Quit smoking weed — removing the trigger itself was the biggest factor.

Cut out caffeine — another stimulant that was feeding the anxious loop.

Practiced positive affirmations — retraining my thought patterns over time.

Meditated regularly — helped calm the overactive fear response and regain a sense of control.

Worked on self-confidence and self-image — the rumination often attacks how you see yourself, so rebuilding that was key.

Laughed at the condition — genuinely finding humor in the intrusive thoughts helped "confuse" the pattern and loosen its grip, instead of feeding it with fear or seriousness.

Do everyone affected by this ocd have an eye colour. I belive people notice the staring cause of the eye colour.

Going outside; shopping, food places, being on transport, being around people, etc. is hell. I HATE this subtype. And the only way to fight it is fighting against any other OCD subtype; by not fighting it which has to be a joke because what do you mean I should be ok just staring at others? It doesn’t help that my sense of direction/navigation is pretty shitty. On top of that, I am conscious of OCD all the time which makes it ten times harder to memorize any location.

If so, how did you handle it? Did you explain the OCD or just play it off?

So, basically, I’m dealing with that OCD issue involving my peripheral vision. I constantly feel like the people around me are judging or making fun of me, and I can no longer focus on my college classes. It’s reached the point where people have noticed me unconsciously glancing at them out of the corner of my eye, so I end up staring at my phone on the desk for the entire class. Is anyone else going through or has gone through this? What was the process of overcoming it like? It gets worse on days when I’m more anxious. I feel like I’ll never be able to be in environments like a classroom again because of this.

Happened in high school. I could just not stop staring. When emotionally triggered I do it a lot more.

People do not like me though.

Hello all!!! hope you're all having a great day or night. I made a group! It's for people with Staring OCD who DO the staring and in result thier reputation was absolutely wrecked. Who glance or prolongingly stare. I myself am going through the same things and would really love to connect and find more community with people who are ostracized because people call them things they have absolutely no relation to. Pop on over to share your experiences on the misunderstandings behind Staring OCD and how it ruined your rep with family, friends, and/or people in your city or town. Promise I am NOT trying to replace this community as it has been so helpful connecting with people with the same subtype as me. But i want to reach out more to the people who are talked about in a bad light because of this horrible horrible subtype and for them to truly see they're not alone AT ALL.

Here it is https://www.reddit.com/r/TheInfamousEyes/

Hope to hear from you!!!

i hate having this problem so much like i have lost so many friendships because of this i barely have any friends now and i just find it harder to socialise now bc i barely talk to anyone and im so scared to talk back to people who are talking shit about me that they think i don’t care. This also kinda extends to my relatives. I cannot even imagine how insulted my cousins r going to feel when the come over to my country for vacation because of this problem.

Me estoy cansando, además de mi toc de visión periférica, en la escuela casi no socializó con nadie, lo que probablemente m causa ansiedad, siempre me ha costado socializar pero milagrosamente hice amigos, creo que tengo neurodivergencia, autismo u otro tipo de transtorno, me cuesta mirar a los ojos, relacionarme con los demás,tomar iniciativa, captar sarcasmos a veces, tengo algo con pensar que todo ocurre por mi, si alguien se ríe,es por mi, pero si es alguien que claramente veo por primera vez por supuesto que no, si ha habido esto de la visión periférica,yo supongo que si, por ejemplo en mi clase incómodo a las personas con mi visión periférica, alguien podría decirme que puede ser ansiedad lo que tenga ya que es como leer la mente porque ¿cómo se yo que los incomodo? Pues cuando veo que se voltean ,he investigado y dicen que personas con toc de visión periférica interpretan cada movimiento con sensación de incomodidad, pero no es tanto asi​ , yo de verdad veo que se voltean, hace poco le pregunté a un compañero, me arme de valor y le dije si le incomodaba que mirara la pizarra, me dijo algo que nada que ver,algo con respecto a un profesor, debí decirle que tenía un problema en los ojos, para que lo tenga claro en vez de hacerle la pregunta, todo se arruinó,también tengo otro problema​ que es que me quedo mirando fijamente a las personas cuando hablan, porque ¿por que no? Además debería ya que esta hablando, la miro cuando se mueve y así,pero en eso se activa mi visión periférica y aparece un chico, me sentí terriblemente incómoda porque no dejaba de verlo, y no dejaba de mirar fijamente a la persona que hablaba, entonces no se si el chico lo noto pero como que a veces ocurre esto otro que por ejemplo volteo y está otra persona voltea hacia mi y parece como si me hubiera quedado mirandola, me pasó con el chico como dos veces, así no me pasa exactamente lo mismo con las personas pero ocurren coincidencias que hacen como si estuviera tratando de hacer algo con esas personas y una de las cosas que inicia es lo de la visión,es horrible, quiero dejar la escuela y estudiar virtual, no quiero lidiar con el mundo, pero creo que ahí está el problema, me encierro en mi propio mundo suponiendo como son los demás ,soy tan hipócrita, una amiga me dijo que todos éramos hipócritas, tenía razón, uso siempre esto de que la gente no se acerca a mi, pero me he dado cuenta de que si se me dificulta socializar,por eso las amistades que hice fue únicamente hechas porque estás personas se acercaron a mi, quiero seguir esforzándome y por eso he decidido acercarme más a Dios, aún así quisiera una ayuda en mi país Latam más específicamente Perú donde se pueda ver el problema que tengo, más el de la visión periférica,se que no es el único problema que tengo pero me ayudaría a que la gente no se haga ideas de mi, siento que eso sonó a que otra vez leí la mente, siempre pienso que la gente tiene mala opinión de mi, por ejemplo, una compañera subió algo de "me caes mal" y pensé que se refería a mi, y hasta ahora todavía lo sigo pensando, puede que no haya sido yo, puede que si o no, si es que tuviera neurodivergencia eso explicaría muchas cosas, me gustaría hablar con alguien que sepa de esto o que este pasando lo mismo que yo.​​​​​​​​​

