Disclaimer: this is our invitation for you to check in with yourself if you feel you are going into compulsive behavior with ROCD/RA content. If so, save this post for later when you’re not feeling compulsive. Please also note that each personal ROCD/RA story is different, which means, some parts may or may not resonate with you. As always, take what helps your heart, and leave the rest.
Hi love, it’s Manon (Awaken into Love Director).
Today, I met Rébecca, one of our Awaken into Love members and a fellow ROCD sufferer, in real life.
We drank smoothies, shared a piece of cake, and sat on a bench in the shade of a jasmine bush. Nothing spectacular, really. Just two humans sitting together, talking, laughing, and remembering that what happens through this little community online is actually very real.
Rébecca has been part of our Awaken into Love world for many years: a beloved member of our programs, our community, and so many shared moments along the way. Meeting her reminded me of something I don’t ever want to forget: behind every screen, every message, every class, every “me too,” there is a real human being.
And maybe, more than anything, this is what Awaken into Love is really about.
Yes, we talk about ROCD. We talk about intrusive thoughts, compulsions, reassurance-seeking, uncertainty, feelings, relationship doubts, healing, and all the confusing layers of the obsessive mind. We care deeply about education, tools, and support.
But underneath all of that, I think we are also talking about loneliness.
The loneliness of carrying thoughts you feel too ashamed to say out loud. The loneliness of wondering if you are too much, too sensitive, too obsessive, too different. The loneliness of feeling like you are the uncertain one in a world full of people who seem to just “know.”
Today, sitting with Rébecca reminded me that sometimes healing begins with something very simple: a real person saying, “Me too. I get it. You’re not as alone as you think.”
And honestly, it made me think of all of you.
It also brought me back to the first time I met Kiyomi.
I met Kiyomi almost seven years ago now, and we started working together about four years ago. Somewhere along the way, she became one of my best friends. And I don’t say this lightly: meeting someone who truly, deeply understands the fabric of your mind (and what ROCD can do to it) can change the trajectory of your life.
For me, it did.
It gave me strength to know I was not crazy. I was not broken. To experience life with someone who gets the nuance, the tenderness, the fear, the humor, the depth, and the strange little corners of an obsessive mind… that is invaluable. Truly. It is one of the deepest gifts community has given me.
And this is what I wish for so many of you too.
So many of us are in different cities, different countries, living completely different lives. And yet, somehow, through this work, we get to meet each other in one of the most tender places: the place where we are scared, uncertain, ashamed, hopeful, and deeply human.
Maybe this is why it feels so powerful to meet people who understand not only ROCD, but the whole inner world that often comes with it. The constant questioning. The need to know. The feeling of being stuck in the in-between while everyone else seems to move through life with more ease.
This is what Awaken into Love has always been about to us. Not just content, not just tools, not just naming ROCD. But remembering our shared humanness, and offering a place where the tender, messy parts of us can be met with compassion.
You are human, love.
And you are truly, truly not alone in this.
#YANA 🤍
Manon
Awaken into Love Director
P.S. If you’ve been feeling alone in your ROCD journey, our ROCD/RA HOME support sessions were created for exactly this: real human connection with people who understand. Your first 90-minute session is free 👉 Save your free spot here.
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