ocd symptoms.....

So, I was just wondering if anyone had any advice/thoughts about what has been going through my head lately.... so here it goes: I am all about routines. I don't touch things repeatedly or stuff like that, but I have routines that I do in order to keep my anxiety a little more in control. and if I don't do them I get really bothered. So, my therapist says that as long as it is a healthy routine it is ok to do... so i have ones like my sleep routine, bathroom routine, etc. which makes going to sleep and the preparation to do so easier. since my body is like used to doing these things now, it is like i am conditioned to relax after the routines. I am wondering if I can start conditioning my body to relax with other things and if that would be unhealthy or worsen my condition. By conditioning my body to relax i mean-- for example-- the smell and tingling sensation of vicks vaporub is calming for me.... im wondering if it would help to like have a vicks humidifier by my bed, and use it every night, even if i am panicing and try to make myself go to sleep. i think after time my body would realize that the smell of vicks means relax and go to sleep.... seems like a good idea, but it would start another ritual. So i guess im not sure if i should start doing that or not. i have several other ideas like this that i could try to start doing to cope with different things, but again- i don't know if i should start them.. Anyone have any input?
thanks for listening! - Jess
im new to this and not sure if i am just supposed to go back and keep checking my posts to see if people respond or if it will tell me on my home page, or if there is another way to post that i should be doing for this sort of thing. so you can send me an actual message if you want. especially if you have any advice!

Hey, faintredfigure, Jess, welcome to PC. How you will know if there are responses depends on how you have your account/display and subscriptions set up under "My Profile" I think.

The routine thing, you might want to pay attention to more closely; what gets routinized now might not be so great when you're 82 or something :-) Kind of like people getting tattoos these days not thinking about when they get older and it doesn't seem apppropriate/isn't something they want.

I have a bathroom ritual and it is not always helpful, sometimes "gets in the way" (like when I am in the hospital/at the doctor's, etc.) so being aware of your rituals and possible effects in the future, you might want to weigh whether your OCD, which might lessen/get resolved in the future, whether the discomfort is worth being "stuck" with a habit that would be harder to change, especially after so many years.

Too, I would teach yourself to relax at your own "command"/control rather than from something outside you (the Vicks) in case it is not available. Think of relaxing pictures/activities/thoughts, etc. rather than have to set up a whole ritual.

Hello, faintredfigure. My doc actually dx me with OCD. I have routines, driving the same route to the same place makes me comfortable, ok so that one is a little out there but the rest I just concider organization. I'm a vicks freak too oddly, but I think that is a comfort thing from my childhood, plus I have very bad sinus, and the vaposteam rocks! (Rest of family doesn't really care for it, but mom knows best.)

The way my doc explained it to me (because I thought you had to be Monk in order to have OCD) is what is your reaction to NOT doing things the same way? Are you REALLY irriated, not really fun to live with just because one of your routines didn't happen? And does this last an unreasonable amount of time? Does it disrupt your life? Do your loved ones think you're being unreasonable?

I'm not a compulsive cleaner, I do not have a fear of germs (which I thought were mandatory for this disease) I just have a way of doing things that makes me comfortable, if there's road construction, or my husband decides to take a different route, I am a b with an ich. I don't mean to be and didn't really realize that it bothered me as much as it did until he pointed these things out.

I just figured that since I have a logical explanation (even if I'm not willing to share it) for 99.9% I do, it was normal. I thought EVERYONE had a way of doing things. I also have a problem with doing things on spur the moment. Does NOT happen.

I hope I've helped.