Scrupulosity? Do you have it?

Do any of you suffer from scrupulosity?

I'm not sure if I am giving a good definition of it but it has something to do with a person with OCD having very extreme anxiety over their religion.

droopy

I do not have it, but I read an article in the Observer (a UK Sunday paper) about it last weekend. As you say, it is OCD with a religious twist. The woman who wrote the article already had OCD before she discovered Jewish religious law whilst preparing for her Bat Mitzvah & then things got a lot worse as she tried to apply religious principles to every aspect of her life.
Sounds pretty tough.

Hi vulnerome,

It does sound pretty tough.

I don't have it or I guess I don't have it. I have tried to follow my religion so closely that it has become overwhelming for me. I always try to do everything perfectly and that is not possible. But try to convince me of that!

Thank you so much for the good information in your post. I wasn't sure I would get any responses.

droopy

Martin Luther had it, it's part of why he had to start his own religion -- he couldn't handle all the rituals and whatnot that go along with Catholicism.

Candy

This is an interesting subject.

My answer is pretty simple though. For people with OCD, religion can be just another way of being hard on ourselves.

Cheers, Myzen,

Hi candybear,

Your answer is very interesting!

When searching the Barnes and Noble website today on books about scrupulosity, I came up with several hits. One of them was a book entitled Understanding Scrupulosity: Helpful Answers for Those Who Experience Nagging Questions and Doubts. It was written by a Catholic priest.

Apparently, according to the publisher's review, tens of thousands of people, many Catholic, suffer from this condition.

It sounds like a very good book. I may purchase it.

droopy

Hi Myzen,

You hit the nail on the head!

I've not been diagnosed as having scrupulosity, but I'm very hard on myself about my faith. It certainly causes a lot of anxiety for me.

Thanks for your response!
droopy

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
Do any of you suffer from scrupulosity?

I'm not sure if I am giving a good definition of it but it has something to do with a person with OCD having very extreme anxiety over their religion.

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">

Say, haven't I seen you somewhere before?
~Mal

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
Say, haven't I seen you somewhere before?
~Mal

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">

I think I may know what you're talking about. I'll send you a PM.

I have had bouts of this problem, Droopy. It's miserable, but you can come out of it. I'd definitely read that book. There is also a newsletter you can subscribe to - it's written for Catholics, but it can probably apply to others as well. It's called Scrupulous Anonymous. It's free.

Carolyn

Hi Carolyn,

Is Scrupulous Anonymous an online newsletter or is it through snail mail? Do you have the address?

Thanks much!
droopy

Droopy--

I think that scrupulosity is pretty common in people with OCD. Several people at the OCD group I attend have this problem. A lot of the popular OCD books give advice on how to help yourself with this. (Brain Lock by Schwartz and the OCD Workbook by Bourne [I think!] are the two books we use in our group).

The "litmus test" that we use in our group is to compare our religious practices to those that are practiced by the average practitioner of our religions. One woman has gone in several times to talk to her priest about her practices and thoughts about them, and to get feedback about whether they are reasonable or not.

This is tough--good luck finding answers that work for you!

-apislily

Hi apislily,

Thanks for your response to my post!

I'm still trying to find out if I have scrupulosity. Strangely enough I have the book Brain Lock which was recommended to me when I was in outpatient care for bipolar disorder. I'll get it out and read it again.

I will definitely talk this over with my priest. As a matter of fact I may call him sometime this week. Our Orthodox mission is very small and we have a priest about twice a month.

It sure is tough! Even if I don't have scrupulosity, what I am doing (or should I say not doing) is very distressing to me. I want to do what is right so desperately but I just give up and do nothing. The guilt is crippling at times.

Thanks for the recommendations. All the best to you as you work through your OCD.

droopy

I had problems like these before the "bottom fell out" for me in my religious experience in my teens. I'd had what I believed to be a "born again" experience and a call from God, etc. at the age of 16. I went off to college to study theology and prepare to go into ministry and that's where it happened. (Droopy if you would reproduce that post from the other board which explains religious scrupolosity -- the one from the article -- it would be helpful here). It started just before my 2nd semester in college (age 17) and by the end of my sophomore year (age 18) it had pretty much destroyed my faith, though I was (desperate, wrung out, despairing at that point) still "going through the motions." I started having demonic visitations at night and Satan started talking to me and all this stuff, and in the first semester of my junior year I got kicked out of the school I was going to basically because I wouldn't shut up about it and I wouldn't pretend it wasn't happening to satisfy those who needed to see it "fixed" in order to hold onto THEIR faith ... I became a walking apocalyptic plague basically ... well all that was a long time ago but whenever I try to get involved with any authoritarian-based, behaviorally-oriented type of religious system now the very same issues and problems come up. I guess if people like me want to keep believing in God we have to become comfortable with the idea that we are destined to be "vessels of dishonor" that will be destroyed in the end. Given the level of internal torture I've suffered over all this crap, robbing me of REAL LIFE, sometimes existence has seemed to me like a very long-winded sales pitch for death (that's real death, end of consciousness and awareness permanently).

p.s. talking to me about this stuff doesn't do any good so don't try. I'm eviscerated inside -- this is nothing but a hologram (hollow gram) running pre-programmed communiqués which no longer have any meaning to myself because there is no longer any myself for them to have meaning for. It's literally like a ghost -- you're just seeing a hodgepodge collection -- a jumbled historical record/recording -- of past thoughts, feelings, mindsets, ideas, etc. that are no longer relevant or dynamic because they are just vacuous impressions where a person used to live, and the person is no longer among the living.

(((((((Mal))))))),

It's good to hear from you again!

I won't "preach" to you but I do care about what happened to you. It sounds horrible!

droopy

Hi All,

Someone shared this site with me regarding OCD and Scrupulosity. Hope this helps everyone.

http://www.ncpamd.com/scrup.htm

droopy

For quite a while, I was watching the Catholic television network and it was feeding into my scrupulosity. I talked to my aunt (a former nun) and she said they do not portray a healthy spirituality. It's all rules and regulations.

I hope I am obeying the rules about not talking religion that will offend anybody.

Just my opinion CMS39 but I think there's a vast difference between discussing one's own religion as it applies personally to one's own mental health and/or impacts one's mental illness, etc. than talking about "religion" in general in the sense of debating one religion against another, preaching and/or proselytizing. I really think the caveat is meant to be against that sort of thing or against people pushing one another to "turn to God" as the "solution" instead of exploring medical &amp; scientific (psychiatric/psychological) avenues to mental health. But you'd have to ask Doc John about that -- this is strictly my opinion &amp; "guess" -- I certainly can't speak for the whole forum or its creators/administrators!

That makes a lot sense. Thanks.