Sinful ear wiggling

[hdog]

i have a bad habit thats part of obbsessive compulsive disorder

I am 100% christian and am against any type of spiritism or witchcraft…however I have obbsessive compulsive disorder

I know that this is bogus…but when i’m not paying attention to myself I feel that a bad spirit will kill me or torture me unless i send it to another person by wiggling my ears…however, I must always send it to a love one…and when I send it off I say in my mind “attack this person” and i often say “attack myself”

i had this obbsessive compulsive trait ever since I was five, and until I was 17 I thought it was real until I started getting into christianity and realised this was completely bogus and sinful at the same time
when I was a child i thought I killed my grandmother and neighbor because I sent the evil spirits to them

however…it is an obbsessive habit and it is very hard to control and I find myself doing it every now and then

how do i stop? is this sinful?

 

[Monica4316]

hdog,

with things like that, it’s helped me to remember that God is ultimately in control, not our thoughts. Instead of sending the “evil spirit” to another person, just ignore it, and say the name of Jesus or make the sign of the cross. No demon can kill you, that goes beyond their “authority”, - just remember God is in control, try to trust Him. A lot of these things can be dealt with by growing in trust and faith. It sounds like a type of OCD, but it has a superstitious aspect as well. Ask God to forgive you, and try to ignore the thoughts and turn your mind to Him whenever they happen. I know it can be very hard, but try to be patient with yourself I have to battle unwanted thoughts sometimes too!! I used to get them almost constantly, and now I only get them sometimes. So it can be done:thumbsup:

God bless!

 

[frindro]

It is sinful, but according to CCC 1735, you may not bear full responsibility for your sin since the OCD brings it about. I would go talk to a priest about it though, instead of relying on my interpretation of the Catechism. I know you’re not Catholic, so I’m sorry if this doesn’t help.

I would like to give you the advice that a priest gave me for when I had hateful thoughts about a certain person (I know the situation is different, but I think it is a good idea). When you have this thought, try praying an “Our Father” or another prayer you might know instead of following through.

 

[Mustang1971]

hdog, I am pretty sure I have OCD, have not been diagnosed. The best thing to do is ignore these compulsions. If you continue to do them, it just reenforces them. I used to get thoughts that if I did or didn’t do something, it would vary, I would lose my soul. At first this was very frighting. I read a book written by a priest that explains we just don’t have that kind of power. So my advice to you would be the same, you can not control a bad spirit. This will take some courage to fight the compulsion, I know they can seem so real. Just fight the urge and prove to yourself that nothing will happen.

From what I have noticed OCD tends to lock in on anything that will cause us grief or anxiety. That is why it targets your loved ones. A very tricky disease.

 

[Moma75]

I agree. Try to substitute your reaction to the thought, but you have to make a conscious effort every time you feel the need to wiggle your ears and send evil spirits to your loved ones.

I used to curse profusely, including taking the name of God in vain. I became aware of it and the fact that it is sinful. Instead of saying God dammit, I said good grief. Instead of saying Jesus Christ, I said Jeezel Pete. It took time, effort, and prayer, but it worked. When I took care of saying those two things (by the grace of God), the rest of the cursing automatically took care of itself !! Now, when I hear other’s take the name of God in vain I say a silent prayer, “God bless His name,” to kind of counteract their sinfulness.

Just never forget that with God, all things are possible.

Moma75

 

[Hubriss]

The thing about OCD is that it can’t really be controlled. I think the best thing, though, would be to realize that what you are doing is harmless because there is no “evil spirit” that you are actually sending anywhere. It’s just a thought you are having which does not necessarily have any bearing on reality. You may think otherwise because of a superstitious upbringing, but try it for a little bit. Treat it like a simple fantastical thought, like any person has, that is harmless make-believe.

A question: Why do you think it’s sinful if it is also bogus?

 

[Monica4316]

The thing about OCD is that it can’t really be controlled. I think the best thing, though, would be to realize that what you are doing is harmless because there is no “evil spirit” that you are actually sending anywhere. It’s just a thought you are having which does not necessarily have any bearing on reality. You may think otherwise because of a superstitious upbringing, but try it for a little bit. Treat it like a simple fantastical thought, like any person has, that is harmless make-believe.

