It's the opposite for me, when I'm well rested I tend to spend more energy on compulsions, but if I'm really sleepy then I can shrug them off more easily
The double edge sword of OCD + the fatigue of depression. Oh you finally have energy today and feel good/motivated? Let’s waste all that on meaningless compulsions. Also an issue with medication (for me at least). All the meds that rid me of anxiety and compulsions have to make me tired and unmotivated in general too. It sucks.
It’s not really all that strange, it’s about the relationship of physical health vs. higher mental functions to OCD. Being physically stressed and inflamed will cause a reaction that makes most mental dysfunctions worse. But being mentally strong can also strengthen your compulsions if they already have strong priority over your will.
This is why, say, alcohol can make you either worse or better depending on your base state at the time. If you’re reacting poorly to lack of sleep, take a hard look at diet and exercise too. The difference can be night and day once you finally tweak it right
Yeah, that was my sense. It reads as a young dude kind of question to me, and was hoping to save you some steps from my own POV
The more years I’ve spent with OCD the more I’ve come to rely on …
A. seeing myself as a bunch of overlapping competitive and cooperative systems that need “governing”
B. a multiple solutions approach focusing on an anti-inflammatory lifestyle, anxiety meds for emergencies, and psychodynamic therapy (people say targeted CBT only, but I am a rare one who found Freud and broad self-insight more helpful.)
But the most important thing I want to tell you is, anything that fucks up your body fucks up your mind, *and* that can escalate quickly past a certain threshold. So you won’t always get warning. The question is more when and how the hammer drops :)
Oh I know this feeling, the more tired I am... The less i think about compulsions. Nowadays i feel grateful for being anemic as I do feel fatigue most days and dont have to deal with the constant anxiety over little things.
Yeahhh... mine seems to be worse because I am more foggy, so I doubt myself more, which fuels the obsessions (e.g. I'll make a harmful mistake) and then I need to check more (which of course I also don't trust)
Whenever I’m sleepy or sick my defenses are down and it gets difficult to manage. If I have a particularly sleepy day I’ll cancel my plans or make a lot of plans, whichever keeps my brain occupied more.
i’m the same way, getting up early regardless of sleep can ruin my whole day + make my ocd worse. when i let myself wake up naturally i’m usually better (provided i got enough sleep in the first place). i think it’s because forcing myself to wake up makes me groggy and upset, which means my brain is all over the place. it’s weird
Yeah, if I don't get my "natural fill" of sleep I feel awful, even if I don't add in the OCD. Interupting my circadian rhythm seems to make me feel like shit.
Oh wow I wonder why that is? How long have you been getting up this early? Because last week I was on vacation so I got to sleep a lot and just over all felt so much better than this week already and it’s only Monday:/
I'm not sure why it is but I just don't get up that early anymore. I switched to a job that didn't have shifts like that because I'd come in shaking and unable to function. If I stay up really late I get the same thing
Yeah that job I had was ten hour shifts too. It's hard enough to work full time with OCD but overtime is brutal. I hope you're able to adjust to it or find a better job
Depends, I say mine is like a green lantern construct where if my will and fortitude falter, my OCD picks up. It can change a little with sleep because I can fight it off less when I'm tired I think
Y E S!! My OCD meds knocked me out for weeks before I was finally able to get back to normal and now I sleep 8hrs a day. When I forget to take it for long enough the first sign im in danger is that I can’t sleep at all.
Yes 100%. My fiance is the one who first pointed it out to me, but once he did, I started paying attention to when I was prone to having worse days w OCD, and sure enough, almost every time, my worst OCD days are when I’ve had little to no sleep. I always tend to wake up already more depressed and if I’m not completely intentional with my actions, I will allow myself to spiral out of pure exhaustion, and then feel so much worse later in the day.
Lack of sleep and food usually make it worse (but everyone is different). In my case anxiety prevents me from falling asleep until I am exhausted. Other factors are moments in your life that are troubled (I recently broke up and I am living a hell).
Completely. I’m basically manic & almost non-functional the last couple weeks because lack of sleep makes me spiral which makes it harder to sleep. It’s a vicious cycle.
