Yesterday I realized I'm in trouble.
As many of you know I just moved into a new house. As I was making dinner last night, the phone rang. To answer it I had to walk out of the kitchen into the living room. Now there's two entries into my kitchen, one on each side. If you leave by one entry and walk in a half circle through the living room, you'll arrive at the other kitchen entry. That means if I'm standing at the stove, and turn to either side and walk in a complete circle, I'll pass through the kitchen, then the living room, then back into the kitchen and end up at the stove again.
So I walked out, answered the phone, then continued on my course to enter through the other entryway of my kitchen. To my great surprise I couldn't make it. The feeling of doom hit and it literally became like walking through quicksand trying to finish that circle. My body came to a stop and couldn't go on before I reached the entryway, a sound even escaped my lips like I'd been hit in the stomach. I had to turn around and go back the way I came, the "unwinding" OCD thing I do.
This won't do.
I can't OCD on this!
I'll look and feel foolish walking back the way I came every time! No matter how close I am to the convenient entryway, I'll have to turn around and go the long way to unwind.
The only thing I've ever found that made the OCD go away was Lexapro, but I'm not on meds now and can't go back on right now.
Any ideas?

You've been in this house about a week now, right? Have you noticed that before?

Stress, stress, stress. Find a way to mentally unwind and maybe you won't have to physically unwind... (what i'm thinking anyway...)

Can you carve out some time each day to do something fun and relaxing like photography???

It's almost been a week here, yeah.
I will force the time for photography and see if that helps. Thanks!
Oh, and no last night was the first time it hit, but it was the first time I made dinner here. Shouldn't have made a difference though, I was able to walk around that area without that problem before. I wasn't expecting it at all when it hit!

Were you feeling particularly stressed at that time? I would think that if it was going to be a thing with that entryway, it would be more frequent. I can never leave just a few things on a table and not line them up, but sometimes I can leave things and only clean them halfway...

I don't think I was feeling particularly stressed at the time. I was feeling like Suzy Homemaker fixing our first dinner in the new house.
I have no idea why it hit when it did. Maybe because it was the first day the kitchen and living room were totally unpacked and organized? Maybe the lack of chaos of boxes allowed the circular shape to be noticed by my mind?

maybe....wish I could give more help...

Now that you've brought it up and I've thought about it, it makes sense that it didn't appear until the circle was formed by clearing the path of moving boxes.
This is really upsetting to me that this is going to be a problem. I've never had an OCD quirk that didn't stick for good (not counting the remission I had on Lexapro). Now they're all back.
I've tried forcing myself not to do them, but the feeling of doom is overwhelming and doesn't go away until I perform the action that the feelings call for.

did you try moving the boxes? getting rid of the circle? or do you now know it's there, so moving it won't help?

I don't know if it would help. I haven't tried breaking the circle with boxes. I kind of think it wouldn't help because my mind knows the circle's there now. But I'll give it a shot.

I hope it works, maybe if you try to stop thinking about it it'll help. Close the thread!!!!!!!:eek::eek::eek:;):p

Lol
I wish it was that easy to stop OCD dorkiness!
I did forget about it a bunch of times, I meant to post it yesterday after it happened, but kept forgetting about it until it happened again. Guess that means it doesnt help. :(
I wonder how I'd do on a merry-go-round? I haven't been on one for years. I used to love them when I was a kid, but when I grew up they made me nauseous.

I know, it's really hard when people tease me about it too, like my father will purposefully move things on the coffee table when he knows how I need them lined up. He'll even do it right after I have fixed it!!!!:mad:

Only one way to find out about the merry go round!;)

Do you ever feel like we are the only ones in the OCD forums??? We can't be the only OCD/ADHD people here!!!:eek:

I do feel like I can hear my own echo in here...
I wonder how many active members have OCD

helloooooooo helooooo helloooo helloo...;)

I wonder that too. Guess not too many, either that or they just don't know or believe it.

When I was first diagnosed, I believed the OCD but not ADHD. I knew more about OCD (for some random reason had just done a speech on it for a public speaking class the semester before being diagnosed with it!!!:eyebrow:) and didn't see how you could have both OCD and ADHD. :confused:

I thought they were complete opposites, so it couldn't be right. How can I obsess about some thing and be such a perfectionist and not be able to focus (even though I was living it and now can understand why and recognize it in action)?

I wonder if we would have been happier never knowing what we had chloe. If just thinking we had uncontrollable quirks was better than knowing we had full blown OCD.

