A UK woman has spoken candidly about living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) after her symptoms intensified to the point she became convinced she had died and was existing in the afterlife.
Daniella Arenare, 34, says she has experienced OCD symptoms for most of her life, but she was only formally diagnosed in 2020.
She explained that her most frightening period began around four years ago, while she was on holiday in Greece with her partner. During a swim, panic set in when she thought she might not get back to shore.
“I went quite far out and suddenly panicked that I wouldn’t make it back, I called to my partner and he had to come and get me and we swam back to the beach.”
However, she said the most distressing part didn’t hit until after they were out of the water.
She added: “After that, I became convinced I had died. I genuinely thought I was in the afterlife and didn’t know it.
“I was pinching myself to check if I was real. It felt completely real, like I’d crossed over into something else.”
According to Daniella, that conviction didn’t fade quickly.
She said she still believed she was in the afterlife four days later, and the feeling of questioning whether she was real lingered for months.
Discussing OCD more broadly, she said it is frequently misunderstood and can be far more consuming than people expect.
She said: “It’s like having a parasite in front of your brain. It latches onto whatever scares you the most and convinces you it’s real.
“Up until my diagnosis I didn’t have a single second of peace. I couldn’t leave the house, I just believed everything my mind was telling me.”
Daniella also said the condition can make sufferers feel as though they can no longer rely on their own thoughts, leaving them stuck in cycles of doubt and fear.
Although she had struggled since she was a child, she kept quiet about what she was experiencing until her late 20s, when she finally reached a breaking point and sought medical help.
Now, she says her life looks completely different, describing the change as dramatic.
“I was a shell of a human. I couldn’t eat or sleep and I couldn’t function. Now I have my own business, I live with my partner, and I can enjoy life again.
“The thoughts are still there sometimes but I know what they are.”
She added that she hopes to become a mother in the future—something she once felt scared of because of her OCD.
Reflecting on how trapped she once felt, Daniella encouraged others going through similar struggles to seek support and remember that thoughts aren’t facts.
Giving advice to others struggling, Daniella added: “At my worst I felt truly hopeless, like there was no way out and I’d be stuck like that forever.
“But there is a way out. You don’t have to believe every thought that comes into your mind.”