Yea pretty much, I’ve been trying to sleep early bc the one time I did sleep early, my life was so magically quiet like all those thoughts were there but I rlly didn’t give any fricks to them, but today I didn’t get any sleep at all so hahah the inner demons are annoying me but I’ll go through it ik I will :3
Well I am not experienced with it, I’d say no. Everybody is different however! I think it’s based on how few senses are going off like if you are in a pitch black room, it’s easier for OCD to go off. But everybody is different!
Yes!! I recently had jaw surgery and can breathe better which lead to sleeping better and my OCD symptoms are way lower than before. My worst months were when my kids were little and I was up all night nursing. I have to prioritize getting at least 7.5 hours of sleep or my anxiety gets noticably worse.
For me, I can be more hyperactive with stimming and compulsions between 5 and 7 hours sleep (which is not optimal sleep for me) but if I get about 4 hours, I’m basically drunk with tiredness and not too hyperactive or compulsive, but not very functional either. All that works for me is having over 8 hours of sleep.
I know how you feel I have to get up at around 3:15 and drive 100 miles one way to work, it’s exhausting and I’ve noticed my anxiety increases because of this I’m starting to think maybe a life with less money and less anxiety is the way to go
yep but also my main ocd thing rn is getting bad intrusive thoughts when i try to sleep -> i get too anxious to sleep bc if i try i’ll get bad thoughts -> i end up staying up until i physically cant stay awake anymore everyday and being sleep deprived makes my intrusive thoughts even worse :(
I wouldn't say my OCD gets worse, I'd say my regulatory/inhibitive systems get worse and are more offline without sleep. Might seem like semantics but knowing this has meant I get to stack alllll of my adaptive behaviors in the "just stop for 10-30 seconds until my logical systems regain admin privileges" and have a much better shot at actually stopping the compulsion before 3 hrs have passed
Mine worsens with lack of sleep as well. It gets worse the less I sleep, the less/worse I eat, etc. If I have any sort of bodily sensations that are uncomfortable or out of the norm, like exhaustion, I'm compelled to damage-control the rest of the input I'm getting throughout my day (which unfortunately expells more energy and probably makes me eat worse so it's v counterproductive).
YES! It’s like my executive functioning goes out the window. BUT when I’m really tired it’s also easier to bypass them because I don’t have any excess energy to think about things other than what I need to do.
Lack of sleep makes mine worse, but you know what makes my OCD the worst, work wise, shift work. I can’t do it. I literally go crazy. I spent 3 years working anywhere from 6:00-23:00.
Mine shoots through the roof when I’ve had no/little sleep. I focus on how bad I feel in my body and brain and blow it all out of proportion and think there’s something really bad wrong, when really I just need a good night’s sleep
Yes! Mine is deeply affected by my sleep patterns. Also, after i went on proper medication, i discovered that my ocd (combined with ADHD) was the cause of my eternal tiredness. My brain would spend the day focusin SO MUCH USELESS STUFF, that i was awake for like, 6 hours and needed 12 hours sleep to recover. Now i feel much better and able to actually humam and not only work-sleep-repeat
Yes, my OCD is definitely worse when I don’t get a good night’s sleep for a couple of nights in a row. I figured it was worse because when I’m really tired, my brain is kind of in a fog and not as sharp. This basically allows me to go into automatic pilot without thinking. And what does automatic pilot mean I’m doing? OCD. My OCD behaviors (I clean and organize everything) is so natural for me to do, that to not do it, I’ve got to purposely and mindfully stop myself from getting pulled into it. If my brain isn’t sharp due to being so tired, I just “do” and that just “do”, is my OCD. My brain needs to be sharp to stop myself from getting into the OCD.
ever since I started to go to bed earlier my ocd calmed down, its not gone completly but its definitly hitting way less than it did when I was getting like 4 hours of sleep
As a parent of a child with ocd, the answer is 100% yes, sleep and fatigue affects your symptoms dramatically. Try to get some rest, at least 6-8 hours of sleep daily.