I've thought about that.

I think that knowing was better in that ignorance can be bliss and I wasn't aware of a lot of my obsessions and compulsions. I just thought they were things everyone did! My family would tell me I was being unreasonable, but I didn't believe it and thought it was normal. I've always had tendencies toward OCD, but it was never full-blown-enough-for-a-diagnosis until I was in college and was worried about losing things from sharing a room with a roommate, I think it was anxiety and seeking a feeling of control over something that caused it to be the disorder.

In a way, I think it's better to know, because I am aware of it, and I have an explaination for the things I do, like not being able to scratch just one side if I have an itch, having to make it equal. You know how you have to unwind? I would have to complete the circle.

Same with the ADHD, life was easier when I didn't realize how many problems I had with social skills and completing tasks, when I thought it was normal to have a hard time following conversations. But then again, now that I'm taking medication and am learning about the troubles I had, I am feeling hopeful of improving my social skills/life and working closer to my potential. I guess it's hard knowing that even with medication I will still have my symptoms, they are just lessened, but at least I have an explaination.

I was diagnosed with depression in college as well, but now I'm not so sure that it was depression, not in the chemical imalance sense. I'm now thinking that it was just a deep sadness about things for which I can explain through my OCD and ADHD, if you get what I'm saying. Like I was really sad about my social difficulties, but at least know I know I can get help and improve, that it's not my personality, but this disorder. I feel Ritalin is helping my real personality show more than before. I still get that depressed feeling occasionally, like on Thursday I felt like that. But it's always for a reason, it's never unexplained. This Thursday it was from feeling lonely, but now I'm doing a lot better because I'm getting to talk to people on here, and yesterday I got to see and talk to people.

I guess, I'm taking a long route to say that in the end, I feel it's better to know because it gives an explaination and I can learn how to become more self-aware and help myself change.

Would you rather not know?

Do you get a feeling of doom if you don't scratch the other side?
That's interesting what you say, "It's not my personality, it's the disorder". I never thought of them in seperate terms like that. I guess it's true that knowing I'm not stupid, I just can't concentrate or remember as well as normal people, makes me feel better about myself. And I probably try harder to use tools to help myself remember and focus since I know it's ADHD and not just stupidity.
But there are downsides to knowing. I used to think that if I did brain exercises I could get smarter. Knowing it's ADHD that's untreatable with meds, I can't fix it, so any hope of fixing it is now gone.
Same with the OCD.
I still have hopes of overcoming my PTSD, but that's probably just because I don't know very much about it.

I don't get a feeling of doom, I just can't think about anything else until I act on it.

I guess I think of my personality being separate from the disorder because it's not how I want to be or how I feel deep down inside. It's my personality to prefer skirts over pants, that's how I feel deep down inside and I dont want to change that. Being quiet in social situations is not my personality, I feel outdoing deep down inside, but have difficulty expressing it because I have trouble following conversations and understanding jokes.

It is hard to know that you have a disorder and it's not treatable. I guess it has a lot to do with how you look at the advantages and disadvantages of knowing. Would it have made you feel any better to do brain exercises thinking they would make you smarter always hoping it will help, but not seeing success, or is it better for you to know why you can't do it and realize that it's beyond your control?

I think I would have preferred to believe in the brain exercises. Hope is something I don't have a lot of in my life and I want all I can get.
And I'm sure the placebo effect would have come into play. Everything I did remember, I would have credited to the brain exercises.

Well, since stress can contribute to all of those disorders, maybe trying to create times for relaxation instead of brain exercises will help. If not, at least you would be more relaxed and that would feel better!;)

Would you be able to take a photography or poetry class? You seem really good at both of those. Have you ever tried yoga? I couldn't turn off my mind during it like you're supposed to, but I was able to think about a lot of things and when doing it regularly, it really does boost my mood and lower my stress.:p

I don't live far from the ocean, I love to go down to the beach and relax, there are also a lot of nice bike paths, when it's not cold.:D (which is really only June-September!):(

Probably more member have OCD of a shadow form of it then they realize. I've been doing some reading lately for my CEU's to renew my license and I've discovered that there' a lot of OCD'ish behavior I have that I never recognized as such. I ran it by my counselor and he said ADD and OCD share a similar genetic pathway and it's real common to see it in ADDers.