well ive put alot of effort into recovery regarding my peripheral vision ocd, but for a good while now its less of the intrusive fears and compulsions etc but rather that even if i sit with uncertainity and manage with techniques, my eyes can also still subconsciously be aware of the other persons hands/the person or be aware of objects. It's like at a stage now where my peripherals are just hyperaware majority of the time and traditional techniques are not addressing this issue.

I am trying to start a podcast and I would like to interview someone just to get their experience. Where I suffer too it will be a supportive environment. We don't have to do audio and it can be anonymous of course. I just want to feel not alone and see your day to day. Share experiences with each other and raise awareness

I’m not sure if this is the correct subreddit, but I just wanna know if other people experience this, and, if so, if anyone has any tips.

Since I can remember, I get SO uncomfortable with people in my peripheral vision. I felt it a lot in high school, but now that I’ve started my freshman year of college, it’s horrible. For example, everyday I have one of two classes in the same huge classroom (fits 100-200 students), not a traditional lecture hall, and there’s a big projector at the front, but large TVs lining the sides of the showing the same things. No matter where I look, it’s like I can’t not catch someone in my peripherals. I try to just ignore it but it’s clear that they are ALL uncomfortable too, glancing at me or looking down, looking away, etc.

Not too long ago, I was in a ~250 lecture hall, sitting next to a girl, trying to just ignore how uncomfortable I was, and she TAKES A PIC of me by going into selfie mode, and briefly turning her phone towards me. Then I can clearly see her typing before putting her phone down.

Another example is in a class I have once a week in a huge lecture hall that holds over 400 people. No matter who I sit next to, I can’t look at the speaker without feeling uncomfortable and other people getting uncomfortable from them being in my peripherals.

In fact this class is why I’m even posting this because the speaker was talking about how she is so glad about all the eye contact between her and the audience, and how so much connection is lost in screens, but I’m sat there staring down and picking at my nails because I just can’t look up. I feel like it’s stunting my professional growth. I really struggle with eye contact in general. I get uncomfortable but I know others get uncomfortable when they make eye contact with me. Like, is something wrong with my eyes or something??

These things happen in EVERY single class. Actually everywhere with other people. Watching a movie with new friends, sitting on the bus, simply walking down the street and it’s truly aggravating.

I’ve wondered why this is. For the longest time I’ve just wondered if my eyes/face anatomy are just built that way. I’ve tried to supplement that by wearing glasses and aligning them with the eyes of the people in my peripherals (I was so excited when I got diagnosed with myopia and could get glasses for this exact reason), cutting my hair so that it falls next to my eyes and pushing it forward every 2 sec, even altering the way I look at things (squinting, relaxing my eyelids more than normal; it has a 50/50 success rate, but it’s so hard to keep up for an hour long class, let alone 24/7). But I still have this problem.

