OCD and religion.

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davidandme

Member
I have been suffering OCD for a long time and the fear of hell and curses is really bothering me. For example. If I am buying a pair of shoes and then I hear the word "devil" over the radio I feel that the shoes are cursed forever and if I were them I will go to hell. Is this part of OCD? Has something like this ever happen to anybody else? I am also afraid of cerntain letters or numbers because I feel they are evil. I guess my bigest OCD problem is religion to the point that sometimes I feel like giving up my faih. What can I do to stop these intruser thoughts?
 
lunarla

lunarla

Well-known member
I am not religious, but some of my thought-OCDs do happen to take on a certain religious manner. Basically, I'll have to say things over and over in my head as if I'm praying, but I'm not really praying to a god or anything. Though when I was younger, like 11 or so, when I did this, I did think of it as praying even though I never had a religious upbringing. It more so bothers me because it's so exhausting to feel compelled and that I haveeee to say these things or something terrible will happen. As it is with most OCD though, really. There's no spiritual struggle or anything for me because I'm not religious in the first place, etc.
 
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MaxineRyder

Active member
You have to read Jennifer Traig's Devil in the Detail !! She talks about just that. Apartently religeous OCD is called scrupulosity.
Maxine xx
 
stephen

stephen

Well-known member
It's hardly surprising that religion would feature in OCD. A lot of religions are heavily flavoured with various rituals that need to be performed to a set criteria.
 
C

christinecanada

Well-known member
I know how this feels. It can be a drag. I once burned my new shirt I bought cause the guy who rang it up looked like he had AIDS. That was it!
 
J

jrm

Member
I have had ocd issues with religion myself in the past - saying the words of prayers so they were 'perfect' and repeating them if they didnt 'feel right'. I also had issues of kneeling 'the right way' (as defined by my ocd).

I would not give up your faith, as your ocd will just latch onto something else maybe something worse - thats what happened to me. I wish I could go back to when I use to obsess over doors and light switches...
 
O

-overwhelminglyconfused-

Member
Don't give up your faith. I don't like certain numbers. When I hear them I think something bad is about to happen and I have to do something to keep anything from happening. Just remember that God (or who ever you believe in) will keep you safe.:)
 
Walk

Walk

Well-known member
Hell is for children. I am an atheist (don't believe in any supernatural ideas) but I still get "what if hell is real" BS ideas. yeah, I thnk it's just part of OCD/anxiety nonsense.

At the end of the day, you can only believe what you believe deeply in your heart and mind. I just can't believe in any superstitious BS because it's never been backed up by any true facts.
 
bigrob

bigrob

Well-known member
davidandme said:
I have been suffering OCD for a long time and the fear of hell and curses is really bothering me. For example. If I am buying a pair of shoes and then I hear the word "devil" over the radio I feel that the shoes are cursed forever and if I were them I will go to hell. Is this part of OCD? Has something like this ever happen to anybody else? I am also afraid of cerntain letters or numbers because I feel they are evil. I guess my bigest OCD problem is religion to the point that sometimes I feel like giving up my faih. What can I do to stop these intruser thoughts?
Click to expand...

Become atheist.

Problem solved!:D

Walk said:
I am an atheist (don't believe in any supernatural ideas) but I still get "what if hell is real" BS ideas. yeah, I thnk it's just part of OCD/anxiety nonsense.
Click to expand...

Pascal's wager.

One of the biggest reasons people justify their belief.
 
Nicholas

Nicholas

Well-known member
davidandme said:
I have been suffering OCD for a long time and the fear of hell and curses is really bothering me. For example. If I am buying a pair of shoes and then I hear the word "devil" over the radio I feel that the shoes are cursed forever and if I were them I will go to hell. Is this part of OCD? Has something like this ever happen to anybody else? I am also afraid of cerntain letters or numbers because I feel they are evil. I guess my bigest OCD problem is religion to the point that sometimes I feel like giving up my faih. What can I do to stop these intruser thoughts?
Click to expand...

It's normal: Intrusive thoughts - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I had such thoughts too when I was a kid, and I was still very religious. They disappeared on their own, I think, along with other OCD thoughts and rituals. I think that happened when I started to grow up and I realized how ridiculous my behaviour was. Now I'm not religious anymore though, and I don't have any religious intrusive thoughts. I still have other intrusive thoughts that sometimes might bother me, but I've managed to cope with obsessions so I don't care anymore... they just bother me for a few seconds, then I forget about them (thanks to "desensitivation"). The problem is you are religious I guess, and so it will be difficult for you to not give a damn about them.
 
R

Remage

Member
david if it helps I lost my job due to the same fears you have now I find it very hard to differentiate between reality and fantasy (religion) I know I wouldn't care about a God if I didn't have OCD. I also find it very hard to not be religious as I live in a household where I am pressured to be religious.
 
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