A question: Why do you think it’s sinful if it is also bogus?

I think the superstition here is not in that there are no evil spirits, cause demons do exist. The superstition is that the OP feels that the spirit will kill him, and that he has to wiggle his ears and send it to another person to prevent this. Often with such thoughts it helps to understand that it’s not our minds that ultimately control the world, but God. People with OCD often have fears that if they don’t think or do a certain thing, something bad would happen. The reason that is superstitious is because it gives a false view of the world, and contradicts trust in God.

 

[Sonic]

with things like that, it’s helped me to remember that God is ultimately in control, not our thoughts. Instead of sending the “evil spirit” to another person, just ignore it, and say the name of Jesus or make the sign of the cross. No demon can kill you, that goes beyond their “authority”, - just remember God is in control, try to trust Him. A lot of these things can be dealt with by growing in trust and faith. It sounds like a type of OCD, but it has a superstitious aspect as well. Ask God to forgive you, and try to ignore the thoughts and turn your mind to Him whenever they happen. I know it can be very hard, but try to be patient with yourself I have to battle unwanted thoughts sometimes too!! I used to get them almost constantly, and now I only get them sometimes. So it can be done:thumbsup:

God bless!

I agree with you. I also deal with OCD. I would add that therapists suggest one should not try to prevent an obsessive thought by using a compulsive ritual or substituting it for another. Instead, they try to encourage OCD sufferers to make purposeful thoughts… especially when it comes to prayers. In other words, praying and making the sign of the cross should be done with a sincere desire to pray, and not just to prevent the involuntary obsessive thought from happening.

What helps me is to acknowledge an obsessive thought as involuntary and not the result of an actual desire or real scenario. It is simply the result of OCD and nothing more. This helps to ignore it. The thing that helps is to realize that the involuntary obsessive thought is not wanted or desired. It is in fact involuntary.

People who don’t have OCD don’t really understand what it is like. I’ll use an analogy I came up with.

Everyone has obsessive thoughts. The difference between a person with OCD and a person with out it is simple. A person without OCD has the ability to dismiss an involuntary thought and can go about their business without much worry. It’s like having an automatic transmission in their car. They don’t have to manually shift to deal with an involuntary and unwanted thought. On the other hand, people with OCD have a manual transmission. They have to acknowledge a thought is involuntary, unwanted, and not part of reality in order to deal with it.

Edit: Unfortunately, most people with OCD grow up thinking that they don’t have a difference in thought process. So, they often get the wrong advice from people who don’t have OCD on how to deal with the obsessive thoughts. This can cause a lot of confusion. I should know. People say you think too much, or your being too sensitive, or tell you to just deal with it. They don’t realize it’s OCD, and so they tell you how to deal with it in only way they know how. What works for non-OCD people doesn’t always work for people with OCD.

Edit: I might add that compulsive rituals aggravate OCD and tend to make the obsessive thoughts worse. So, doing any compulsive ritual actually makes the obsessive thought worse. Instead, one should leave the thought to run until it’s petered out. This is another reason why therapists say one shouldn’t substitute one ritual for another. As long as the person with OCD knows their obsessive thought is involuntary, unwanted, and undesired… the also know the thought is result of an actual desire to do something sinful. It’s just noise.

 

[Vmaalouf]

I think the superstition here is not in that there are no evil spirits, cause demons do exist. The superstition is that the OP feels that the spirit will kill him, and that he has to wiggle his ears and send it to another person to prevent this. Often with such thoughts it helps to understand that it’s not our minds that ultimately control the world, but God. People with OCD often have fears that if they don’t think or do a certain thing, something bad would happen. The reason that is superstitious is because it gives a false view of the world, and contradicts trust in God.

Or you can stop reinforcing the nonsense by pointing out that no, they don’t exist. This person really seems to be slightly traumatized by the idea of evil spirits being real, much like many people raised in forms of Christianity are traumatized by the idea of the existence of hell.

