tocd😞

[Sergiu]

I am facing something very strange.

it all started a long time ago, after many obsessive thoughts on certain topics, but 2-3 months ago the thought appeared not to become trans, I never had problems related to gender identity, I never thought about it and now it appears this thought that makes me think all day, I'm afraid and I don't know what to do.

all day I check my body, all day I look for information to calm me down, every move I make I think,, is that what a woman does?,,

I know I'm a man, I know it's only in my head, but sometimes it's very difficult and I don't know what to do, can you give me some advice?

thank you🙏🏻

[Lauragbr]

Themes for OCD will change. You have to treat them all the same, which is let the thoughts be there but don’t do the compulsions! In other words, don’t keep checking your body . This is a compulsion and only makes the OCD stronger. Remember OCD thoughts are irrational. It’s part of the disorder.

Tell yourself that this is an OCD thought and you won’t fight the thought but you won’t give it your emotional attention. It’s hard!! But it gets easier the more you do it. Good luck!

[Sergiu in reply to Lauragbr]

Thank you🙏🏻

[deValentin]

Why not put on hold the wondering for a while? An answer is not urgent. It's no good to directly try to suppress the questioning in your mind. You probably heard about the pink elephant paradox: the more you try to suppress an intrusive thought, the more intrusive it becomes. Often with the passing of time, one realizes that absolute certainty is not necessary to regain peace of mind. Actually, it's the unwillingness and/or inability to accept a certain degree of uncertainty in life that prevents one from functioning reasonably well in life. I know it's not always easy, but it gets better with habituation. At the same time, you need to make choices in the other domains of life in order to maintain or acquire the confidence that you live the life you really want to live.

[Letyourselfgo]

Hi obsessed brother! Sounds scary, right? But consider it, you could take a laugh about it once or twice. The only reason it hit you, is because you care. My way of dealing with obsessions is, allowing it. Believe it or not, these thoughts will never become even close to reality, it is a glitch, like an error in a code. So why not as well just let them be, ignoring them like they are boring, or even something that not scares you at all. Imagine how funny would you look in those women dresses as soon as your fear of that is removed, the obsession will find a new topic. But the algorithm is always the same, 0 care about whatever topic hits you. Remember at the end of the day, nothing of that exists, it is just your fantasy.