OCD
Guys, I'm struggling with OCD. I'm constantly hyper-monitoring my physical sensations, especially swallowing my saliva. It started two weeks ago. One night, while I was trying to fall asleep, I swallowed my saliva five times in a row. Since that day, I haven't been able to stop thinking about it, and the habit hasn't gone away. I'm feeling very depressed, and it's on my mind all the time. I really need someone to reassure me and tell me how to get rid of it, please.💔💔
@addi1
Hey, sorry to hear you're going through this. I had a very similar compulsion a while ago. It sucks!!!
It
went away on its own eventually. I'm not even sure exactly that I did anything specifically to try to get rid of it. If memory serves it lined up timing-wise where after dealing it for a few weeks, I went on a
trip that had already been planned. I was so anxious about dealing with it while away from home, but I was already sleeping in a new place for a few days (which can be
hard for me to adjust to as is) and was so worn out from that + distracted by the fun parts of the trip that I just... involuntarily stopped
thinking about or entertaining the compulsion. Poof gone, just as quick
as it started. Even after I got home. Same me, same body. I don't know either man, OCD is funny and illogical like that.
In general, it's best not to seek out reassurance
for OCD because that can feed into compulsions and ruminations more, even if it sounds counterintuitive. Look into radical acceptance of uncertainty and reframing these thoughts and actions as a symptom of OCD itself, not a symptom of [insert whatever you're worried about happening].