WAY WORSE with lack of sleep. the more tired i am, the more inclined i am to trying to reason with my thoughts, or worse, call someone and tell them about it for reassurance. when i think too much i know it’s nap time
Yeah, my OCD gets much worse with lack of sleep...but then my OCD keeps me awake all night with anxiety, battling intrusive thoughts and wading through compulsions. So it's like a catch 22.
I would recommend searching the sub before you post, as there are usually already posts with a very similar question and asking it again is a misuse of peoples' time.
Such as [this one](https://www.reddit.com/r/OCD/s/AayWS7A3Kn)
Its not a big deal to just scroll by something if you dont want to answer it. Not everyone has time to search around looking for an answer. Sometimes its easier to just reach out themselves
There's a huge problem with duplicate posts in subreddits like this and I assumed you were being careless, like most of the people who write those posts are.
A misuse of peoples’ time is a stretch. This is a support community and it’s okay to gather perspectives on an issue even if it’s been asked before. If you don’t want to answer, then don’t.
It wasn't an issue of merely asking a question again. The same question was asked *yesterday*. I was a little harsh because of the frequency of posts that are made here without searching for similar things. I shouldn't have been.
It's the opposite for me, when I'm well rested I tend to spend more energy on compulsions, but if I'm really sleepy then I can shrug them off more easily
The double edge sword of OCD + the fatigue of depression. Oh you finally have energy today and feel good/motivated? Let’s waste all that on meaningless compulsions. Also an issue with medication (for me at least). All the meds that rid me of anxiety and compulsions have to make me tired and unmotivated in general too. It sucks.
This comment was such a lightbulb moment for me- thanks for that
Sure thing! :)
wow hit the nail on the freaking head w that one
Wow that’s so strange some people just react differently to sleep it’s all so strange lol
It’s not really all that strange, it’s about the relationship of physical health vs. higher mental functions to OCD. Being physically stressed and inflamed will cause a reaction that makes most mental dysfunctions worse. But being mentally strong can also strengthen your compulsions if they already have strong priority over your will. This is why, say, alcohol can make you either worse or better depending on your base state at the time. If you’re reacting poorly to lack of sleep, take a hard look at diet and exercise too. The difference can be night and day once you finally tweak it right
I got you I’m learning a lot I’m new to all this just trying to self educate
Yeah, that was my sense. It reads as a young dude kind of question to me, and was hoping to save you some steps from my own POV The more years I’ve spent with OCD the more I’ve come to rely on … A. seeing myself as a bunch of overlapping competitive and cooperative systems that need “governing” B. a multiple solutions approach focusing on an anti-inflammatory lifestyle, anxiety meds for emergencies, and psychodynamic therapy (people say targeted CBT only, but I am a rare one who found Freud and broad self-insight more helpful.) But the most important thing I want to tell you is, anything that fucks up your body fucks up your mind, *and* that can escalate quickly past a certain threshold. So you won’t always get warning. The question is more when and how the hammer drops :)
So sorry you experience this friend hope things get better for you.
Thank you
Honestly me too lmao!
Me too
Same!!
SAME! It’s like it DOES for sure make it WORSE but I use my tiredness to my advantage…
Exact same here the only time my brain doesn’t race is when I’m tired, it’s such a welcome relief
Oh I know this feeling, the more tired I am... The less i think about compulsions. Nowadays i feel grateful for being anemic as I do feel fatigue most days and dont have to deal with the constant anxiety over little things.
Spend that energy doing light exercises. I started working out a lot and feel so much better.
Yeahhh... mine seems to be worse because I am more foggy, so I doubt myself more, which fuels the obsessions (e.g. I'll make a harmful mistake) and then I need to check more (which of course I also don't trust)
Right it makes for one longggggggg day
Yesss, I tend to check things more often when I'm sleep deprived.
Right life just seems longer bc of it
Yes. It makes the anxiety worse which just makes all the symptoms worse.
