Afraid of Cheating

[Ocdbf062]

I have an intense fear of cheating on my boyfriend who I love so much. I can’t even look at good looking people without having bad thoughts or feeling like I have hidden fears. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even want to go college for fear of cheating on him. I’m afraid I’ll do something impulsive. Should I not go?

[Hidden]

I am sorry that you are going through a rough time with OCD.

You should continue going to college.

You do not want OCD to win.

Sit with the anxiety and the feared consequences, when you get those thoughts.

The anxiety will be high in the beginning, but it will get lower.

Accept the thoughts as they come.

Do not interact with them.

The thoughts will lose importance, and slowly fade away.

"Face the fear" is the motto for not giving into OCD.

I hope this helps.

[HulaHoop1993]

Hello,

I read your post and felt like I could relate in a way. A few years ago, I was in an abusive relationship. My boyfriend had really bad anger issues that he got from his biological father which caused him to go off on me for things that I had no control over or no part in. One day he yelled at me for something he deemed unfaithful, and I still remember how it looked and how it sounded when he yelled at me. But ever since then, the PTSD from that along with the guilt that comes with OCD has me almost paralyzed thinking that every single thing is cheating. I have shut a lot of my male friends or acquaintances out completely if I was talking to someone I was interested in romantically even if I was technically still single. I know what it's like to have that constant fear because I know cheating is the last thing I want to do. My therapist always reassures me that I didn't do anything wrong and that the fact that I'm conscientious about cheating and that I know I don't want to is probably a strong indication that I won't, and I bet the same applies to you. It sucks to live in fear, but I think the fact that you are so worried about it means you already know you would not let yourself do that. I hope this helps you and reminds you that you are not alone. I think that you should definitely go to college. I am in online classes and have been even before the whole COVID-19 thing started, and you would be surprised at how much college classes can provide a healthy distraction to some of the symptoms of OCD.