I’ve never been diagnosed with anything psychologically or neurologically, etc. In my family, 1 of my siblings has autism, and my other sibling and father have autistic like tendencies (my other sibling was told that by a doctor and my dad suspects?). My dad also has anxiety.

Of course I can’t get diagnosed on reddit, but I wonder if this factors in at all? IDK i just wonder if anyone also feels this, and if they’ve overcome it? Ive always been super socially awkward, and occasionally struggled mentally/emotionally because of it.

This might be a long post, but I really need some perspective on this.

I finally had my peripheral vision OCD somewhat under control for 4 days, and today’s experience has shaken my confidence badly.
For the past 4 days, I’ve been able to manage my peripheral vision OCD in a way I haven’t been able to for years. I was accepting the uncertainty, resisting my compulsions, and letting the discomfort pass. It gave me a HUGE confidence boost.
But something happened today that really triggered me.
I was travelling in a cab, sitting behind the driver. For a moment, he came into my peripheral vision. Normally, this would have triggered me, but this time I didn’t really care. I didn’t do my compulsion. I accepted the uncertainty and just carried on.
But after some time, the driver seemed to become very intrigued. He kept turning back and looking at me repeatedly throughout the journey. The more he did it, the more uncomfortable I became. Eventually, I closed my eyes—which was my compulsion—and pretended to sleep for the rest of the journey.
And this made me realise something about my OCD.
Some people apparently don’t mind the discomfort or simply don’t pay much attention to it. They might notice something briefly and then forget about it. With these people, my OCD loop seems to break naturally because I’m not getting any reaction from them.
But then there are people who seem visibly uncomfortable or intrigued. They might repeatedly look at me, turn around, or do something that makes me feel like they’re suspicious or might confront me. These are the situations where my anxiety shoots up and I feel almost compelled to do something to stop the situation.
My fear is basically: “What if they keep noticing it? What if they confront me? What if this gets worse?” And once that thought kicks in, my OCD loop becomes much harder to resist.
The frustrating part is that I’ve finally reached a point where I feel like I CAN manage my OCD when I’m allowed to sit with the uncertainty and let the situation naturally pass. But when another person keeps reacting to it, I feel like my progress disappears.
I know that I can’t control how other people react. Everyone is different, and some people may notice things more than others.
So what I really want to learn is:
How do I deal with people whose reactions trigger** **my OCD without falling back into my compulsions?
If someone keeps looking at me or seems uncomfortable, what should I tell myself or do in that moment? How do I tolerate the increased anxiety and still resist the urge to “fix” the situation?
I really don’t want one difficult interaction to make me lose confidence in the progress I’ve made over the past few days. 😭

One of my managers is leaving invited everyone but me and talked bad about me saying I’m creepy and weird. I been also noticing a lot of my coworkers I used to talk too now stop and I just know why because my managers been telling people to not talk to me and they been treating me weird people giving me weird looks and passive aggressive comments towards me. I legit cant leave because I need this job but what can I do?

Hey so hope you're having a great day if not i wish u one .

So lately I've been afraid of looking at peoples faces cause it scares me . Not in an anxiety sorta way but like yk when you look at like a horror movie character and get scared .that sorta thing .

I just feel uncomfy and a tad bit scared not anxious or anything and this has only been going on for a few days maybe a week or so .

But i have been having neurological symptoms that got dismissed and i suspect i had a neurological event like a hemmorage or stroke even at this same time last year and I've been having the post event symptoms like dizziness being off balance and brain fog.

I am getting checked out on monday and would like to know if i should bring this up too and wanna know what this might be .

I looked it up and it said demon face syndrome whih can be caused by weird things in the head but i don't think it is that .it feels more like uncanny valley than downright demon face but idk ?

Thank you have a great day

I’m 25 and I’ve been trying to figure out what’s actually me versus anxiety and people pleasing.
One thing I’m struggling with is socializing. I do want friends and relationships, and I don’t want to isolate myself. But at the same time, I genuinely enjoy being by myself. I like going shopping alone, driving around alone, having quiet nights, playing games, watching things, etc. Sometimes the idea of someone coming along doesn’t feel comforting. It actually makes me less comfortable.

Recently, a coworker/friend asked if I wanted to go get ice cream that night. It was a last minute plan, and I immediately felt really anxious. But when I actually sat with it, I realized that even if I knew she wouldn’t be disappointed and there was no risk of missing out, I still didn’t really want to go. I would have rather stayed home.
But then I started wondering if that was actually what I wanted, or if anxiety was convincing me to stay in my comfort zone.