Anyway, back to your problem. I've also read that behavioral therapy is has about the same effectiveness as medication (70% are helped) and studies have even documented brain changes with behavioral therapy when the behavior was not only stopped but a positive behavior was put in its place instead (IE: doing something you enjoy, doing something nice for someone else, etc). Is there any chance of seeing smoeone who does this kind of therapy?

Some books I've found interesting on the subject are Shadow Syndromes by John Ratey; The Boy Who Couldn't Stop Washing by Judith Rapport; and Tormenting Thoughts and Secret Rituals by Ian Osborn -- of the three I probably learned the most from the last book. The first book is best at showing the interrelationships with other mental problem areas (ADD, Anxiety, Depression, Autism, etc).

Sorry, I don't have more to offer -- I'm just starting to learn more about this myself.

Sorry -- there is one more thing to deal with. For what it's worth --it doesn't matter what others think. Easier said than done, I know.

((((((((Hugs))))))))
Scattered

To my big surprise the only photography class around here is at the university and it's very lame, like for people who don't know which end to look through.
If I took a class, it would just end up being a source of stress though, because my husband would think I don't have the time or attention to spare. Trust me on this one. I attempted to marry the opposite of my first husband and it ended up he's a carbon copy.
But, after I finish moving completely out of the old house, things should settle down enough for me to get back into photography. I don't know if it's relaxing for me, but I enjoy it.
How do we know if the things we love to do are relaxing?

Thanks Scattered.
Hmmm...I wonder what I could replace my compulsive actions with. It would have to be something I could do right away in place of "unwinding". What could that be?

not sure what unwinding could be replaced with...have to think and see if we can come up with something! I'm actually not sure what I could replace my compulsions with either...:confused:

Cham, I'm sorry your husband isn't as supportive as you need him to be, or what you expected, that must be so hard.:(

I think of things being relaxing if I feel "at peace" while doing them and if I feel good about it afterword. Something where I feel like I can get away from things for a while. Like running certainly isn't relaxing in the sense of laying and resting, but I do a lot of thinking while running and I feel more calm and more positive afterward. So, for me, I would consider running a relaxing activity. I've found that swimming laps is the only thing I can do and not think about anything. Don't know why, but for some reason that's the way it works for me!;):p

Relax, don't get stressed, that will just make it worse. :)

Try doing something to redirect the compulsion. Maybe taking some time out with some music or a book instead. :p

ME :D


Yesterday I realized I'm in trouble.
As many of you know I just moved into a new house. As I was making dinner last night, the phone rang. To answer it I had to walk out of the kitchen into the living room. Now there's two entries into my kitchen, one on each side. If you leave by one entry and walk in a half circle through the living room, you'll arrive at the other kitchen entry. That means if I'm standing at the stove, and turn to either side and walk in a complete circle, I'll pass through the kitchen, then the living room, then back into the kitchen and end up at the stove again.
So I walked out, answered the phone, then continued on my course to enter through the other entryway of my kitchen. To my great surprise I couldn't make it. The feeling of doom hit and it literally became like walking through quicksand trying to finish that circle. My body came to a stop and couldn't go on before I reached the entryway, a sound even escaped my lips like I'd been hit in the stomach. I had to turn around and go back the way I came, the "unwinding" OCD thing I do.
This won't do.
I can't OCD on this!
I'll look and feel foolish walking back the way I came every time! No matter how close I am to the convenient entryway, I'll have to turn around and go the long way to unwind.
The only thing I've ever found that made the OCD go away was Lexapro, but I'm not on meds now and can't go back on right now.
Any ideas?

Speedo, do you mean I should stop whatever I was doing and do something else that doesn't involve going back into the kitchen? Just abandon the circle altogether? Or complete the circle?

Ooh! I just thought of trying this! -
I'm going to go downstairs and try to MAKE MYSELF walk half the circle, turn around, walk that half, turn around, walk half again, etc. etc. etc. and see if I can deprogram myself! I'll let you know how it goes in a minute!

I did it!
And I just realized something as I'm typing - I had just gotten back from taking photos before I wrote my last message that I was going to try it and ran and did it. Maybe the photography was relaxing and kept my OCD at bay? Maybe I couldn't have done it if I hadn't gone outside to take pics first?
Now I wish I'd tried it before and after...but who cares! I'm just so happy, and amazed, that I could do it without that doom feeling!
Although it is kind of eating away at me right now. Lol

yay!!! glad you were able to do it!!!

