SouthernSunshine Posted May 5, 2010 Posted May 5, 2010 Is there anyone with OCD who has dealt with it without getting on meds and/or going to treatment? Surely you can just learn to live with it? I mean, what's so wrong with keeping your house, and car clean? Or posting until your posts have an even number?
allina Posted May 5, 2010 Posted May 5, 2010 OCD isn't really about cleaning your house or having things be even, add up, etc. The difficulty is in the thought process behind these actions. It's having a hard time seeing if something is caused by your OCD or if you're being rational, it's being unable to not think a certain thing no matter how hard you try I hate it when people are like "oh, you like your house clean you're so OCD" :rolleyes: Anyways, I was diagnosed with anxiety/panic attacks at 15 or so, it shifted in to OCD over the years. Doctors have been pushing paxil on me for years, I refuse to take it. I have also refused therapy. I think that if this was caused by some tragic event, or a hard childhood or something identifiable I would be more open to therapy. But I refuse to waste time and energy on some shrink who is probably way more f'd up than I am. I just live with it and deal. For me it's been about self awareness and accepting discomfort instead of hiding from it. There are things I will avoid, times where people notice things and say something to me or times then my hands are sweating and shaking with anxiety but I have to take a deep breath and remember that I'm fine, it's my choice to live with it. I think being able to tell yourself "it's ok, I'm reacting this way because of my OCD" and calming yourself down is very helpful.
skydiveaddict Posted May 5, 2010 Posted May 5, 2010 I think meds are the way to go if your OCD is bothering you. When I got back from the sandbox last nov, I had ptsd, and meds did wonders for me. Dont discount them
Author SouthernSunshine Posted May 5, 2010 Author Posted May 5, 2010 I like keeping my house, and car clean. My SO says I've got a problem because I vacuum twice a day, and rearrange my eggs etc. If I don't sweep or vacuum it makes me very uncomfortable. I can't stand crumbs, dirt, or germs. I can't stand dirty hands or fingerprints/smudges. When I pump gas it has to be an even number. I absolutely hate using a public restroom. I was on Zoloft for several years, but then I started substituting it with Meth. I'm clean now. I only drink occasionally. I don't even smoke anymore. I refuse to take meds, and I don't wanna pay some shrink. I hated the way Zoloft messed with my sex drive, and all the side effects.
ComeUndone Posted May 10, 2010 Posted May 10, 2010 I mean, what's so wrong with keeping your house, and car clean? Or posting until your posts have an even number? I had OCD when I was maybe 10 or 11. My ritual was making sure everything I touched, whether purposefully or by accident, was touched in EVEN numbers. If I my hand bumped the corner or the table I'd have to touch it a second time. Light-switches, door-knobs, everything had to be touched in even numbers.. it drove me bonkers! It just kinda came out of the blue - I had it for a short while and it went away on it's own.
Author SouthernSunshine Posted May 10, 2010 Author Posted May 10, 2010 I had OCD when I was maybe 10 or 11. My ritual was making sure everything I touched, whether purposefully or by accident, was touched in EVEN numbers. If I my hand bumped the corner or the table I'd have to touch it a second time. Light-switches, door-knobs, everything had to be touched in even numbers.. it drove me bonkers! It just kinda came out of the blue - I had it for a short while and it went away on it's own. That's great that it went away without medication or some kind of therapy! I've never had a problem with touching things or counting. I just thoroughly enjoy & insist on cleanliness, and I prefer even numbers.
Nikki Sahagin Posted May 14, 2010 Posted May 14, 2010 I think all of us have small parts of almost every mental illness and they just simply develop more strongly in certain people. For instance as a child, I used to compulsively wash my hands, bite my nails and I would play certain games i.e. I can't blink for the entire duration of an advert, I have to play an album the whole way through without skipping a single song and things like this. Now its hard to tell whether these were just habits or silly things kids do, or symptoms of OCD. At some point these habits fell away and were discontinued. But had I carried on washing my hands etc, I think it would have developed further into OCD behaviours and compulsions. I think it stems from an awareness of something, you are becoming too conscious of something. I think the only way around OCD is to try to be unconscious of the things that bother you or flat-out ignore them; feel the discomfort of odd numbers or of not washing your hands. You have to be incredibly active not passive with this disorder. Much easier said that done.
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