Worst symptom ever? Or just catastrophizing

Friends, let me try to explain what I'm feeling...

So, my disordered Mind stated that the face of a jerk guy that I know, is a ~Bad Face~...
I mean... thinking about the face of that jerk, makes me feel bad. Feel anxious.
And that was enough to make my mind start to "search" this jerk face into face of others.
I mean, for example, when I look to a face of a girl who wants to hang out with me or something, my mind uncontrollable starts to "transform" her face into this jerk guy face!
Even tho the girl doesnt look like him at all... the fact that she have Eyes, and nose, and mouth, and cheeks, is kinda enough to make my mind start to 'search' for this guy characteristics On Her face.... And that's absolutely Annoying. It makes me very very anxious and frustred.
Its like, No matter with Who I interact, this jerk will Always be with me.
Maybe thats the reason why it happens right? The OCD knows I dont like this jerk, and thats why it searches for him in every face.
What I want to know is if someone can relate with this, or something SIMILAR, because i'm kinda desperate, catastrophizing, like if this is the worst symptom I ever had. Help!

My advice would be to try to be okay with seeing this persons face everywhere. I know that it's a face that makes you anxious, but if you can tell yourself that you are okay with seeing it, that it's just the image and there is nothing harmful about just the image of his face, then perhaps it can feel a little less anxiety provoking. If you can do that, if you can find a way to be okay with seeing it everywhere and to have it bother you less, then that's when it will stop happening as often or perhaps all together. This actually reminds me of an ocd incident that I had in high school. It's not quite the same but it's similar in a way. There was this guy that I thought was very perverted and I really was not attracted to him at all. Well, I'd never had my first kiss and one fear I had was that i'd never get it. My brain took that and used it against me and said that I wouldn't get my first kiss unless it was with the guy I just mentioned to you, that it had to be him or else it would just never happen. And I knew that was sooo illogical and ridiculous but it freaked me out so much and felt real, and I didn't want to kiss him! But I didn't want to never get my first kiss. lol It sounds funny now looking back at it. I worried a lottt about it and I would have his face popping into my mind all the time imagining kissing him even though i didn't want to at all and it quite disgusting me, like a lot. But yeah, I would just try my advice I gave you about trying to find a way to be okay with the face popping up and eventually it will likely not happen so often like that. I hope this helps you.

Hello_FrmTheOthrSide wrote:My advice would be to try to be okay with seeing this persons face everywhere. I know that it's a face that makes you anxious, but if you can tell yourself that you are okay with seeing it, that it's just the image and there is nothing harmful about just the image of his face, then perhaps it can feel a little less anxiety provoking. If you can do that, if you can find a way to be okay with seeing it everywhere and to have it bother you less, then that's when it will stop happening as often or perhaps all together. This actually reminds me of an ocd incident that I had in high school. It's not quite the same but it's similar in a way. There was this guy that I thought was very perverted and I really was not attracted to him at all. Well, I'd never had my first kiss and one fear I had was that i'd never get it. My brain took that and used it against me and said that I wouldn't get my first kiss unless it was with the guy I just mentioned to you, that it had to be him or else it would just never happen. And I knew that was sooo illogical and ridiculous but it freaked me out so much and felt real, and I didn't want to kiss him! But I didn't want to never get my first kiss. lol It sounds funny now looking back at it. I worried a lottt about it and I would have his face popping into my mind all the time imagining kissing him even though i didn't want to at all and it quite disgusting me, like a lot. But yeah, I would just try my advice I gave you about trying to find a way to be okay with the face popping up and eventually it will likely not happen so often like that. I hope this helps you.

Thank so much friend. yes, you helped a lot! I'll try to not care for seeing this face.
Avbout your kiss thing, yes, I can relate with that too! I have a lot of similar things!
The more stupid and ridiculous and nomsense it is, The more is stays inside our heads, right?
ocd sucks!
peace!

Dear bobbybobby:

As an OCD sufferer of now fifty years, this is my understanding of your post:

fear is circulating in your brain, not connected to anything in particular. It needs to attach itself to something so it attached itself to that guy's face. And to any face after.