 

[Monica4316]

Or you can stop reinforcing the nonsense by pointing out that no, they don’t exist. This person really seems to be slightly traumatized by the idea of evil spirits being real, much like many people raised in forms of Christianity are traumatized by the idea of the existence of hell.

well since both demons and hell exist, it wouldn’t help anyone to imagine they are not. That would be a great form of self deception. That’s not the solution. What’s the use of living your whole life telling yourself hell is not real, and then dying and finding out it is?

Let’s say you know someone who was traumatized by snakes… would it help to convince them that snakes don’t exist?

We’re Catholics which means we should follow Church teaching on the matter. The Church teaches that hell is real, and that demons are real. The key is to approach it in the right way and not to be afraid of them, but focus on God.

 

[Sonic]

As long as the person with OCD knows their obsessive thought is involuntary, unwanted, and undesired… they also know the thought is not the result of an actual desire to do something sinful. It’s just noise.

I just wanted to correct the typo in my comment from early this morning. Somehow I forgot to write “not the” in the statement above. Normally, I’d let it slide and hope people could figure it through sentence context, but I know how confusing OCD can be for some people. I just want to make sure my comment was clear.

The statement is corrected in the quote above.

 

[onthenarrowpath]

hdog,

I saw this thread last night and wanted to wait until today to respond, in part because I wasn’t in the right frame of mind last night to respond to it, and also because I wanted to think about what I wanted to say to you. Practically everything that everyone has said in this thread so far has been the absolute truth - with a couple of exceptions by some people, but I won’t get into that. I know exactly what you are going through, and thus I do NOT want you to think you’re alone in this. I’ve experienced very similar compulsions and obsessions in my life. In fact, I’ve had OCD since I was about 8 years old. I’m 44 now, so I’ve dealt with it in varying degrees for many years.

I won’t go into great detail about what I experience. It’s irrelevant. Instead, I’d like to encourage you to do a few things when these compulsions hit. First, speak the name of Jesus to it. For as much as you know how bogus it is, the fact remains that it has a hold over you…it has a “power”, in a manner of speaking. So to “counter” it, you need to focus on something even more powerful…Jesus. Believe me, He knows what you’re going through, and I do not believe He holds it against you. You’re struggling with the symptoms of a disorder, and He knows that. So when the compulsion/obsession hits, start to deflect it by saying something to the effect of “In the name of Jesus, leave.” If you have to repeat that, do so. You have to refocus your thoughts in such a way that you give more attention to Jesus instead of the compulsion. You have to make your first reaction one which is based upon the power and strength of our Lord…not the power and strength of the compulsion. In time it will become easier to dismiss the compulsion.

Second: something that helps me is to distract myself when an obsession/compulsion hits. I do that simply by, believe it or not, slapping myself on the hand or arm. I don’t mean HITTING myself. I just mean forcefully slapping myself. You might even try wearing a rubber band around your wrist and snapping it. What that does is it interrupts the thought cycle in your mind. At the same time you’re slapping/snapping, you could also speak the name of the Lord.

There’s a book I want you to look into. It’s called “Brain Lock”, by Jeffrey M. Schwartz and Beverly Beyette. You can find it on Amazon.com…and might even find it in your local library. I know it’s available at my local library, so it might be at yours, too.

God Bless.

 

[Sonic]

I recommend getting a copy of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder for Dummies by Charles H. Elliott, Ph.D. and Laura L. Smith, Ph.D.

Here’s some quotations from the book…

Pg 32 - 33

Shame, embarrassment, and inappropriate thoughts and behaviors

This type of OCD involves a host of concerns about the possibility of doing something humiliating or grossly inappropriate. As with most categories of OCD, the specifics of these concerns can vary greatly from one person to the next. Following, you find a multitude of flavors.

