Face that fear over and over and over again until it no longer has a hold

“It’s what we do over and over and over again that gains us the victory,” Joyce Meyer.
I heard her say that on her program this week. How true that is for ocd. What you do over and over and over again in standing up to the fears makes them back down. It is not something that we do once or twice, but over and over. I’ve noticed after several trips lately with others that I’ve had to face many issues with people in my personal space and having to get ready outside of my comfort zone because of it. Each time that has happened, I got a little bit stronger and it spills into other areas as well. It’s kind of like the row boat in this picture. To get to the island, you can’t just row the boat once or twice to get where you are going. You have to row over and over and over again until you reach your destination. The same is true for ocd. When facing down your fears, you have to often do it over and over and over again until you no longer fear it. I’ve found it also helps to turn on your logical thinking and tell yourself the truth about the matter not what the ocd tells you. So, what is it that you’ve done once or twice and then quit doing in the fight against ocd because you thought it was too hard or you thought I’ve done it twice and nothing has happened? Take that thing and do it over and over and over again until you conquer it. It is best not to let too much time pass between the exposures either I’ve found. It is even better, for instance I had an issue with some shoes – if I go and put the shoes back on the next day and wear them the whole day then they’ve lost their contamination issues for me. But, if I don’t and I avoid the shoes, then the shoes become more and more and more of a problem for me and it is harder for me to deal with them and put them back on. So, if you know that something is bugging you and you are ready to face it on your hierarchy of fears, then tell God you are ready and just jump in and face it. Kind of like just jumping in the water instead of slowly getting in or ripping off a bandaid instead of slowly torturing yourself with removing it. Don’t jump in if it is something huge on your fear list and you have not conquered other smaller fears first, but if you are ready and we always know when we are, then why not just do it as the Nike slogan says. You may have to do it repeatedly over several days or maybe even weeks before you are completely comfortable with it, but you will see you get stronger each time. And, the good news is that sometimes on some fears, it may only take you a couple of times or one time to get over it. And, sometimes after you’ve conquered all those smaller things, the big things aren’t as scary anymore anyway. So jump in with God when you are ready. If you need the courage, ask God for it. And, most important ask Him to lead and guide you in what you need to face and in the time you need to face it. He will you know. Here’s hoping you all have a wonderful Labor Day weekend and remember me in your prayers on Tuesday as I start a new job and might be quite nervous. Love to you all and know you are never alone in what you face.
Getting through ocd.