Cham, I just saw this thread..sorry..
Is there a reason why you can't just do the circle thing in the kitchen, until all is settled and unpacked, and your stress levels are reduced? What is the worse thing that will happen if you keep going that way, apart from wearing the carpet out...??:faint:
Relax, settle in, take some photos, move the furniture and see how you are in a few weeks..

hugs
Tracy

Waves - you are not alone Chameleon and Chloe - my son has it - can I join you? At this stage we have a preliminary diagnosis from CAMHS (Childrens and Adolescents Mental Health Service) but they are still assessing. I know it is OCD and specialist has already told me that they have eliminated ADHD/ADD and the autistic spectrum. We are back there tomorrow where I am expecting the diagnosis to be confirm and more importantly a treatment plan for him.

Just as you think you have conquered one obsession it is replaced by another. We started of with "sorry to Gods" over and over maybe 200 times a day, moved to handwashing, fear of swallowing, biological powder and are now on currants and raisins. He thinks if he sees them or goes near anyone who has eaten one that it will make him sick. They could have eaten it six months ago. Thats the thing with OCD it defies logic, but it makes perfect sense in my son's head and I need to get to where he is to pull him out of it.

He saw a child in his footie team eat a raisin , and is now the only goalie who wont pick up a ball - I have had to keep him at home today rather than playing because it is so stressful for him when he lets goals in he blames himself then lashes out kicking posts or once at a child. He was player of the year last year, now his anger is making him a problem and I cant defend the lashing out to his coaches. I can explain it but I cant justify it. I know it is not his fault, it's the ocd - so Im taking him swimming instead.

It's a hard one because I have to discipline the lashing out but can punish for the OCD. He is being really hard to handle, really defiant and it's wearing me out but I can also see that the OCD causes huge frustrations and he has to vent somehow. The poor kid has even threatened suicide. Which in one way was helpful, as I know now because instead of waiting 4-6 months for the specialists he was seen in days. This is after being told its a phase by the GP, finding my own counsellors, getting the school counsellor, school nurse and them all agreeing he needs help desperately.

I'm sorry about the new house Chameleon, the only thing that has worked with my son so far is by exposting him to his fears little bit by little bit. With the biological powder I just left it out on the work surface for a couple of days so he got used to seeing it. Then got him to touch it with his nail, then the tip of his finger, then he managed to get his hands into it. This is over a week or so - gradually making him face the fear, yes he feels uncomfortable but it has to be done.

When he is not that strong I have to touch the item he thinks is infected, this can be his bed - a PS2 game - anything and lick my hand to show him it hasnt made me sick therefore he wont be. Can you try not unwinding the full circle but three quarters of it? As this has been a sudden hit and you know the medication worked before - Id consider that before the compulsion beds in. You know better than me as I have only met with OCD in January this year so am a total novice, have no expertise and am just muddling through myself.

I do wish you all the best in overcoming it.

Cheekychic..how old is your son?

He is only nine - and going through so much with this damned OCD. Just had a lovely shouting fit as he thinks that if he loses a ps2 game and then leaves on a low note the rest of the day will be really bad for him. We are back to CAMHS tomorrow - cant wait.

CC..I hope you can get him help soon...good luck

We are at CAMHS tomorrow - this is the Childrens and Adolescent mental Health Service tomorrow - the waiting list is normally 4-6 months they have seen him within a week of being referred as he is a suicide risk! FGS I cant believe i am saying this about my son. I cant tell you about the tears Ive shed.

I am hoping they have now completed the assessments, which are lengthy and involved and we can finally get a treatment plan for the poor little mite.

Thanks for good luck wishes.

Cheekychic I am so sorry for what your son is going through. Please let us know how the appointment went.

I find it terribly interesting that I was able to tackle the unwinding compulsion yesterday, if only temporarily, after happily indulging in my photography hobby. That's a big clue to something, I don't know what, but something.

Chloe, I also find it interesting how there's a feeling of doom for me but not for you. I've heard of others who feel the doom, and others who don't. Is it just that my mind has leapt to the conclusion of "what would happen if I didn't do the compulsion"? Or are our OCDs different beasts?
You say you have the urge to do it, like if you had an urge to eat chocolate and couldn't get it out of your mind? Is it a strong urge or small one? What would you equate it to?

Cheekychic, I'm so sorry to hear about your son too. I'm glad you are getting help and are finding ways to help him work through his OCD.

