Lived Experience Forum

[Jen1561]

From living with this disorder and being interested in the research within this space, it's always interesting to me how many misconceptions there are that surround the term "OCD", but I think this article does a good job of shining more light on this issue. Unfortunately, the media/society continues to only show the hand-washing side of having OCD. What can be done to stop people from misusing the term over and over?... https://blog.treatmyocd.com/why-is-ocd-so-misunderstood-24b673568077

[Former-Member]

Hi @Jen1561, and welcome to the Forums. 

I just read the article you posted to this thread.  Oh ... so very true.   You're right, this article does do a good job of enlightening people about the many misconceptions of the disorder of OCD.

Having OCD is no joke.  I have it, and I know the constant distress it causes. I have had OCD tendencies for as long as I can remember, but it really came out strong after I developed PTSD about 20 years ago.  I dont have the hand washing urges, but most of the other typical things - constantly checking, counting, an obsession with symmetry and patterns, everything needing to be in its exact place, intrusive thoughts, obsessed with needing to remember things, repetition of tasks, etc.

I'm sorry to hear that you also suffer from it.  Do you have any tips on how to you cope with the urges, compulsions, thoughts and behaviours that are all a part of OCD?  

I have undergone some CBT therapy with my psych, which helped a little bit.  Overall I've found that its important not to fight the urges, its better to accept them.  I also try to practice mindfulness, with some success.  I need to work harder on my mindfulness abilities however.  

Anyway thanks @Jen1561 for sharing this with the rest of us here.  I hope to see you around some of the other threads as well, if you're comfortable in doing so.

Sherry 

[Shaz51]

Hi @Jen1561, and welcome to the Forums. 

@Former-Member, @Jen1561

there are other threads about OCD if you put the word in the search the forum , a fair few comes up

Do you have any tips on how to you cope with the urges, compulsions, thoughts and behaviours that are all a part of OCD?  -- this is a great idea to share with others

[Shaz51]

, @Gypsie has a great thread called 'OCD' you might like to read through. There is also another great thread by @Tim_H called 'Treatment for OCD'

We also ran a Topic Tuesday in July called 'Managing Compulsions' that might be worth reading through too

Hello @Faye92

@Jen1561, @Former-Member

[Jen1561]

@Shaz51 Thanks for the advice, going to check out the threads now. In regards to if I have any specific advice on how to manage living with OCD, it's a difficult question to answer. I know that many people have success by not giving the OCD attention and doing the things they want to do. Sounds like a simple answer, but in reality, the goal to fighting back against the OCD is pretty simple, and that's to ignore it, not give into the thoughts, and do the things you want to do in life.