[Anony]

Hi, this is my first post on this board. I never really spoke of my OCD, so I thought posting might help me feel not so alone with it. My first encounter with OCD started when I was about 4 years old (sounds young, but it's true). I couldn't stop organizing my stuffed animals in a perfect line and all of my family members shoes had to be lined up the way I needed it to be. I was constantly checking to see if they were straight and if the toilet seat was down. As I got older, one of my biggest problem has been the need to touch the center of random items and counting, which is what I still have problems with today. I count everything and I can't stop, especially inbetween items. I don't know if anyone knows what I'm talking about. It takes me a long time to read a page in a book when I'm silently reading because I have to count all the words and the spaces inbetween. Tiled floor is another problem for me. I could tell you how many tiles are in every room of my house, up, down, horizontally and vertically. I usually end up with a splitting headache at the end of the day because I strain myself with my counting. I try to control myself, but I don't feel right until I finish counting. Sometimes I get chills when I hold back too long and I break out into a sweat. Can anyone relate? I don't want to feel so alone.

[mrsdodge]

You're not alone. I'm fairly new here myself but I've spent a lot of time going back, reading others talk about their OCD. Have you talked to a doctor or anyone yet? Feel free to ask any questions you may have. I probably can't answer them correctly as I'm trying to get mine under control, but there are others here who can, and will.

[Perna]

"What doctors do know is that OCD is a medical disorder; it isn’t the fault of the person with OCD or the result of a weak or unstable personality."

From: http://www.helpguide.org/mental/obse...sorder_ocd.htm

I was struck by your knowing you had it at 4 years old. Did something happen (parents divorce, someone important to you die, etc.) before then? I don't have OCD, I have GAD, General Anxiety Disorder, but have done some "checking" to make sure things are right in my time too :-)

Hey and welcome, Anony!

I've had OCD since I was around 10-11 years old. That's as far as I can recall, anyway...
Now I'm very concerned about the huge signs of OCD my 6 ½ years-old daughter, is showing.

I would very much like to talk to you! There are ways to get much better!

So feel free to pm me, if you like.

[Anony]

Thanks everyone for your response. The only big thing I can think of that happened when I was 4 was moving to a new state, which triggered my parents to viciously fight constantly (even to this day). I never really thought an incident could trigger OCD, but I guess that makes a lot of sense. I'm sorry to hear that your daughter is showing signs of OCD so early as well (Poetrylover). It's good that you caught on to it early enough: maybe there is some way to prevent it from getting out of control before she gets older. Good luck to all of you.

[goldmaiden]

awww...that must be difficult!

I've never really had problems like that but i sympathise!

I think you have something there when you talk about moving to a new state at age 4 and your parents vicioius fighting. It might not sound like much to an adult, but to a little 4 year old girl it may have felt like everything was wildly out of control. OCD can be an attempt to feel control. It can get out of control itself and then cause problems way beyond the initial issues.

I hope you will consider speaking to a therapist soon. You have much to look forward to in your life, many things you would like to accomplish, and getting help with this will help free yourself to do what you want instead of being limited because your compulsions and obsessions.

ECHOES

[Perna]

I think all medical/mental conditions/symptoms are coping mechanisms of one sort or another (with the obvious exception of broken bones, etc.), sometimes to point out where there's a more serious problem and other times to help cope or distract from something else in our lives at that time. Too, there's a lot of genetic predispositions and traits that can be inherited, etc. I was a bit shy and "sweet" as a toddler, not quite anxious but with those tendencies and then my mother died. Just a little anxiety provoking to a 3 year old :-) I can see being 4 and being moved from all you know and having your parents start fighting all the time making you feel things were out of control and you trying to get them back in control. Yes, a doctor or therapist can probably be lots of comfort/help at this point.

[purd17]

I too remeber having ocd at a young age-counting things-turning the light of a certain number of times-touching things a certain number of times-always having that sence of dread that somthing bad would happen if i didnt do it.however i remeber one day saying enough i was about 15-and i was heading to the light switch and i said top my self-i have had it let something bad hapen i dont care-and sence then (although at ties i can feel myself want to do it) i have never let my mind(as i call it)control my thought anymore-but i will say that i have been married 15 yrs to a man that has it ,in the sence he is hording stuff-throws nothing away-touches the light swith a number of times-goes threw the garbage for fear something has been thrown out-and even understanding ocd-i get very frustrated-and have tried to talk to him about it-but he is in denial that anything is wrong with himi truly believe that past events in his life(father and brother commiting suicide) have led to this-but there is not much i can do until he admits he has a problem

[Maven]

I have severe OCD, and I am going through an eviction with my boyfriend, where the landlady wants us to do some things that I really can't handle with my OCD. I am going to talk to a lawyer about my rights, but my boyfriend and my mother don't want me to. My boyfriend doesn't want to start trouble, and my mom has always avoided starting trouble, but what's the point of having rights if you never use them? If the lawyer can't help, I'm going to shut up and just let them do whatever they want, even if it means I'll lose stuff I own and will suffer like hell for it. Everyone makes me feel guilty and makes me feel stupid (like my mom saying, "Why did you have to go and sign it?" about me signing the agreement for these conditions the landlady wants, but my boyfriend pressured me to sign it before he left for Thanksgiving vacation, even though I wanted time to think about it.) I feel like I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't.

OCD is a real lifesucker.