An interesting podcast episode that talks a bit about OCD is https://www.npr.org/programs/invisibilia/375927143/the-secre...
The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
131–140 of 141 posts
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#132Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not a doctor, but I'm almost certain your SO absolutely needs to discuss these things with someone to have any chance of relieving, or reversing the trend you mentioned. From my past experiences, I must unfortunately say that you might be just about the last person they want to, or can discuss it with (as strange as that sounds), but without them confronting their habits, it is unlikely it is going to get easier.…
They 100% don't want to discuss it with me. I suffer from a terrible temper that goes from 0 to 10 before I know it. I've balanced it by taking constructive feedback and being mindful of my triggers. That was a hard road to travel and I still slip up. For the longest time, I thought I knew best and nobody understood. Least of all, my significant other. So, I completely empathize with their difficulty discussing it wi…
Late onset OCD is very much a thing, more prevalent with women, and pregnancy one of the most common triggers. Do not expect it to go away by itself.
I think you are going to need to find a professional to discuss how to handle the situation and how to get your partner to accept the help you all three need. It will likely take a few tries to meet someone interested in working the problem, rather than proscribing some pills. Getting to the point of your partner accepting the label and some techniques to help cope and reduce the anxiety OCD causes could be all it takes get things improving.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#133I’m using a throwaway account and trying to keep personal details sparse to keep this as anonymous as possible. Also, despite my frustration with the situation, I’ll attempt to be as neutral as possible. My significant other was always “germ conscious”; clean hands, no shoes in the house, etc. Nothing over the top or alarming. However, over the years, there have been huge shifts in behavior and routine in regards to…
this might be medically unadvisable, but i have found that education goes a long way towards disarming the notion that anything can ever really be clean if it is in your house. i helped one of my friends be slightly less obsessed with cleanliness this way. let's say you bleach down a perfectly smooth countertop in your kitchen. okay, it's clean, there's no bacteria there. for about two seconds. probably less, in real…
OCD fears are often completely irrational, and sufferers often know it. That doesn't make the fears and anxiety less real. The common cleaning compulsion isn't so much to make things clean, but an attempt to cope with the fear and anxiety.
Still, education could point out that the behavior is not rational, and help acknowledge that there is a problem if the behavior is still necessary.
In some ways, the best compulsions are the ones that have a solution like washing your hands or checking the lock on the door four times. Unfortunately a lot of the 'what if' scenarios can't be so easily dispelled.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#134Earlier quoted context omitted.
The OCD notion of cleanliness doesn't always have really anything to do with any real germs or other pathogens. "Dirtiness" is more an abstract concept that varies and develops over time.
I think, in this case, it's the fear of the known that is the problem. "Dirty" is the concept used to describe all the reasons to clean stuff. But, real-world issues like MRSA are scary and the root of this slippery slope. Combined with the fact that my spouse works in a highly contagious environment doesn't help.
What an awful situation for you both.
Would a change of career be possible/practical/helpful?
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#135Earlier quoted context omitted.
Reading your answer made me feel a little less crazy (thank you?). It is actually reassuring to know there are people experiencing the same stuff and doubts, and that i'm not alone. We all should really talk about this with our friends, coworkers, etc. We should let the word out. I don't know about you but I feel embarrassed of this condition, like I'm a lesser person because of this. And not talking about it makes m…
Well, reading yours made me feel less crazy. I feel like you don't hear about this aspect of mental illness that often. It's like a weird cross-section between anxiety, hypochondria, and OCD (which I hadn't considered before). My doctor referred to it as "hypervigilance" and it seems like there is plenty of literature out there concerning it. This study actually looks pretty interesting: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/…
> Well, reading yours made me feel less crazy.
Btw, I believe my wording made you think that somehow I said that you're crazier than me ahhaah and I feel better because I know there are 'crazier people than me'. English is not my first language, so sorry :-) What i really meant is that it feels good to know there are people going through the same stuff, because usually when we are having these symptoms, we tend to feel really alone ("why does this only occur to me?"), which is wrong -- there are lots of people going through this.
Don't be scared of Xanax, I took it for two years and it really helped. It won't cure you, but it will do better: if you're struggling too much (daily) it will give you some time off to reorganize your thoughts and understand the whole situation (when you're in panic you're not able to have a logical train of thought, right?). And with better understanding comes better mental tools to deal with it (reassurance, previous experience, etc).