My fear attached itself to so many things, of course I don't remember how many... over the years. I had no idea what was happening to me, didn't have this kind of forum, computers were not even in use then. If I could go back in time and see the girl that I was, every time my fear attached itself to something (last I remember ...five minutes ago I had breakfast and my fear attached itself to the seeds of the apple I was eating.. and I had to get rid of them because they... scared me), I would say to myself: "Shhhh.. it is okay, sweetie. You are afraid, that is all. You are afraid..." And I would calm myself down the best I can. These apple seeds... "It is okay, atina, it is okay. You are afraid, that is all. It is that fear."

I never thought of saying this to myself until I thought of replying to you, so thank you for your post! I hope it is helpful to you as well, I do hope so.

atina

atina wrote:Dear bobbybobby:

As an OCD sufferer of now fifty years, this is my understanding of your post:

fear is circulating in your brain, not connected to anything in particular. It needs to attach itself to something so it attached itself to that guy's face. And to any face after.

My fear attached itself to so many things, of course I don't remember how many... over the years. I had no idea what was happening to me, didn't have this kind of forum, computers were not even in use then. If I could go back in time and see the girl that I was, every time my fear attached itself to something (last I remember ...five minutes ago I had breakfast and my fear attached itself to the seeds of the apple I was eating.. and I had to get rid of them because they... scared me), I would say to myself: "Shhhh.. it is okay, sweetie. You are afraid, that is all. You are afraid..." And I would calm myself down the best I can. These apple seeds... "It is okay, atina, it is okay. You are afraid, that is all. It is that fear."

I never thought of saying this to myself until I thought of replying to you, so thank you for your post! I hope it is helpful to you as well, I do hope so.

atina

Hi atina! thank you so much for your words
Yes, you absolutely helped me too! And i'm happy I could help in some way too!
lets keep our fight! all the best for you (:

Dear bobbybobby:

Thank you for writing back to me. I am doing it again, second evening in a row: just a few minutes ago I noticed I was afraid. I noticed my fear attached itself to a sensation I felt in my body, a sensation that bothered me so much. So I said to myself: "I am afraid." A few moments and the fear diminished. The distress I felt over the body sensation was eventually gone. Until the next time, it is gone. And next time I will say the same thing.

Post again, please...

atina

atina wrote:Dear bobbybobby:

Thank you for writing back to me. I am doing it again, second evening in a row: just a few minutes ago I noticed I was afraid. I noticed my fear attached itself to a sensation I felt in my body, a sensation that bothered me so much. So I said to myself: "I am afraid." A few moments and the fear diminished. The distress I felt over the body sensation was eventually gone. Until the next time, it is gone. And next time I will say the same thing.

Post again, please...

atina

Hi Atine! Makes me very happy to see you doing well!
Today I started to feel Afraid and anxious by remembering Old symptoms that I had...
Like, i'll give you one example: Connecting the movie Pirates of the carribean to a person who makes me feel anxious, because it was her favorite movie. So, just by thinking about the movie, I was very anxious and bad feeling, and I felt everything was going to be back again... Then I tried to stay calm and understand: it doesnt make sense, its just a movie, its just a person, nothing makes sense, its just ocd.... then I started to calm down a little bit... Hahaha. Thats crazy, isnt? i hate ocd

Dear bobbybobby:

It's cute, your yellow face with "I hate OCD" comment.

So you felt better after talking to yourself saying it is just a movie, etc.?

Think of yourself as a little boy who is afraid. Every time you are afraid, calm yourself down, even put an arm over the other arm and touch it in a comforting way, and talk to yourself like you were a five year old.

What if you do it every time? Talk to yourself like you are a five year old, calming that young boy down, comforting him, soothing him...

atina

Atina
Deal! Thats a great advice. I will do it. Thank you very much, for what you do here, not just for me, but for all the others, as I could see in other posts. Only angels help strangers like this. God bless you

Dear bobbybobby:

Thank you so much for calling me angel. I am not an angel but maybe sometimes I am ... angel like. And so are you for being so kind in your post to me, so are you!

atina