tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8007910106343662987.post3118969810000639984..comments2023-08-20T01:51:31.080-07:00Comments on My OCD life: Monkey MindmyOCDlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18349517365397047822noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8007910106343662987.post-11735609521533282142011-08-21T19:45:31.441-07:002011-08-21T19:45:31.441-07:00ERPT- Exposure Response Prevention Therapy, very s...ERPT- Exposure Response Prevention Therapy, very similar to CBT.Lollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12226766984165807897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8007910106343662987.post-42610252715271806402011-08-21T08:52:41.782-07:002011-08-21T08:52:41.782-07:00Thanks to both for your very helpful comments. Wha...Thanks to both for your very helpful comments. What is ERPT please? I think it is useful to acknowledge anxieties while also not engaging with them. I try to let them go and focus on something else. It takes practise of course. I try never to avoid anything as it prevents me from proving that I can do things and that they are actually not that scary really.myOCDlifehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18349517365397047822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8007910106343662987.post-89394435683293962552011-08-20T15:06:54.953-07:002011-08-20T15:06:54.953-07:00Hi! I have found that over the past few years my ...Hi! I have found that over the past few years my concentration and "sharpness" have dwindled quite considerably. I think anxiety, panic and OCD tend to do that to us. SOme good tips are to read, watch Jeopardy, play word games and puzzles, force your brain to concentrate and it will slowly follow.<br /><br />As far as the racing thoughts, worry, etc, what I have found out is that since we have OCD, they will probably never go away completely. What we have to do is practice what we have accomplished in CBT and ERPT. I look at my anxieties like they are a TV in the next room, I can't turn them off but I don't have to listen to them, I don't have to focus on them.<br /><br />Also, what helps me is that when my mind gets to racing and I feel anxiety close to panic, I tell myself that it is not going to last and I ride it out. It NEVER lasts, and I always make it out on the other side, whether it takes hours or days.<br /><br />Also, don't avoid anything! Even if you have to drag yourself out of your house, or deal with immense anxiety while doing said activity, avoidance is not good for us OCD sufferers. DO WHAT MAKES YOU ANXIOUS!<br /><br />Hope my suggestions helped you, they have helped me immensely.Lollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12226766984165807897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8007910106343662987.post-62854348963583633722011-08-19T17:02:14.163-07:002011-08-19T17:02:14.163-07:00No great ideas, but for me, hobbies or activities ...No great ideas, but for me, hobbies or activities I love are good. Running or walking, with music, keeps my mind pretty focused. Knitting often does, too.<br /><br />A good tv show or movie.<br /><br />At work, I'm still totally a scatterbrain, since watching tv at work is frowned upon. :)Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01403176285595873953noreply@blogger.com