OCD and masturbation

[Ticyboy]

For awhile I was able to masturbate fairly freely. Recently my OCD symptoms have really taken a mind on its own. If I just get an erection I fear all kind of bad things will happen. Anyway, does anyone else have OCD? Does it interfere with self pleasure, porn, girls, and sex in general? I'd like to beat it, but I'm embarrassed to tell my family or therapist what is happening in my head about sex stuff.

[NewLeafsFan]

For awhile I was able to masturbate fairly freely. Recently my OCD symptoms have really taken a mind on its own. If I just get an erection I fear all kind of bad things will happen. Anyway, does anyone else have OCD? Does it interfere with self pleasure, porn, girls, and sex in general? I'd like to beat it, but I'm embarrassed to tell my family or therapist what is happening in my head about sex stuff.

I'm a bit confused and I'm hoping that you are willing to tell us a little more. What bad things are you worried will happen? Can you give us an example of how it interferes with your sexual activities?

[jamie_n5]

I think that you need to talk to your therapist my friend. You definitely need help with this and your therapist is the best person to get you help. It might be as simple as a medication change. So tell your therapist.

[Ticyboy]

I'm a bit confused and I'm hoping that you are willing to tell us a little more. What bad things are you worried will happen? Can you give us an example of how it interferes with your sexual activities?

I have a form of OCD known as "religious OCD." Basically I'm scared I'll go hell for watching porn, masturbating, sometimes for just getting a boner. Even making this post is difficult as I feel wrong about asking these questions.

[Ticyboy]

I think that you need to talk to your therapist my friend. You definitely need help with this and your therapist is the best person to get you help. It might be as simple as a medication change. So tell your therapist.

I don't take meds for OCD. Only Tourette's. For OCD we do exposure therapy and I'm uncomfortable with how that would work.

[robin246]

I have a form of OCD known as "religious OCD." Basically I'm scared I'll go hell for watching porn, masturbating, sometimes for just getting a boner. Even making this post is difficult as I feel wrong about asking these questions.

hey man you need to breath and calm down, getting boners is normal ever boy gets them it its natural, i was told that masturbating is a normal thing for us to do and it helps with stress, u don't have to watch porn though that is a choice dude :)

[scott2002]

I have a form of OCD known as "religious OCD." Basically I'm scared I'll go hell for watching porn, masturbating, sometimes for just getting a boner. Even making this post is difficult as I feel wrong about asking these questions.
I wasn't at all familiar with this so I googled it and found this in a posted article from Psychology Today:


The treatment is called Exposure and Response Prevention, or ERP therapy. ERP works when, guided by a trained therapist, the sufferer approaches the object of his or her fear without indulging in any compulsive ritual behaviors. These exposure exercises often involve doing things that would make anyone, even someone without an anxiety disorder, deeply uncomfortable.

There are as many forms of ERP as there are people with OCD. A sufferer with religious obsessions could be asked to curse or desecrate religious objects.

You don't mention, here or in your profile, how old you are. But if you're just starting the years when ALL us boys are going crazy in our head with sexual thoughts, constant boners and urges to masturbate, I could imagine that a religious OCD would be terrible!!

Know that you can find friends here at VT, and you're anonymous. So you can tell us anything you feel you need to.

[Hermes]

For awhile I was able to masturbate fairly freely. Recently my OCD symptoms have really taken a mind on its own. If I just get an erection I fear all kind of bad things will happen. Anyway, does anyone else have OCD? Does it interfere with self pleasure, porn, girls, and sex in general? I'd like to beat it, but I'm embarrassed to tell my family or therapist what is happening in my head about sex stuff.

I am no expert on OCD but it seems to me that if you have the impression that your religion finds anything sexual a sin then you need to question what the basis of those religious teaching is.

I only really know the Christian religion in this respect but the overwhelming message in the bible about sexual things is about avoiding adultery and instructions to avoid lusting after a "woman who is not your wife" are all part of that message. I think you have to bear in mind that the bible was written a long time ago and over time puberty has got earlier and marriage has got later. In all probability, there was no significant delay between puberty and marriage in biblical times and marriages may even have been arranged. That means the bible does not address a boy, single and in the midst or puberty, fantasising about a girl, also single, because that situation simply didn't exist. That means the "do not lust" messages are not aimed at you.

Then there's the story of Onan who was put to death for failing to impregnate his dead brother's wife because he "spilled his seed on the ground". This is talking about the pull out method of birth control and religious teachers have generalised this message into "all spilling of seed is a sin" and used that for anti-masturbation and anti-contraception teaching (the Catholics, especially) but in my view that is a case of over-generalisation. Onan's sin was to avoid doing what God had told him to do, pure and simple and nothing else should be drawn from that.

[TheChampagnePapi]

I feel you man. I went through this and kind of still am. It's all about avoiding overthinking and having full control of yourself. Take it easy, understand that you won't get over it unless you'll be at peace with your mind...