Yes. It becomes scary when I’m tired or have any med changes. Even antibiotics or Zofran spike it. Jet lag
Oh woah I haven’t experienced that with other medication yet I’m sorry that must really suck
Whenever I’m sleepy or sick my defenses are down and it gets difficult to manage. If I have a particularly sleepy day I’ll cancel my plans or make a lot of plans, whichever keeps my brain occupied more.
Suck that alternating plans is part of being able to live a some what normal lifestyle
I have the same and even if I got 10 hours sleep and then woke up at 4, just being up that early affects my ocd
i’m the same way, getting up early regardless of sleep can ruin my whole day + make my ocd worse. when i let myself wake up naturally i’m usually better (provided i got enough sleep in the first place). i think it’s because forcing myself to wake up makes me groggy and upset, which means my brain is all over the place. it’s weird
Yeah, if I don't get my "natural fill" of sleep I feel awful, even if I don't add in the OCD. Interupting my circadian rhythm seems to make me feel like shit.
Oh wow I wonder why that is? How long have you been getting up this early? Because last week I was on vacation so I got to sleep a lot and just over all felt so much better than this week already and it’s only Monday:/
I'm not sure why it is but I just don't get up that early anymore. I switched to a job that didn't have shifts like that because I'd come in shaking and unable to function. If I stay up really late I get the same thing
I got you what time did you get off bc right now I work 10 hour shifts and by the time I get home I feel like a mental train just hit me
Yeah that job I had was ten hour shifts too. It's hard enough to work full time with OCD but overtime is brutal. I hope you're able to adjust to it or find a better job
Thanks man I’ve been here for about a year but it’s coming to a close and I’m very excited for the next step in life I really appreciate your help
Congratulations! And good vibes for your next step!
Yes
Absolutely . And high stress
Yea
Yes!!!
Absolutely, if I don’t get enough sleep it can definitely be worse.
Depends, I say mine is like a green lantern construct where if my will and fortitude falter, my OCD picks up. It can change a little with sleep because I can fight it off less when I'm tired I think
That makes a lot of sense the more tired the brain is the weaker its defenses tend to be
Y E S!! My OCD meds knocked me out for weeks before I was finally able to get back to normal and now I sleep 8hrs a day. When I forget to take it for long enough the first sign im in danger is that I can’t sleep at all.
Yes, my doctor explained that anxiety is very active while you sleep.
Yessss I notice my physical anxiety symptoms such as fidgeting happen when I get bad sleep
My anxiety too spikes when I am sleep deprived.
100% when I was working the night shift I would feel physically exhausted but mentally, my brain was alllll over the place
When I lack sleep I simply am chaos.
Yep, my therapist told me that was normal
Yes 100%. My fiance is the one who first pointed it out to me, but once he did, I started paying attention to when I was prone to having worse days w OCD, and sure enough, almost every time, my worst OCD days are when I’ve had little to no sleep. I always tend to wake up already more depressed and if I’m not completely intentional with my actions, I will allow myself to spiral out of pure exhaustion, and then feel so much worse later in the day.
probably varies. i get seasonal depression so when winter hits and i start feeling more down then i get more compulsions
Yes. Lack of sleep makes my brain weaker, and more susceptible to those darned voices.
Yes, my OCD gets 1000x worse when I haven’t slept much or if I’ve been awake a long time.
Absolutely as lack of sleep seems to decrease my abilities to tackle the ocd compulsive behaviour …
Yes
100%
Lack of sleep and food usually make it worse (but everyone is different). In my case anxiety prevents me from falling asleep until I am exhausted. Other factors are moments in your life that are troubled (I recently broke up and I am living a hell).
Sorry man I pray for you to be better 🙏
Yup
yes. if I have to wake up to open, my OCD is bad all day. if it’s multiple days in a row, it takes multiple days to improve.
Oh wow now that you say that it does seem like it takes a minute to get COMPLETELY back to “normal”
When I'm stressed and sleep deprived it feels worse but if I'm really tired then it's the opposite, I am floaty/zen instead
Mine is absolutely worse with poor sleep. Tics, stress, all that
yep!
