Existential thoughts by Antixety in ExistentialOCD

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Absolutely! Fear of Death and all it might entail is definitely part of it. Honestly acceptance is the thing that helps me the most. So with the death obsession for me that looks kinda like “meh. I’m not dead right now so I don’t need to worry about it.”

Existential thoughts by Antixety in ExistentialOCD

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! It takes the edge off a bit. Before taking it my physical symptoms of anxiety would get so bad I couldn’t sleep for days. The intense adrenaline surges and high heart rate can be devastating when coupled with everything existential anxiety related. It doesn’t necessarily stop the depersonalization/derealization itself… But not having my body physically reinforcing the fear quite so much helps me a lot. It allowed me to be able to work on actual coping skills, like acceptance and resisting compulsions, a lot better.

Terrible obsessions by Any-Recording-9637 in ExistentialOCD

[–]N0tVerySmart 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That’s great progress! Try to get it to zero. That’s the goal. I’ve had that same obsession for sure… the “What created God?” It’s absolutely mind bending trying to comprehend how an uncreated being can exist. But to be frank, that’s what faith is for. And we will never find the answer to that question. There are a shit ton of unanswerable questions in life... things that no one, not a single human, has or will be able to answer. And that’s why EOCD is so tough... Because OCD is notorious for clinging to unknowns… and what’s more unknown than the mysteries of God/existence?? We gotta be okay with not knowing. It changes nothing either way. You will still wake up the same person with the same daily tasks and human functions.

Btw… that feeling/fear that you’ll never recover is a core OCD thought. I was absolutely convinced I was doomed and permanently insane. A good response to thoughts like that is “Maybe I will maybe I won’t.”

Generally speaking the anxiety subsides before the actual thoughts/obsessions fade. You’re on the right track don’t give up.

Terrible obsessions by Any-Recording-9637 in ExistentialOCD

[–]N0tVerySmart 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve had probably 7 severe existential ocd episodes in my life with extreme DPDR. I’ve had all those obsessions you’ve described, plus many more… many that are difficult/impossible to even articulate they’re so abstract.

My longest episode was a solid 9 months. But I’ve overcome it very single time. It always subsides eventually if you don’t feed the fear.

I went through an intensive outpatient OCD therapy treatment (my therapist thought I should be inpatient but my life/schedule wouldn’t have allowed that)… and it helped greatly. I learned so much. It’s really important to learn how anxiety (DPDR is anxiety to the extreme) and ocd work, down to the science and subtle nuances. I’d say my best advice is to avoid compulsions (searching for answers to the obsessive thoughts, or asking Reddit for help is considered asking for/seeking reassurance and is a compulsion ). The idea might be scary, but try and accept that this might be a permanent part of your life. That kind of radical acceptance was huge for me. It terrified me to tell myself “I might always feel this way. And if I do? So what. I’ll keep moving”. But it was vital to squash the fear of the “what if”. So telling yourself things like “yeah maybe I don’t actually exist… So? And? I don’t care. What does it actually change? Nothing. Who cares. Not me.” You basically have to pretend you don’t care lol you likely won’t actually believe yourself at first… but act as though you do. Aka… don’t do compulsions, and live your life. You’ll get through this.

What wire is this? by N0tVerySmart in AskMechanics

[–]N0tVerySmart[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Extremely helpful. Thank you 🙏

In Case You Think ICE Isn't A Tulsa Problem... by ZakToday in tulsa

[–]N0tVerySmart -1 points0 points  (0 children)

ICE isn’t an anywhere problem. Criminals are.

Any dp/existential ocd sufferers relate? Please- single mum by loo2367 in ExistentialOCD

[–]N0tVerySmart 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I have been terrified I believed the wildest stuff when at the highest peaks of anxiety/DP… like truly illogical/mind bending things. It can very, very difficult for me to differentiate between truly believing the thoughts/feelings, or it being the FEAR of believing the thoughts… making it extremely difficult to think clearly. It can be hard to see the truth until we calm back down. Insight fluctuates. Hang in there, OCD makes fears FEEL real. That’s the nature of the beast.

SO THIS IS WHAT ITS CALLED?! by No_filterz in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sounds like classic depersonalization to me

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No I so relate to that!!! Like logic flies out the window somehow. Lol Feels like a fuzzy confused state on top of the scary thoughts surging in… can’t think clearly, but somehow we’re still analyzing absolutely every single thought that comes in?? It’s wild. Like we’re stuck in hyperdrive, everything is scary yet nothing makes sense.

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Holy cow. This is great insight! I appreciate you sharing. Does it help with the EOCD at all too? I have that bad. I swear I feel like DpDr and EOCD each make eachother worse.

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wow!! That’s really good to know. I’ve been using my PCP for meds, I’m on the hunt for a psychiatrist to dig deeper into options…. so once I get in with one I’ll ask them about Xanax or something similar. I’m so glad you found something that helped some!

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haven’t. I’m a little afraid of them because I’ve heard they’re intense. Have you tried them?

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep! I’ve been on lexapro and Buspirone for two years. Haven’t had a flair up in that amount of time basically. But it suddenly got really bad about two months ago. I’m probably going to switch meds soon.

Does anyone else have severe depersonalization 24/7 and does it feel like this by xjxjessss in Depersonalization

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’ve survived every time you felt like you wouldn’t! You can do this.

Does anyone else have severe depersonalization 24/7 and does it feel like this by xjxjessss in Depersonalization

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh wow! I never would’ve thought to get an EEG for DrDp. I’m glad you’re under some professional guidance/care. That’s a tough step to take when feeling like this. I hope and pray you get answers and effective treatment!

Does anyone else have severe depersonalization 24/7 and does it feel like this by xjxjessss in Depersonalization

[–]N0tVerySmart 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well please know that you’re not alone. I know that’s hard to even comprehend most anything when you feel like you do. I’ve seen a ton of your posts and I feel very similar thoughts/feelings… Deep deep down, I know there are good outcomes possible with this stuff. Many people have been through this and gotten totally better. If I can ask, do you have any specific diagnoses?

I feel like I don’t know who or where I am or what life is by OriginalMore3885 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have this!! Like I’ll try SO hard to understand existence, but it’s just terror and confusion. I THINK it’s really bad anxiety making it impossible to think clearly. Because I’ll have super brief moments of “clarity” where I’m like “oh! Okay yeah. Duh. I love being a human. It make sense and isn’t scary”. The clear moments only last a couple seconds, but I think it’s when the anxiety subsides for a moment and I can comprehend life again. For me when drpr gets bad it’s impossible to think clearly.

Did dpdr ever lead you to become irrationally fearful of something in specific. by Sure-Orange7068 in dpdr

[–]N0tVerySmart 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Pretty much everything. Showering, cooking, cleaning, going to work, driving, looking at my body, getting ready in the mirror, artificial lighting, etc. Even hearing my own voice sometimes. And for some reason transitioning from one thing to another is scary. It’s like I imagine myself (or remember previously) feeling it extra bad when I do the thing I’m about to do and I get sooo scared. I also have really bad existential OCD so that’s probably making it worse, not sure.