HI JO,
I'M SAM I HAVE HAD OCD FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS. AND LET ME SAY WHAT YOU ARE
EXPERIENCING IS DEFINITELY OCD. I'M NOT A DOCTOR BUT YOUR SYMPTOMS ARE EXACTLY
THE SAME AS MINE.
IT STARTED WITH ME WHEN I WAS PREGNANT WITH MY DAUGHTER, I BEGAN TO WORRY ABOUT
GERMS AND CONTAMINATION, I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO TOUCH RAW MEAT FOR YEARS. I HAVE
ALSO HAD TO QUIT MY JOB WORKING IN A BETTING SHOP FOR FEAR OF GERMS. I SHOWER UP
TO 5 TIMES A DAY AND I WASH MY HAIR THAT MUCH THAT ITS VERY DRY I KNOW WHAT YOU
MEAN BY BEING SO SORE SOME DAYS I CANT BARE IT ANYMORE. MY DOCTOR HAS PUT ME ON
TABLETS CALLED LUSTRAL WHICH DO HELP.
BUT ITS TAKEN YEARS TO GET THE RIGHT HELP. I HAVE HAD COUNSELLING SEEN
PSYCHOLOGISTS AND SO ON, IT DOES HELP BUT ONLY IF YOU ARE READY.
MY ADVICE TO YOU WOULD BE TO GET AS MUCH INFO ON THIS ILLNESS AS POSS GO AND
TAKE IT TO YOUR DOCTOR AND DEMAND THAT YOU GET SOME HELP. THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE
BEEN TOLD ITS NOT OCD BECAUSE YOUR SYMPTOMS ARE NOT SERVER ENOUGH IS DISGUSTING.
PLEASE DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT TODAY THIS ILLNESS DOESN'T GO AWAY BUT IT CAN GET
BETTER WITH HELP.
IF YOU NEED TO CHAT ABOUT STUFF AND YOUR PROBLEMS THEN YOU ARE WELCOME TO WRITE
BACK.
REMEMBER YOU ARE NOT ALONE, AFTER ALL THEY SAY THAT OCD EFFECTS ABOUT 2 OUT OF
EVERY 10 PEOPLE IN THE POPULATION.
TAKE CARE
SAM X


littlemissworrypants <littlemissworrypants@...> wrote:
Hello,

I've just joined and would like to say a very warm hello to
everyone. The website is fantastic!

I have a mild case of OCD which is worse when I am tired or more
stressed. I went to the doctor last May when I first realised that
I had a problem because I was terrified of illness and bacteria.
The doctor never gave a diagnosis but said that I should be refered
to a CBT therapist. Since I was soon to move to another area I was
not referred because the waiting list was too long and I could not
afford to pay for private therapy, and so I attended counselling for
around 16 months, changing counsellor when I moved.

Both counsellors I saw told me that I don't have OCD because my
symptoms are not extreme enough and that many of my anxieties have
roots in real past experiences. My partner believes that they just
told me I don't have it because they thought it would help me
feel "normal". This doesn't change the fact that I have symptoms:
- repeated washing (that dries out my skin/makes me sore/sometimes
burns me because the water is so hot),
- distress that germs/dirt/bacteria MIGHT be on me and make me ill,
- complete over-reaction to feeling unwell,
- panic attacks,
- need for continuous reassurance from others that things are ok and
not going to make me ill/do not need washing or re-washing,
- fear of food-poisoning (I get extremely stressed about cooking and
cannot cope with raw meat),
- worrying that germs might be on objects and transferred to
anything they/I have touched
- as a child I developed a twitch and was afraid that fires were
starting in drawers and cupboards when I closed them and I had to
open them to check, then close them, then open them to check etc.

It seems obvious to me and my partner that I have mild OCD, so why
did the counsellors tell me otherwise? I don't think the denial has
helped me. Has anyone else had any similar experiences?

Warmest wishes
Jo




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