OCD Action

Katchit
Member

Does anyone else have this feeling ; with acceptance?!?

I really want to get better ; i hate OCD ; and i hate OCD for the pain it has caused me ; and the pain it does cause me on a daily basis.

When i expose myself to situations ; without performing rituals ; it almost feels like tempting fate ; you go from one method of doing rituals ; to protect yourself ; to another method ; of then saying ; ok ; i will let these thoughts be here ; and not perform any rituals to reduce anxiety.

How have you got to grips with that?!? What have you done to feel at ease?!?

Has anyone else had that feeling of tempting fate?!?

Thanks for any advice!?!

Wed Nov 9 2011 16:49:27 #
BT
Member

Yes, every time I have a thought that I feel I could neutralise with a compulsion. That's why it's so tempting to take what seems the easiest route. Sorry this is a brief reply, I don't have long at the moment.

Wed Nov 9 2011 16:56:03 #
Unregistered

Hi Katchit,

everyone here has had the same fears that you have. If you're exposing yourself to your triggers, I assume you've having Cognitive Behavioural Therapy at the moment? Please note:

(1) "Tempting fate" is one of those very common ideas that has been put into all of our heads while growing up. The idea of "tempting fate" has no basis in reality. It's an example of "magical thinking". OCD relies on magical thinking. (Making a connection between two events or actions, which in reality have no connection.) OCD sufferers (like me) are very prone to magical thinking. It is impossible to tempt fate. If you can tempt fate, then you'll be famous, because you'll be the first human being ever to do it.

(2) You ask, "What have you done to feel at ease?"

I think that this is where a lot of OCD sufferers don't quite make the breakthrough that they can in CBT. The entire success of ERP (exposure and response prevention) relies on the patient NOT doing anything to reduce their distress.

(3) You MUST feel the distress that the situation brings you. You must not hide from it. You must endure the situation and STAY IN THE SITUATION -- with no compulsions, rumination, or reassurance seeking -- while the distress is building. It's really difficult, but you HAVE to let the distress / fear build and build and build and build and build...because the success of ERP relies on you STAYING in the distressing situation UNTIL THE DISTRESS HAS DIED DOWN.

(4) If, at the end of your exposure session, you are STILL very distressed, then it means that you will need to repeat the experiment again. (e.g. the following day.) If you get to the end of your course of CBT and the experiments are STILL making you feel very distressed, then you need to carry on doing the exposure sessions -- either with or without your therapist. YOU HAVE COMPLETED A COURSE OF CBT, BUT YOU HAVE NOT COMPLETED IT SUCCESSFULLY.

(5) The purpose of the exposure tasks is to push you past the point where you think that the distress / fear / danger is just going to build and build until something terrible happens. The exposure task's purpose is to push you past the point that you think you cannot go past -- and to show you that the fear / distress WILL eventually peak, level off...and then go down again.

(6) If you do ANYTHING to make yourself feel at ease while you're doing the exposure tasks, then it won't work. The exposure tasks are not successful until the level of distress that you are feeling at the END of the session is quite low. If it is still high at the end of the session, then you have not succeeded yet.

(7) It FEELS like what you need to do is find some way to reduce your anxiety. But in fact, what you NEED to do is deliberately increase your anxiety level as high as it can possibly go...so that you can witness your anxiety peak...level off...and go down. If you don't do that, it's like climbing three quarters of the way up a mountain, and then climbing back down before you get to the top. You can go home and tell everyone, "Oh, I climbed that mountain." But you DIDN'T. You only went three quarters of the way up the mountain. And it's not the same thing!!! If you get to the end of a course of CBT (with ERP) and you are STILL feeling a high level of distress, then you haven't got to the top of the mountain, and you need to try again.

I hope that makes sense.

OCD Londoner.

Wed Nov 9 2011 21:59:22 #
playthoseblues
Member

Hi Katchit,

Exposure Therapy is all about habituating to a situation. That means, making your body climatise to a situation, so you get used to it, and therefore your anxiety won't increase as high.

I'm doing CBT at the moment, and like you, I have thought "What happens if it now happens", but that's OCD playing a doubt trick, making you think you're more likely to do it.

In those situations, I've just said, it's an OCD Doubt Trick, and I must carry on. After an exposure task, the anxiety is quite high, but if you notice, it does plateau off.

Keep going, and I hope this makes sense too

Jon

Thu Nov 10 2011 7:17:33 #
Katchit
Member

OCD Londoner, and jon.

Thank you very much for your replies.

They are really helpful.

OCD Londoner ; thank you for the length of your reply ; that really helps with explaining more about the anxiety.

I have read a lot about OCD ; and it seems that people with OCD ; dont sit with the anxiety long enough ; i definitely dont sit with the anxiety long enough ; to realise that it does reduce.

Thanks again for your very helpful replies.

Thu Nov 10 2011 9:04:44 #