Chameleon,
I'm not sure why you get a feeling of doom and I don't... I wonder why. I guess it's the same reason that people can have different obsessions and compulsions.

for me, I get that "broken record" thing where I just cannot think about anything else until I carry out my compulsion. I don't usually obsess about food, but I do get cravings... Like right now, I just had an itch on the side of my nose (gotta love allergy season!:() and I just automatically lifted both hands to scratch both sides of my nose in the exact same way, since I know I would need to do that anyway, I guess you can say I have developed a work around for that. If I did not do that, I would just think about it and think about it and think about it and think about it....until I acted on itand scratched te other side. Just like if things aren't lined up correctly on a table, I cannot stop thinking about it until I change it. I just have to make things even, if I accidentally hit one hand on a doorframe, I would have to hit the other hand in the exact same way, if I don't get it the exact same way the first time, I have to try again until I do. Then I'm uneven, so I have to go back to the original arm and hit that to make it even. I'm lucky that my OCD isn't so mean to make me do that when I get hurt!!!;):eek:

So both of us are making things "even". I also have the compulsion to make all the cup handles point in exactly the same direction in the cupboard. Pictures on the wall cannot be one centemeter off balance. It's trying to get control over life's chaos, right?
I also have other compulsions that aren't equated with evening things out - exhaling on bad words (cancer, death, etc) so I don't "take them into my life".
I think, with me anyway, it's so wrapped up in superstition.
I read about a month ago about an actor that kisses his hand for good luck everytime he drives through a yellow light. Every since, I've been doing that! I don't want to tempt fate. Now if I don't kiss my hand after a yellow light I feel that urge you speak of where I can't think of anything else until I do it. It nags and nags and nags.
I never saw the beginning of an OCD compulsion before, until the Yellow Light one was born. I suppose if people told me their supersitions I'd adopt them all out of fear of tempting fate and they'd become another OCD compulsion.
So what's the difference between OCD and superstition?

I do that with mugs too, with anything the labels have to be facing me and centered. I am addicted to chapstick so that means that I tend to have to check my chaptstick a few times a day to see if it's lined up right.:(

Mine aren't based on superstitions. I wonder if the difference between OCD and a plain ole superstitions in general is that you do them, but if you forget you don't stress about it. I say "knock on wood" but don't stress if there is no wood to actually knock on. Sometimes I'll do that "hold your breath when going by a cemetary" but others I won't. Doesn't bother me one way or the other.

funny story, one time we were driving and my sister was in the habit of doing the "hold your breath when going by a cemetary" and we got stuck at a red light!!!! it was still driving by the cemetary, so she was trying to hold her breath and ended up giving up when her face started turning a purplish red!!:eek:

Is it just that my mind has leapt to the conclusion of "what would happen if I didn't do the compulsion"? Or are our OCDs different beasts?Just for a background, chameleon, I've had OCD my whole adult life (I'm now in my early 50's) - along with ADD, which I thought, until recently, was a minor player. I married a woman with OCD - so we have had a "support group" going between us for many years.

Your mind doesn't leap to the conclusion - but rather, its the way it just works. I've found that the trick is to force your actions one way - even though your mind wants to force it the other way. In other words - just force yourself to continue despite the compulsion. You will feel like crap - possibly for a whole day - but eventually the feeling of doom will go away.

The addition of ADD in the mix is good here - as your mind can focus on the "bad" and doom for just only so long.

Eventually, if you force yourself not to "check" or give in to the compulsion - your mind will not feel so compelled to feel so bad. Its a slow and painful process, but it works. Kind of like re-training the muscles after a bad accident.

OCD breeds more OCD and so on. Breaking the cycle maybe wont stop the OCD, but it will keep it from escalating. Over days, weeks, months - your mind will grow confident that it can fight the compusions - so they become less compelling.

I hope I've made what I'm saying clear. I'm very touched by your story - and I certainly can more than understand your pain. Medications can't do very much for OCD IMO. Sometimes a little benzodiazepine such as xanax or valium helps with short term anxiety after you have forced yourself not to do a compulsion. Shrinks (generally) want people to fight compulsions slowly and without anxiety. WHile that can be done - it can take forever. If you have ADD as well (like I do) you cant focus long term enough to deal with that kind of program. A more direct - intensive - way of working with it may be required.

In any case, good luck.

