When I first realized something in my mind wasn’t working right, I truly didn’t know what to do. My thoughts came and went like endless waves, and in the middle of that storm I understood one thing: I still had things to do in life. There was still a spark of life inside me — a place untouched by sorrow. That small point became a light that pulled me out of the darkness.
In that instant I realized this condition was no different from death — either I had to heal, or…
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The First Spark of Change
At another moment I noticed that in certain situations those thoughts lost their weight. That simple fact revealed itself like a trick; my mind was deceiving me.
I told myself:
“If I can’t stop these thoughts, maybe I can decide not to think about them right now.”
That was the first time the idea of delaying came to my mind.
From that moment, I decided that whenever an obsessive thought appeared, I would wait.
Not forever — just ten minutes.
I would gently tell myself: “Not now. Later.”
That small sentence slowly became my way out.
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Learning to Wait
In the beginning, even ten minutes felt like forever.
My anxiety spiked, my body trembled, and my mind begged me to give in.
But I learned to simply watch — not to fight, not to run away.
Every time I managed to delay a little longer, something inside me grew calmer.
Week by week, I realized I could wait longer — thirty minutes, an hour, half a day.
And that’s when I discovered something powerful:
Thoughts lose their power when they don’t get your reaction.
The same applied to emotions.
The fear and tightness in my chest began to fade.
I realized that emotions, if left alone, come and go on their own.
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Six Months Later
It wasn’t an easy path.
There were days I wanted to give up, but I didn’t.
After about six months, one quiet day, I noticed my mind was silent.
The thought that once felt like the center of my life no longer mattered.
I smiled and told myself:
“All this time… I just needed to wait.”
Later, I discovered that what I had done was similar to many modern therapies —
but I had found it on my own, through trial, error, and intuition.
That realization changed my life.
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Final Thoughts
This experience taught me something I’ll never forget:
When you stop reacting to your thoughts and emotions, your mind begins to heal itself.
That’s what finally freed me from OCD.
Next: Step 2 – Staying Present: How focusing on the moment helped me stay free from obsessive thoughts.
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