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Pure O - Scrupolosity problems

Faith2008

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Hi There,

I have been diagnosed with GAD and OCD, but after looking over all of the information out there, I am fairly certain that I am Pure O, as my "issues" throughout my life have been mental, not compulsive. I had some compulsions when I was a child, but I outgrew them.

My major problems began in the spring after a period of *extreme* stress in college, much more than I had experienced previously. A Christian friend had sent me information about a man who gave lectures during the 1970's about a pagan New Age group that had been active in the music business, putting "subliminal messages" into songs or cursing LP's with "demons" etc., in order to bring down Christianity. My friend was sending this to me innocently, as a way of saying "Wow, look what they did back then," but as I later researched and discovered, the man was a hoax with a criminal background, but it scared me nonetheless during a time when I already had enough to worry and fret about. I began obsessing over this big-time. I heard the words "Satan, enter me" in my head, as if I had thought them, though I had no intention to (very similar to what I have read about people who suffer from Scrupulosity). I had a panic attack from this and although I was able to overcome it temporarily, especially after discovering that people with Scrupulosity experience similar oddities, since then I have had moments when I have had similar repeated phrases in my head that I have a compulsion to think, despite my fear and revulsion to them. I feel like I have no control over these thoughts and it's killing me. The only time it has really ceased was when my husband and I took a week long trip to England. For some reason, it disappeared for about a week. I think this was because I didn't have any stress on me at the time, but I'm not sure.Obviously this is upsetting me more than I can say. I have always been very strong in my faith and I don’t know why this is happening to me. I have prayed and prayed asking the Lord to give me peace. My husband is very supportive of me, so that helps, but most of the time I feel so alone, like I’m being tortured and I don’t understand why. It’s getting better gradually, but it’s not 100%. Some days are worse than others and I notice that my experiences get worse during the nighttime as opposed to the day. I have had moments where I fear possession, that something bad is going to happen, that I have inadvertently caused something horrible or that I'm essentially stuck in a doorway of blasphemous thoughts that only cease for a few days at a time.
If anyone has any information that could help me or words of support, they would be *greatly* appreciated. I just want to get back to feeling the way I did before all of this happened and I need that DESPERATELY. Please help me if you can. Thank you!!
 

OCD=Owie

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Sounds like typical faith-based OCD symptoms to me. Symptoms tend to get worse when you are under more stress, which is why one of the ways of combating OCD is to manage your stress well. I've also noticed that mine can get worse at night as well. It makes sense when you think about it, at night your mind is tired, so you are more susceptible to frightening obsessive compulsive thoughts.

These kinds of thoughts are tremendously disturbing, I know. But the important thing to realize is that you don't want them, and that it's your OCD that causes you to think them. You don't think them because you want to, you think them because you're frightened and appalled by them.
 
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kaykay9.0

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I have 2 suggestions for intrusive thoughts as you describe.
1) Get counseling for your OCD (which may indeed manifest as Pure O) if you aren't.
and
2) Don't try to fight the thoughts. Just let them come or not come. Don't "attend" to them in any way. This is a small concession but if it helps you say, to the LORD one time and ONE time only something to this effect, "You know I don't want these thoughts or any similar thoughts. But in order to lessen them, I am not going to fight them or attend to them." Then do it. I know it's tough, but the less you fear them and panic over them, the less they will come. It's like if someone says whatever you do, don't think of green monkeys....all you can think about is green monkeys. If you don't try NOT to think about green monkeys, you likely won't. Does that make sense?
Just realize too, that this issue is very common with OCD.
 
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Faith2008

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Thanks, everybody! I really appreciate this. Kaykay, I have indeed tried not spending too much time worrying about these thoughts and ignoring them, but they come so quick, so fast that I often feel like I have to say a quick prayer afterwards. It has been like this since I was a kid. I've experienced mental compulsions before, just in different ways. A few months before this episode happened, I was beginning to have typical Pure O symptoms - for instance, I'd be driving down the road and suddenly fear that a dog may jump out in front of my car, etc. Like I said, I was under a lot stress and that probably didn't help.

Lastly, I do think it would VERY scary to simply let the thoughts come, because I feel like asking Satan to do something and then just sit back would cause evil to happen and even though I don't want to think/say those things in my head, they show up anyhow. I know it's silly, but it seems to frightening to not fight them, like I'm giving in (or up, as it were)? More thoughts on this, if you have them!
 
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kaykay9.0

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I think you have to assure yourself that you are just letting the thoughts come IN ORDER to eventually end them. You have to reassure yourself that this is therapy to get RID of them. I know it is paradoxical, like I'm saying up is down or something. But it is one of the quickest and most efficient ways to eventually end them. You just have to really believe that. That's why I suggest saying to the LORD ONE time at the outset that you dont want these thoughts, that you are ignoring them to get rid of them. (You are saying that really for yourself. The LORD knows your heart and why.)
 
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