I’m looking for advice on how others with ocd deal with intrusive thoughts. Intrusive thoughts about wanting to harm someone when in reality I know it’s not what I want to do. I know the thought is trying to scare me and it’s working because I’ve been more fearful and avoiding people right now.
Any advice from others that have intrusive thoughts would be much appreciated.
hello,
1st I am sorry to hear you are going through this. Just know that there are SO MANY others that also go through the exact same thing. There are lots of great books out there that help to explain ocd and how it works really well. One I read that was great and an easy read was called “From stuck to unstuck: Break free from ocd and anxiety” by Matthew Codde. It’s a great read because he is a therapist who also has gone through ocd and is able to give perspective from both sides.
OCD is a cycle. And if you can break a part of the cycle you can ease the anxiety. One part of the cycle is the compulsions. And you want to focus of not doing compulsions because they are what keeps us in the loop. There is a thought that pops in, and what happens in simpler terms is that we start to think there is some meaning to it. People without ocd are able to just let that thought pass by. But with ocd, we latch on. We start to think about it and dissect its meaning. That in itself is a compulsion. And what compulsions do are keep the ocd loop going because that then signals to our brain there is something to actually fear and look out for (when in actuality there is not)
This is why the gold standard in ocd treatment is ERP therapy. It helps you rewire the fight or flight mode in our brain that makes us perceive a threat. Over time, being comfortable with the thought and realizing it for what it is (just a thought) we are able to calm that panic alarm in our brain and just let the thought go by.
Another thing that keeps us stuck is trying to not think about the thought. It’s been shown that the more we try to not think about something in particular, the more our brain stays stuck on that thought. Instead, allowing the thought to be there and not attaching emotion to it, but recognize it as a thought allows for you to desensitize yourself to the thought and eventually it fades.
thank you for your reply. I will look for the book you mentioned. 😊
This is such a common OCD theme and one that has plagued me as well. My first piece of advice is do not avoid people, especially the ones that your your thoughts are about. Avoidance makes OCD stronger. Always let the thoughts be there, even though they are extremely disturbing. Don’t engage with them., hard to do. The more you ignore the thought the sooner they will leave you alone. Just remember OCD sends you false narratives!!! Try not to take the bait.
Hello - I'm sorry you're having a difficult time right now. I really am. I know how hard OCD can be.
If you haven't I would suggest speaking with your doctor about how you feel. I know for me things started to change when I was just honest with my doctor. He prescribed some medication and I asked him to refer me to a therapist. It wasn't easy, but I'm in a lot better position than I was before. OCD is difficult, but the good news is that with medication and therapy the remission rate is something like +80%. The medicine is typically a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI). This increases the amount of Serotonin in your brain and helps to relieve the "stickiness" and intense anxiety of the thoughts. It isn't a happy pill and does not change "who-you-are". From my experience, it just lessens the anxiety you feel when in an OCD spiral and allows you to approach therapy better. The gold standard for OCD therapy is Exposure Response Prevention (ERP) treatment. In ERP you will gradually face your fears and learn techniques to deal with them. This is often very difficult at first, but as you have success you will gradually retrain your brain to not have such an intense reaction to the OCD thoughts.
It's also very important to find people who are trained to treat OCD. I know for me I got much better treatment with a psychiatrist than I did with my GP. Also, I don't know if this will help, but while ago I put together a list of things I learned on my OCD journey. Maybe it will be of some use for you:
healthunlocked.com/my-ocd/p...
I really hope you find the peace you deserve my friend. May God bless you/
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