Support is Key for Recovery

01 Sharing your intrusive thoughts with a loved one is hard. If you can't process them, how can they? However, communication is key in relationships, and making them aware of your OCD is extremely important.

02 Georginna reminds fellow suffers to open up to their partners. Even if you don't explain your thoughts in detail, alert your loved one to their presence and let them know that they might effect your mood.

03 Comfort and reassurance from a loved one won’t cure this disorder but they can’t certainly lighten the load.

"An intrusive thought is when an unwelcome involuntary thought, image, or unpleasant idea that may become an obsession, is upsetting or distressing, and can feel difficult to manage or eliminate."

None of the above adjectives strike me as topics of conversation I would want to discuss with my partner. More often than not, the obsessive and intrusive thoughts swamping my brain do not make any sense to me – so how would I even begin to explain them to the person I love? If my thoughts disgust me, why would I want to share them with anyone else?

Most people close to us can pick up on the tension or anxiety we're feeling, but there are times when in order for them to understand fully, we have to speak up and discuss our emotions. Avoiding these conversations can be damaging to a relationship. If you're feeling moody and agitated then you are likely to snap or become argumentative – which isn’t nice for you or for them. It stings when someone shouts at you unexpectedly, or ignores you when you’re trying to have a conversation with them. Remember that although you can’t help your feelings, you should still be aware of how you are treating others.

One of my biggest issues with OCD is how isolated it makes me feel. While I know that hundreds of thousands of other people are struggling each day with this disorder, I still have moments in which I feel completely alone. OCD has the ability to trap me inside my own mind leaving me with no desire to speak about or share the thoughts that are troubling me. The problem with staying silent is that you are trapping those distressing thoughts inside your mind, allowing them to grow and latch on to every possible doubt you have. I can’t stress enough how important it is to speak with your partner about how you are feeling. If you don’t feel entirely comfortable talking about the specific thoughts you are having, that’s fine – but make them aware of how you are feeling. Comfort and reassurance from a loved one won’t cure this disorder but it can’t certainly lighten the load.

Support is key for recovery – make sure you have it.