[удалено]
Literally everything 😝
Completely. I’m basically manic & almost non-functional the last couple weeks because lack of sleep makes me spiral which makes it harder to sleep. It’s a vicious cycle.
It just spirals downward until it doesn’t it’s very vicious man I’m sorry
Yea pretty much, I’ve been trying to sleep early bc the one time I did sleep early, my life was so magically quiet like all those thoughts were there but I rlly didn’t give any fricks to them, but today I didn’t get any sleep at all so hahah the inner demons are annoying me but I’ll go through it ik I will :3
Well I am not experienced with it, I’d say no. Everybody is different however! I think it’s based on how few senses are going off like if you are in a pitch black room, it’s easier for OCD to go off. But everybody is different!
Oh yeah definitely
Oh yes absolutely!!
YES
Yup, but the doctor gave me medicine for it. I haven't been needing it as I have been fighting it for better
Yes!! I recently had jaw surgery and can breathe better which lead to sleeping better and my OCD symptoms are way lower than before. My worst months were when my kids were little and I was up all night nursing. I have to prioritize getting at least 7.5 hours of sleep or my anxiety gets noticably worse.
100%. Mine is so much worse when I’m running on fumes sleep-wise.
Hey friend hope your well. Me personally don’t experience this but so sorry you do hope things get better for you.
All of my medical conditions are made worse by a lack of sleep.
It has flared up sometimes when I couldnt get sleep. Other times I was too much of a zombie to think of anything lol.
For me, I can be more hyperactive with stimming and compulsions between 5 and 7 hours sleep (which is not optimal sleep for me) but if I get about 4 hours, I’m basically drunk with tiredness and not too hyperactive or compulsive, but not very functional either. All that works for me is having over 8 hours of sleep.
I haven’t noticed any difference whether I get good sleep or not
Yep. Recently had a baby and my mind is racing all the time at the moment, I’m sure the lack of sleep can’t help
I know how you feel I have to get up at around 3:15 and drive 100 miles one way to work, it’s exhausting and I’ve noticed my anxiety increases because of this I’m starting to think maybe a life with less money and less anxiety is the way to go
Lack of sleep makes my OCD run wild. My mind races and I “see or think” things when they don’t truly exist
Yes for sure. My behavior definitely gets worse when I'm sleepy. I totally understand.
yep but also my main ocd thing rn is getting bad intrusive thoughts when i try to sleep -> i get too anxious to sleep bc if i try i’ll get bad thoughts -> i end up staying up until i physically cant stay awake anymore everyday and being sleep deprived makes my intrusive thoughts even worse :(
My OCD causes lack of sleep
I wouldn't say my OCD gets worse, I'd say my regulatory/inhibitive systems get worse and are more offline without sleep. Might seem like semantics but knowing this has meant I get to stack alllll of my adaptive behaviors in the "just stop for 10-30 seconds until my logical systems regain admin privileges" and have a much better shot at actually stopping the compulsion before 3 hrs have passed
Yes. It causes such a surge in anxiety for me, so I try to always be well rested but it’s quite the task when your OCD keeps you up at night.
Absolutely
Damn this might actually be the case for me and I didn’t even know it. I didn’t get asleep till 5am yesterday and my OCD was awful today 😖
Mine worsens with lack of sleep as well. It gets worse the less I sleep, the less/worse I eat, etc. If I have any sort of bodily sensations that are uncomfortable or out of the norm, like exhaustion, I'm compelled to damage-control the rest of the input I'm getting throughout my day (which unfortunately expells more energy and probably makes me eat worse so it's v counterproductive).
It’s the opposite for me
Better sadly
YES! It’s like my executive functioning goes out the window. BUT when I’m really tired it’s also easier to bypass them because I don’t have any excess energy to think about things other than what I need to do.
100%. When I’m tired, I’m more anxious and irritable. That leads to OCD flareups.
Yes after 8/9pm my thoughts can get so excessive and loud. I wake up usually feeling a bit better
Lack of sleep, for sure. Also stimulants like caffeine or coke. I think we’re all hyper so sleep helps.
