Relationship Anxiety: Doubt Doesn’t Mean Don’t
Garbage advice, though well meaning, is often given to those experiencing relationship OCD, and it isn’t helpful.
Most of us have experienced trauma in romantic relationships.
I am definitely not an exception to that rule. In fact, this year I found out that I have severe relationship anxiety AKA relationship OCD, but it isn’t because I’m with the wrong partner; the opposite is true, we are very right for one another.
I have a lot of traumas stored in my body surrounding previous close relationships, which means that doubt is trying to serve as a defense mechanism in order to prevent getting hurt in the future. My body and mind are trying to protect me.
“The opposite of doubt isn’t certainty, it’s trust.”- Chelsea Horton, Healing Embodied
So, what exactly is relationship OCD?
ROCD causes unwanted intrusive images or thoughts (obsessions) related to the quality or rightness of an important relationship in your life. For some, this could look like constantly questioning if their partner is “the one.” For others, ROCD could look like worrying excessively about if they are experiencing the “correct” level of happiness with their partner. {Source: goodrx.com}