Jon

I do that with mugs too, with anything the labels have to be facing me and centered. I am addicted to chapstick so that means that I tend to have to check my chaptstick a few times a day to see if it's lined up right.:(

Mine aren't based on superstitions. I wonder if the difference between OCD and a plain ole superstitions in general is that you do them, but if you forget you don't stress about it. I say "knock on wood" but don't stress if there is no wood to actually knock on. Sometimes I'll do that "hold your breath when going by a cemetary" but others I won't. Doesn't bother me one way or the other.

funny story, one time we were driving and my sister was in the habit of doing the "hold your breath when going by a cemetary" and we got stuck at a red light!!!! it was still driving by the cemetary, so she was trying to hold her breath and ended up giving up when her face started turning a purplish red!!:eek:

See, now I'll hold my breath while passing cemetaries. I'd never heard that one before.
So that one and the yellow light one are the only ones "based" on superstition for me. The others came from my own mind, hadn't heard them elsewhere, don't know why or when they started. I think whatever started them though is what starts all superstitions.
Oh, I do that knock on wood thing too, and if wood isn't nearby, I find it.

Just for a background, chameleon, I've had OCD my whole adult life (I'm now in my early 50's) - along with ADD, which I thought, until recently, was a minor player. I married a woman with OCD - so we have had a "support group" going between us for many years.

Your mind doesn't leap to the conclusion - but rather, its the way it just works. I've found that the trick is to force your actions one way - even though your mind wants to force it the other way. In other words - just force yourself to continue despite the compulsion. You will feel like crap - possibly for a whole day - but eventually the feeling of doom will go away.

The addition of ADD in the mix is good here - as your mind can focus on the "bad" and doom for just only so long.

Eventually, if you force yourself not to "check" or give in to the compulsion - your mind will not feel so compelled to feel so bad. Its a slow and painful process, but it works. Kind of like re-training the muscles after a bad accident.

OCD breeds more OCD and so on. Breaking the cycle maybe wont stop the OCD, but it will keep it from escalating. Over days, weeks, months - your mind will grow confident that it can fight the compusions - so they become less compelling.

I hope I've made what I'm saying clear. I'm very touched by your story - and I certainly can more than understand your pain. Medications can't do very much for OCD IMO. Sometimes a little benzodiazepine such as xanax or valium helps with short term anxiety after you have forced yourself not to do a compulsion. Shrinks (generally) want people to fight compulsions slowly and without anxiety. WHile that can be done - it can take forever. If you have ADD as well (like I do) you cant focus long term enough to deal with that kind of program. A more direct - intensive - way of working with it may be required.

In any case, good luck.

Jon

Thanks Jon. I was really surprised when I started taking Lexapro and noticed after a couple of weeks that I wasn't doing compulsive OCD acts anymore. I completely didn't expect that to happen. Since lexapro was given to me for anxiety, and worked like a dream, I guess that's proof that my OCD is anxiety based.
If I stop doing my OCD things and let the overwhelming feeling of doom stay, then I know I will blame every bad thing that happens on the fact that I didn't do the acts. How do I get around that? Logic doesn't come into play here, as you know.

See, now I'll hold my breath while passing cemetaries. I'd never heard that one before.
So that one and the yellow light one are the only ones "based" on superstition for me. The others came from my own mind, hadn't heard them elsewhere, don't know why or when they started. I think whatever started them though is what starts all superstitions.
Oh, I do that knock on wood thing too, and if wood isn't nearby, I find it.
Sorry, didn't mean to give you another one...:foot::o

Don't be sorry. It's me, not you. You should list every single supersition you've ever heard of so that I can't possibly do them all and I discard the whole idea! :p

Don't be sorry. It's me, not you. You should list every single supersition you've ever heard of so that I can't possibly do them all and I discard the whole idea! :p
hehehe. If you do try to do all of them, will you video tape it so we can all see you throwing salt over your shoulder, while knocking on wood, while avoiding walking under a ladder, across the street from a cemetary, before closing an umbrella before walking inside, to put on pajamas inside out, and putting a spoon under your pillow, so it snows the next day?!?!?!:p;)

LOL
Don't forget I'd be unwinding myself throughout all of that! :p

I never heard of putting on pajamas backwards, what's that supposed to do? And the spoon under the pillow is to make is snow??

hehehe, definitely laughing at the image.

putting your pajamas on backwords is also supposed to bring snow. I just learned those snow ones this year!

ok, here are some superstitions for you, take them or leave them...;):p

www.oldsuperstitions.com

www.corsinet.com/trivia/scary/html

urbanlegendsonline.com/superstitions.html

To drop a comb while you are combing your hair is a sign of a coming disappointment.
So THAT'S what's been messing me up! LOL

hehehe

Drop your comb a lot???:p

Yes! :D

I don't use a comb, but I drop my hairbrush a lot...does that count?!?!?!