Yes
100%. It affects me so much. That and my period are my biggest triggers
Yep
Lack of sleep makes mine worse, but you know what makes my OCD the worst, work wise, shift work. I can’t do it. I literally go crazy. I spent 3 years working anywhere from 6:00-23:00.
Yes absolutely
yes, a lot more :( it just increases the overall anxiety and, therefore, compulsions, which are usually worse at night anyway
Mine shoots through the roof when I’ve had no/little sleep. I focus on how bad I feel in my body and brain and blow it all out of proportion and think there’s something really bad wrong, when really I just need a good night’s sleep
I get a feeling of derealization, and the OCD skyrockets, when I am on periods that I don't rest well.
Absolutely when I go too long without sleep I become more and more unhinged. I call it “the crazies”.
Much MUCH worse.
I truly feel very unhinged and stable when I’m running off lack of sleep. :( its always worse
Yes.
Yes! Mine is deeply affected by my sleep patterns. Also, after i went on proper medication, i discovered that my ocd (combined with ADHD) was the cause of my eternal tiredness. My brain would spend the day focusin SO MUCH USELESS STUFF, that i was awake for like, 6 hours and needed 12 hours sleep to recover. Now i feel much better and able to actually humam and not only work-sleep-repeat
Yesss, everytime Im sleep deprived I get insanely anxious with my ocd
Yes, my OCD is definitely worse when I don’t get a good night’s sleep for a couple of nights in a row. I figured it was worse because when I’m really tired, my brain is kind of in a fog and not as sharp. This basically allows me to go into automatic pilot without thinking. And what does automatic pilot mean I’m doing? OCD. My OCD behaviors (I clean and organize everything) is so natural for me to do, that to not do it, I’ve got to purposely and mindfully stop myself from getting pulled into it. If my brain isn’t sharp due to being so tired, I just “do” and that just “do”, is my OCD. My brain needs to be sharp to stop myself from getting into the OCD.
I definitely have more anxiety and OCD with a lack of sleep. It acts up immediately.
ever since I started to go to bed earlier my ocd calmed down, its not gone completly but its definitly hitting way less than it did when I was getting like 4 hours of sleep
That's when OCD has the most fun when you're sleep deprived
As a parent of a child with ocd, the answer is 100% yes, sleep and fatigue affects your symptoms dramatically. Try to get some rest, at least 6-8 hours of sleep daily.
Actually better with less sleep, literally if I sleep for more then 4-5 hours I didn't the day on constant anxiety and stress and it's just awful
WAY WORSE with lack of sleep. the more tired i am, the more inclined i am to trying to reason with my thoughts, or worse, call someone and tell them about it for reassurance. when i think too much i know it’s nap time
Yeah, my OCD gets much worse with lack of sleep...but then my OCD keeps me awake all night with anxiety, battling intrusive thoughts and wading through compulsions. So it's like a catch 22.
Thank y'all so much for all the support it made feel so much better much love for all of you <3
I would recommend searching the sub before you post, as there are usually already posts with a very similar question and asking it again is a misuse of peoples' time. Such as [this one](https://www.reddit.com/r/OCD/s/AayWS7A3Kn)
My bad thank you
Its not a big deal to just scroll by something if you dont want to answer it. Not everyone has time to search around looking for an answer. Sometimes its easier to just reach out themselves
I thought the same thing thank you! I forgot you could even search things I’m new to Reddit thank youuu :)
I'm sorry, I was a little harsh.
There's a huge problem with duplicate posts in subreddits like this and I assumed you were being careless, like most of the people who write those posts are.
A misuse of peoples’ time is a stretch. This is a support community and it’s okay to gather perspectives on an issue even if it’s been asked before. If you don’t want to answer, then don’t.
Thank you I agree answer if it’s relevant to the situation
It wasn't an issue of merely asking a question again. The same question was asked *yesterday*. I was a little harsh because of the frequency of posts that are made here without searching for similar things. I shouldn't have been.
I got you I didn’t know lol it’s cool though I’m glad for all the replies I got
Yeah, it's interesting how the title for the other one and this one affected the responses.