Religious obsessions and compulsions (Scrupulosity)

Scrupulosity describes someone’s over-concern with sin and morality as well as fears about offending God. The word scrupulosity comes from the Latin word “scrupulus” and means sharp stone — suggesting the feeling of stabbing pain that results from acts against the conscience. People with this type of OCD have extreme concerns about not pleasing God or dread that they will be dammed and rejected. They often spend hours praying or performing complicated rituals.

Religious obsessions can come in the form of blasphemous thoughts. Some people with OCD worry that they might shout out swear words during a religious ceremony. Others have repeated sexual images of contemporary spiritual leaders or even historical religious figures. Some have repeated phrases, such as “god damn,” popping into their thoughts throughout the day. These obsessions are accompanied by feelings of profound dread and shame. The person tries to neutralize or undo the feelings of intense guilt by resorting to compulsive prayers or rituals.

The compulsions that follow religious obsessions don’t always make logical sense. The example of Cade below illustrates how illogical these compulsive rituals can be.

Cade finds himself obsessing about displeasing God. He constantly worries
when profane words come into his mind because he believes that having
such thoughts greatly offends God. In order to deal with his distress, he has
developed a compulsion designed to undo the obsession.
His compulsion involves walking a few blocks to his church, day or night.
Then he climbs the stairs and stands by the door. He counts to 45, and
then says 45 prayers. If he is interrupted or distracted, he must start the
routine over until it feels just right. Cade’s compulsion may seem strange
and silly to others, but Cade believes that he must do this in order to
show God that he is worthy. When he’s finished, he feels better for a
while, but the obsessions and compulsions always return.

As you can see, Cade’s counting and praying compulsions don’t make a great deal of sense. Nonetheless, he believes that they somehow rectify his standing with God.

Pg 34…

Sometimes OCD in one category can easily overlap with OCD themes from another category. Thus, those with sexual and aggressive OCD obsessions and compulsions commonly have concerns about the religiously inappropriate nature of their thoughts.

Superstitions and rituals

Superstitions involve beliefs that various events, circumstances, and happenings have extraordinary significance with ominous implications. The ultimate concern of most superstitions involves fear of death. Thus, one with Superstitious OCD may attach great meaning to the power of:

• Numbers: Those with Superstitious OCD may feel they must do everything in sets of five or some other special number or something horrific will occur. Hotels typically skip the 13th floor because so many people feel it’s unlucky. However, folks with that concern only have Superstitious OCD if they spend lots of time worrying excessively about certain numbers.

• Anything related to death: Here, special significance is attached to having passed a hearse, cemetery, or funeral home. Sometimes these obsessions and compulsions have only a superficial, subtle connection to death. For example, a woman with this type of OCD may avoid sitting in a chair previously owned by a now-dead person.

• Words: Sometimes the superstitions concern the special power and meaning of specific words. For example, a man with this type of OCD may feel compelled to say “Bingo!” whenever he ends a sentence because he fears that someone will die if he doesn’t.

Again, these categories of OCD are somewhat arbitrary. Superstitions permeate many of the earlier categories of OCD.

Pg 121

Doubting Thomas

The term doubting Thomas refers to a skeptic — one who is not easily convinced. The expression “doubting Thomas” comes from the biblical account of a disciple of Jesus. After Jesus was crucified, Thomas did not believe that Jesus had risen from the dead. Although other disciples told Thomas that Jesus had appeared to them, he wanted evidence. The following week, Jesus appeared to Thomas and allowed him to touch his wounds. After that, Thomas became a believer. He was able to see and touch Jesus. People with OCD have doubts as well. However, they don’t look to real evidence to check out their doubts.

Religious practices are largely based on faith rather than direct evidence from one’s senses. Faith is known to be extremely helpful for billions of people worldwide. However, faith and OCD don’t mix. OCD does not enhance people’s lives. So if you want to act on faith, do it with respect to spirituality, not to deal with obsessions and compulsions.

Chapter 14 is specifically about this type of OCD and treatments for it. The book is filled with other helpful information. I recommend reading the whole thing, because it gives insight into what OCD is and what treatments are available. A good book for people with or without OCD.

 

[kenofken]

This is not even remotely a theological matter, but a pharmacological one…