I think the result of dropping your hairbrush is attention deficit disorder :p

Ohhhhh, so that's how I got it!!!:faint: Should have worked on my grip!!!:eek:

Just had the diagnosis - it confirmed he has OCD I asked the consultant what caused it - she said "undoubtedly the teacher" who is making the classes lives miserable mine son's worst that most.

Wow. So now what are you going to do about your son and the teacher?

Just had the diagnosis - it confirmed he has OCD I asked the consultant what caused it - she said "undoubtedly the teacher" who is making the classes lives miserable mine son's worst that most.All the reading I've done on OCD indicate that it isn't caused by someone else -- although the stress can exaserbate it. (Which is in no waying denying you had the teacher from the black lagoon). It is an incredibly genetic illness.

I'm glad you got a formal diagnosis. What is the next step?

Scattered

Sorry I wasnt clear and I was fuming. I think what the consultant means was that though my son must have been predisposed to OCD the teacher provided sufficient stress and anxiety to trigger the meltdown. It could have been other stress factors later in life and it could still have happened I guess. In a way it is better that is has happened now so that he can learn to deal with anxiety better using the CBT.


She could have meant that he felt suicidal because he couldnt face the teacher, this is what he was saying to me and to the counsellors, she could have meant his suicidal feelings were the teachers fault. Ill have to wait to get their report.

I am still fuming that the head of school tried to keep from the counsellors the fact that 12 out of the 30 children in my son's class had to see her weekly because they wont work for this teacher. I think that if a child is threatening suicide because he cannot face the teacher, then the head has a duty of care to report the fact that over a third of the class are in trouble with the head. What is happening in that classroom and why not disclose it?

I am also fuming that the head of school took my son in to her office on the last day and told him that the teacher was not his problem and he was to tell her what the real problem was. He was already under the care of specialist counsellors then - it was not her role.

Im not sending the complaint letter until I have calmed down, the red mist has cleared and I have the CAMHS report on my sons condition. Then Im going for it. :-) <<<smiles sweetly>>

cheekychic

I am horrified at your situation! Especially for the treatment of the head of school! :eek: Especially as a teacher myself, I cannot imagine treating the children that way. I don't blame you for wanting to write a letter! You must be so angry! How much longer does your son have this teacher? Do you have school choice?

I have already moved him out of the school completely. With the head covering the teacher it was hopeless. He is so much calmer now, the OCD symptoms have lessened 2000 percent and he's a happy boy again. Its a shame until Christmas he was doing really well there - but he has settled in quickly and made new friends already. He's not over it yet - but it is totally manageable now and not destroying his life as it was. He hasnt even start with the cognitive behavioural therapy yet which the consultant is arranging for him. :-)

I have to pray he can be taught to deal with stress/anxiety in a healthier way in the future with this CBT but we're almost back to normal.

Glad to hear cheekychic.
I have an announcement on my original thread topic too - I have no more problems with circling through the living room/kitchen. Forcing myself to do it over and over again helped, or taking time out for stress-relieving photography helped, or my overall anxiety level lowered, or all of the above. :D
Anyway, now that I know it's doable, I'm going to try to undo some of my other compulsions too when they arise.
We're done with the move - that's a big load off.
And I'm feeling better just having a plan in motion as to what to change about, toss out, or add to my life to make it less stressful.
Thanks for all the support :)

Great news for everyone!!!!

Congratulations both of you!

Chameleon, I hope that undoing some of your other compulsions works too!

What does it mean if I find the hair brush in the refrigerater ?

What does it mean if I find the hair brush in the refrigerater ?
Maybe that you have a steak that wasn't properly shaved and had some tangles! ;)

LOL Chloe

Distracted much William Tell? :P

Cham, how is it going now? Any better?

It is better Tracy :)
I'm not doing the kitchen/living room circle anymore and I'm making great headway on unpacking. All done moving out! Yay!

that's great news Cham :-)

Thats fantastic news Cham. I think that is what Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is about. Facing your fears realising they are just OCD ones so not really real and gradually exposing yourself to them. But I'll know more when my son starts - fingers crossed it will help him but he is doing great already. It's still stopping him from doing things like yesterday we did a charity car wash with the Firefighters (hard life but someone has to do it ggg)) Some in uniform too. <<yummmmmmmmmmmmy>> Sorry I digress ggg. Anyway someone bought in currant buns, his last phobia to sort out is yep currants and raisins! He couldn't be near the children who had eaten them as he thought if he touches something they have that he will be sick. Its like a fear of contamination - hard to explain but for him its real. So he was calling the traffic in to get more washes and directing them with another firefighter <scrummy> into the carwash instead. We raised £752 so thats not bad and had fun in the process.

