Originally published at: Tips to overcome OCD –
How I Overcame My Compulsions and Gained Control of My Life Compulsions can be both overt and covert. Overt compulsions are visible behaviors, such as hand-washing, checking locks, or counting. Covert compulsions are mental rituals, such as repeating certain words to oneself or mentally reviewing events to search for possible mistakes. The most difficult for…
I similarly reduced my mental compulsions as you did. Realizing there is no point in fighting those thoughts and letting them pass was a crucial point in the process. I am nobody to make things like somebody dying or disappearing happen with my thoughts, and repeating that worked wonders.
I want to add that we should avoid being perfectionists all the time. I mean that we should stop telling ourselves that if we don’t do a therapy assignment perfectly, we won’t recover. Taking small steps and avoiding evaluating how perfectly we do things is the key to faster recovery, according to experience.
This is absolutely relevant. I think that because I try to do things perfectly, I give up after not doing something the way I want. I am afraid I can’t fix my strive for perfection, no matter how toxic it seems.
If you have perfectionism problems, try to set achievable goals for yourself. Once you know what it takes to achieve your goals and they are within your expertise, you are more likely to do all the details perfectly.
I understand what you mean, but I always strive for the exceptional. I don’t even achieve the average by doing this, but that’s another topic. 
What was a viable OCD strategy you set for yourself?
I shared before that it took me significant time to find what works best for me. I used to take Anafranil back then and do ERP therapy. These days I am following the good habits I built through the years, and I can say that I feel sane most of the time.
I rarely read about just good habits that helped with most OCD issues. You have either worked really hard and tried many things, or you are just lucky to have not so problematic OCD type.
I have heard about many individuals who considerably changed their unhealthy habits and improved their mental state. I challenge you to do the same so that we will see. 
I can accept the challenge if it’s less than a month. Please let me know what I should do except eat healthily and move more during those days to see if there is an improvement.
This is basically it. Another important thing is not to allow negative thoughts or emotions to stay in you for more than a few minutes. Tell me how you feel after two weeks of the challenge.
I cant constantly monitor what goes and stays in my mind, but I will try to be careful enough to observe and potentially expel the ugly thoughts and emotions. Does leading a healthy lifestyle mean that I should not smoke and drink?
You decided well. Typically it would help if you excluded alcohol and cigarettes and everything else for smoking. I can imagine it will be extra hard not to smoke if you are a regular smoker. However, try not to smoke or reduce it to a minimum.
Ok, then, the challenge starts today. Fortunately, I can survive without smoking, but it might not be easy. I also have a birthday soon, so it’s technically impossible not to drink that night, but apart from this, I will try to do everything correctly.
Happy birthday! May your OCD come to you as rarely as possible! 
I also hope that you are one year wiser so that you know how to finish challenges successfully 
Thank you so much for the great wishes. I think I got at least five years wiser during the past few months.
Also, I am quite successful so far doing the challenge
I almost thought you failed the challenge for some reason. 
Five years of wisdom is a lot to be achieved in a few months. You have probably done many meaningful things and had as many challenges.
Alright, maybe five years sounds too brave since I haven’t had so many challenges. However, I learned a lot about myself and others by meeting many new intelligent people and constantly trying to get out of my comfort zone.
We are proud of you. Nothing grows out of our comfort zone when we stay there too long. Is there you wish you have done so far but haven’t yet?