Have a good one!
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#136Earlier quoted context omitted.
They 100% don't want to discuss it with me. I suffer from a terrible temper that goes from 0 to 10 before I know it. I've balanced it by taking constructive feedback and being mindful of my triggers. That was a hard road to travel and I still slip up. For the longest time, I thought I knew best and nobody understood. Least of all, my significant other. So, I completely empathize with their difficulty discussing it wi…
Late onset OCD is very much a thing, more prevalent with women, and pregnancy one of the most common triggers. Do not expect it to go away by itself. I think you are going to need to find a professional to discuss how to handle the situation and how to get your partner to accept the help you all three need. It will likely take a few tries to meet someone interested in working the problem, rather than proscribing some…
I think the stigma of pills is where the biggest problem lies in addressing mental health. The last thing I want is to put somebody on pills, unless it's 10000% the right way to go.
As I understand it, the "easiest" and safest method is exposure therapy.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#137I’m using a throwaway account and trying to keep personal details sparse to keep this as anonymous as possible. Also, despite my frustration with the situation, I’ll attempt to be as neutral as possible. My significant other was always “germ conscious”; clean hands, no shoes in the house, etc. Nothing over the top or alarming. However, over the years, there have been huge shifts in behavior and routine in regards to…
I understand where this comes from, and your resistance to trying to override your spouse. My partner works in a hospital, too. She tries to keep her 'hospital clothes' separate from everything else, which is probably wise. In her old car, basically nothing else could go in the trunk. Groceries, day-to-day supplies, all went in the back seat, because the trunk was the dirty place. Who am I to argue? I don't see the h…
I've read that some hospitals have standard procedure to change out of the work clothing before leaving the facility. Certainly a smart move for high risk situations and areas/patients with contact procedures in place.
I would be mindful of your partner's current state and do your best to nurture a healthy environment while not letting it spiral out of control. It's easy to find a logical path to sanitize everything if your root reasoning make sense.
I'm doing my best to get feedback on how to approach a plan that is suited for the individual. I think with mental health, that's the only way to approach it.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#138Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think, in this case, it's the fear of the known that is the problem. "Dirty" is the concept used to describe all the reasons to clean stuff. But, real-world issues like MRSA are scary and the root of this slippery slope. Combined with the fact that my spouse works in a highly contagious environment doesn't help.
What an awful situation for you both. Would a change of career be possible/practical/helpful?
Possibly, but my partner finds the work extremely enriching. I'd hate to upset that balance as well.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#139Memantine (5-10 mg) + selank. Add a multivitamin, D + K, and chelated/TRAACS magnesium supplement. Like AOR Ortho-Core (or Life Extension Two-per-day if too expensive), Life Extension D + K, and Doctor's Best High Absorption Magnesium. Can also add Doctor's Best DHA 500 and Doctor's Best Real Krill. Nutrient tests like NutrEval catch many deficiencies. And a comprehensive hormone panel (include thyroid panel). And ge…
I first tried this kind of thing over 10 years ago. In my experience, it gives initial benefits, followed by a relapse to an even worse state of ill health. Mental illnesses are not just physiological in origin and cannot be treated as such. They are a complex combination of physiological and emotional issues, and both must be addressed in step with one another for complete healing to occur.
Did you try what I mentioned or something else? The first stack, for example, took effect quickly and continued to work.
Re: The terrible 'what if': how OCD makes every day a matter of life or death
#140Earlier quoted context omitted.
Late onset OCD is very much a thing, more prevalent with women, and pregnancy one of the most common triggers. Do not expect it to go away by itself. I think you are going to need to find a professional to discuss how to handle the situation and how to get your partner to accept the help you all three need. It will likely take a few tries to meet someone interested in working the problem, rather than proscribing some…
I think the stigma of pills is where the biggest problem lies in addressing mental health. The last thing I want is to put somebody on pills, unless it's 10000% the right way to go. As I understand it, the "easiest" and safest method is exposure therapy.
Its pretty much the only thing recommended for OCD. Maybe meditation or mindfulness gets a look in. But you want to try to get less superficial diagnosis than some random person on the internet; the OCD behavior could be a side effect of something else, eg. comorbid GAD or many other things I'd only be guessing at.