A couple of the blokes thought he was skiving and it is just so long winded to explain. Anyway I know that he did what he could and that was more than giood enough for me.

What's skiving?

i think it's trying to get out of something...like skipping out????

Oh! Thanks Robyn!
I think he's learned a great tool by placing himself away from the problem in a way that he can still contribute to the cause. Smart little cookie :D

Yep that's skiving - it's shirking work - and yep he is a smart cookie. I think some of the language differences can be really funny. A fag here is a cigarette isnt it a derogatory name for a gay there? My ex mum-in-law who lived in the states for years still calls the pavement the sidewalk and normally speaks with a lovely Irish lilt until she says "tomato" like a pure born New Yorker.

I have to get some currants/raisins today - and just put one in the house - the consultant says that by helping him avoid his fears it reinforces them. In the early days he thought everything was contaminated. His bed, his PS2 games, the football.... you name it. And by letting him see me touch what he is scared of and that nothing bad has happened to me - he gradually gets to touch it. It does scare him and he feels that he has to go and wash his hands but it passes with a lot of reassurance, then it's no longer a problem.

So today we are facing real raisins, yesterday he managed to touch a picture of some...... You couldnt make it up could you? :-)

Does he have problems with grapes too? Is it just that raisins are shriveled up dried grapes that he doesn't like them?

Just currants and raisins, he can eat grapes. But we had a breakthrough yesterday I got him to hold chocolate bars with real currants and raisins in them - that would have been impossible a week ago when we couldnt even get around Sainsbury's grocery store because it had Hot Cross Buns in the shop - now he can touch them. I am so chuffed.

Congratulations!

Yeah that's great! You're doing a wonderful job Cheeky!

Thanks - its hard but he almost back to his old self. Now eating is a problem outside of the home because he thinks there may be raisins in them and he cant eat it. He wouldnt eat tea at a mates nor his dinner today at school. This child loves his grub normally. This is going to sound reallllllyy cruel but I have showed him pictures of anorexic women on google and told him that every time they eat they are sick because they refused to eat for a long time. His real fear is the sickness, he thinks that the raisins will make him sick and it is being sick he fears. He said will I be sick if I dont eat - I said yes that he would - he has promised to eat his dinner at school tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

Sometimes you need to be extreme. I hope you are successful!

CHEEKY RUNS AROUND THE BOARDS SINGING AND CHEERING.

I couldnt get him to stop dinners yesterday but today is a success story.

My son stayed for school dinners today and ate - I know it's nothing normally but it has been such an ordeal getting him this far. He freaked out at the thought of it this morning ran away from the school as I got him to the gate. Luckily his teacher saw this reaction first hand and when I got him back I explained that these currants/raisins fears are very real for him. He didn't eat his sandwiches yesterday as a girl near to him had a box of raisins in her lunch box. Anyway I explained all of this to the teacher, then went home made him a sandwich box as an insurance policy and took it to the school. It took the pressure off my son which is always a good thing with OCD Im finding.

The school were terrific totally brilliant. They took him to meet the cook who assured him about the content of food. The head told him to say that he doesnt like currants to the other kids so that he isnt going to be embarrassed. They got him to eat with the other children and school grub too. The school are great with special needs children - it's in their Ofstead Report (a government report on all schools performances) I am so please I moved him. I'm a chuffed cheeky :-)

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm SO PROUD of you cheekychic!!!! And your son!!!! And the school!!!!!
:D

BUUUUTTTTTT What the heck am I supposed to do now? I have spent months checking beds, games, clothes, even the bliddy kitten for germs, reassuring him that he hasnt offended God, watching the number of times he washes his hands and putting protective cream on them - Getting called names in shops when I had to deal with the blow outs - My boy is nearly OCD free and he wont need me any more <<<<<<<<<redundant Mummy wails & weeps >>>>>>>>>>>>>

Seriously I feel terrific - just a little niggle that he will find another fear but we are finding ways to deal with them as they arise. For now I am going to savour the victories and every smile on my little man's happy little face.

LOL!

Bask in the glory of success :D

Don't worry, as a mother of boys I can tell you, you'll be kept plenty busy with other normal male angst problems :p

Thats fantastic CC :-)