attention on them anymore......

that’s were they stop for me now... just at the thought I no longer get caught up in them.... 😊

[Knots0]

Hi, Ive been suffering with OCD since I was 11 years old, now 44. Seing a psychiatrist when I was 25 literaly saved my life. Im currently going through a very severe episode, the first bad one since I first sought help. The first available apointment in in 3 months. I have a few tools ive learned to keep me afloat, but it gets hard sometimes. I cant belive it takes so long to get help. I know there are crisis options, but I want to avoid this if I can. Any advice?

[Sophie_M]

Hi Knots0,

Thanks for reaching out here. We're sorry to hear that you are currently going through a severe episode. It's great that you've come here for some advice - hopefully something here can help.

The Beyond Blue Support Service will be able to offer you some advice for what could help you in the interim. They are available 24/7 by phone on 1300 22 4636 or on Webchat 3pm-12am AEST on our website: www.beyondblue.org.au/getsupport  

Additionally, you could access short term counselling via helplines. Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing emotional distress with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services. You can call them 24/7 on 13 11 14, or chat with them online 7pm-midnight AEDT - https://www.lifeline.org.au/crisis-chat/

We hope that the forums will offer you some comfort during this difficult interim period. Thanks again for reaching out.

 

[Petal22]

Hi knots0,

Thank you for reaching out to me 😊

Sorry to hear you are currently going through a severe OCD.

my skills I learned were: attention training doing this exercise helps your attention our attention is like a muscle and it needs exercise, attention training also brings us out of our head and into the present moment....

when you are having an intrusive thought instead of putting your attention on the thought practice attention training.. so your attention is focused on the present rather than on your intrusive thoughts.

meditation was another tool I use.... we had a particular meditation to do during our OCD therapy.... you could try to find one on your phone... look for a meditation for ... watching your thoughts.....

meditation taught me that I’m not my thoughts but the watcher of my thoughts.... I can now sit back and watch my thoughts come and go and not get caught up in them

you can even practice watching your breath and every time you notice your mind wondering from your breath you can bring it back to your breath.... this helps with our attention and it also helps to reduce our anxiety..

we learned how to challenge our thoughts.... the for s and against our thoughts...

I learned in therapy that these intrusive thoughts/ urges/ images mean nothing I’m normal 94 percent of people have them....

even if they seem or feel really awful they still mean I’m normal they are just random activity

when I have an intrusion ( and I will) I can....

let it go

be present

gently dismiss as “ my intrusion “

be ok with uncertainty nothing is 100 percent certain.

I don’t need to

analyse

seek reassurance

checking

avoid the thoughts

because: they don’t mean anything.. “ thoughts mean nothing “

this is driving the new system.... “ practice it.... 😊

if I have a bad day ( get caught up in intrusion thoughts or compulsions) I can remind myself that OCD occurs on a sliding scale.

if I keep working at driving my new system my good days will outweigh my bad days!

OCD is a vicious cycle.... when you feel you are having an intrusive thought try not to put your attention on it..... choose to put your attention on the present moment instead or practice attention training or mindfulness..... try to stop your cycle at the thought....

it takes practice to learn your skills but once you learn them they will start to come easy to you.....

I was also put on an antidepressant to many my anxiety...

please know you aren’t alone

[Petal22]

I’m sorry you are going through a severe episode... I understand how this feels I went through two severe episodes in my life time...

sorry it will take so long for you to receive help... is there a gp you can see in the mean time?

I wanted to give you an example of attention training... if you are washing the dishes... what does the water feel like, what can you smell, how do the dishes sound? This will bring you into the present moment and not inside your head....

practice trying to let the thoughts go.... when you have the thought say to yourself let it go and put your attention on something in the present moment

please know you arnt alone and I’m here if you have any questions or need support...

you can learn to overcome and mange OCD..... hang in there ..

[Petal22]

I just wanted to give you some more strategies in regards to getting caught up in the OCD cycle..

What are the early warning signs that tell me I have begun to get caught up in my OCD cycle and need to do something about it myself? ( e.g when I have started to ruminate on the meaning and significance of my thoughts, when I am caught in doing my compulsive behaviour) :

• reaction to initial thought

• analysing
• ruminating
• questioning
• stuck in your head

what are some of the coping statements or helpful phrases that I can use to interrupt my OCD cycle get myself back on track?

• go back to the present moment
• intrusive thoughts are normal every one has them it’s just a feeling it’s normal every one has them.
• thoughts are not reality and this exists only in my head

hope this helps you Knots0’s 😊