i have intrusive thoughts all day long, whatever i do the thoughts would be in my mind, and i would do a lot of compulsions when i have the thoughts, like mental compulsions, washing, etc.. most of the time i re-do my action, and i also wash very excessively. is it true that ocd always make the sufferer think of the worse things that the sufferer is afraid of, or intensely dislike? and that it makes the sufferer think that the sufferer purposely think of the thought? even though i know its an ocd thought its very difficult for me to not do the compulsions and just carry on, it seemed impossible. i didnt want to contaminate myself and everything i own, thoughts can cause contamination to things, or myself (or parts of my body), so whatever i do i have to think of good thoughts, its became a habit for me, like as i'm typing i have to think of good thoughts because i'm afraid the bad thoughts would appear in my brain and then i'd have to re-type again, i cant help re-doing everything i do all day long, it's taking up a lot of my time i cant do anything.
i dont want to type out the list of my obsessions and compulsions, too much for me to say. is there a way to stop the thoughts?
i had been on therapy and medication before, but stopped due to financial problems, for the time being i cant afford therapy and medication, so that means i have to put up with OCD until i get on medication again?
Last edited by shiningstars; 08-20-2004 at 12:56 PM.
I understand all too well what you're going through. During the initial onset of my OCD, the thoughts would just be a constant all day long. I remember shutting the lights on and off about 15 times before I could even go to bed. Here's what started me on the road to managing my OCD. I purchased a great book called Brainlock by Jeffrey Shwartz. Several of his suggestions helped me get rid of basically all my compulsions except maybe two that I just can't shake. I was able to "manage" my OCD for years after that because the obsessions weren't that bad. After giving birth to my daughter in 2003, I had a terrible battle with post pardum depression and my OCD spun out of control. My doctor prescribed Zoloft which has been a tremendous help however, you mentioned that therapy and medication are a little difficult to attain these days and I do know how expensive they both are. As far as dealing with my obsessions, what I've learned is that I can't just make them stop or go away and trying to do that is futile and exhausting. Instead, as the obsessions come into my head i tell myself that I will think about it later. I've designated a little time every evening to just focus on what I've obsessed about throughout the day. By the time I've readdressed it mentally, they don't seem nearly as urgent anymore and have mostly subsided. I tell myself that the thought(s) are important (even if they aren't) but I don't allow myself to deal with them mentally right then, I make myself wait. By delaying the thoughts, I take away most of their validity. Give it a try and I hope it starts to work for you. Remember OCD is a chronic disorder, so try to learn how to manage it instead of telling yourself you will just "stop". Best of luck. All the best,
j.
You shouldn't try to STOP the thoughts that only makes them stronger. Delaying the thoughts is a good technique. Another good technique that I came up with is what I call hyperextending the obsessions. Whatever you obsess about use your imagination to extend it and blow it out of proportion till it becomes silly and you can laugh about it. Also another way is to make the involuntary thoughts into voluntary thoughts. During the periods when you are not obsessing, make yourself obsess. By making it voluntary, delaying, and hyperextending you are taking back control of your mind. You can continue breaking the chain by learning new skills, and breaking old habits. For example learning another language, brushing your teeth with left hand instead of right. Change your morning and evening routines. Learning new things and changing habits reinforces to yourself that you can take control of your life and will show that you can make changes. Learning new skills like left handedness also increases the areas of the brain you use maybe making your brain more adaptable and flexible. Combine this all with diet, CBT, excercise, and supplements and you'll have this thing beat. It works for me at least. Take Care.