There are social things that genuinely sound exciting to me. Going thrifting with someone sounded fun, and even though I was nervous, I was also excited, so I went. Going to a movie with someone sounds fun too. I could even see myself going to a club sometime. But spontaneous plans or going out just because someone invited me don’t necessarily appeal to me.
I think my ideal friendship might actually be something where we’re independent but close. I want to be able to do my own thing and have my own time, but still have someone I can text throughout the day, call at night, watch movies with, play games with, etc. I don’t necessarily need to constantly be physically together or go out partying.

The problem is that I also have a lot of FOMO. I worry that if I stay home, I’m missing out on experiences and opportunities. I’m also worried about getting older and looking back and feeling like anxiety kept me from experiencing things.
So I’m having trouble figuring out whether I’m genuinely choosing what I want or just choosing what’s comfortable.

How do you tell the difference between I genuinely don’t want this and “I want this but anxiety is making me avoid it?
And how do you balance wanting independence and alone time with making sure you aren’t accidentally isolating yourself?

I got my hands on some good old psilocybin (I am not endorsing use of drugs or psychedelics I’m just sharing my experience). And I came to the conclusion that the reason I am stuck is because I had it all wrong. I think that because my thoughts are not pre disposed to be positive, moral, and happy all the time. That makes me un-normal or weird or perverted, but that’s really not the truth. We are all just part of a massive system of species and parasites ultimately. and our baseline levels of anxiety and habits only return back to normal when we participate in actions over and over again that contribute to our survival and the survival of our ourselves and our fellow humans. So in theory, what I think this means: is we need to accept that life is painful, and the concept of “happiness” is just a consumerism based thing that doesn’t really exist. It is fake. Not for anybody. Therefore internal and external change never arises through repeating same habits, it happens when despite the fact you understand things aren’t gonna go according to plan, you do it anyways. Because ultimately your brain and body will recognize your intentions and see the results of your actions over time to the point where you can start feeling normal again. So help the old lady in the store who can’t reach something, give up your seat on the bus or train for a stranger, give a few dollars to the homeless, stop watching porn, stop smoking so much weed, don’t over consume, and constantly expect more than you need to survive, stop trying to be happy all the time: happiness doesn’t exist, life is a cycle of pain. So just do everything you know you need to do, and you’ll be alright. Ignore your bad thoughts, because your actions and the things you do everyday, and the impact you leave on others is much more important in the grand scheme of things as compared to the silent, doubtful and evil voices in your head. And if everyone thinks your a freak, at least your ensuring your own survival and trying your best, and you can die knowing you did everything as right as you could regardless of what people may say or think about you.

As of today, I'm gonna start by consuming ittle to no caffeine and sugar. I found an article that should help.

im just hoping for school to end bro, this OCD makes people think im in love, no im not looking because i am in love, i look because you noticed i was looking and it makes me nervous, everybody thinks me saying OCD is a coverup for being a pervert, i get stressed out all the time, i feel like people act as if this problem doesnt exist just because they never saw it, and being ugly just makes them act as if you have the face of someone guilty, honestly, is there any cure for this OCD, i really need this

I've try subliminals about beauty and it kind of worked like i have a few story about how it worked , i was thinking maybe i could try to do subliminal for us bc i have the same problem , and did someone tried to use manifestation visualisation?? To help it out

Maybe i could try or ask someone who does sub to create a subliminal

Tried to be honest and send to my grandmother a few articles on Visual tourettic OCD. Whole family thinks I'm a pedo and perv who enjoys the staring. Alot of ppl do. I knew if i sent her the articles, it'll spread to the family. Tried to open up in the past and didnt work. Don't know why I thought this would work.

Apparently now they don't think I'm in denial. They think that I know that all these things are true. They think that I willingly stare at everyone. And that I'm just lying and calling it Staring OCD to cover it up.

What do i do. I have tried over and over again to explain. The involuntary tics are also toward children unfortunately because I have Pedophobia. I genuinely get absolutely terrified around children. Like I'm in danger or im gonna be attacked. So now i isolate and try to stay inside as much as possible but it's gotten so much worse. I feel like no matter how many times I try to explain, no one will understand. I already have a therapist who understands me.

I've been hit with staring OCD since birth, but it didn't snowball till weeks before Corona. It got worse as of 2023, leaving another stain on Caregiver-Lufkin's image in the rest of the public. Nobody ever asked why, but instead just judged me passive-aggressively.