[Xora]

Hi, I'm a 17 year old female. I've been formally diagnosed with OCD and am on prescribed pills as a remedy, but that's where it ends.

Recently I've been having extreme problems with my OCD -- I am constantly feeling dirty, and I wash my face every time my fingers touch it. I shower often and scrub my skin until it's sore. I feel guilty for touching my skin, because the dirt from my fingers gets into my pores, even after I've washed my hands several times throughout the day. I pick at my acne, and having intrusive thoughts about cutting it from my skin.

I tidy my room at least once per day, even if my grandmother tells me it's already clean. And recently I've begun to sleep with a towel on top of my pillows, which I change every night, because I'm so paranoid of dirt. I'm trying to track the source of this, but it leads back to perfectionism. I can't stand having acne on my face, and it becomes an obsession to get rid of it, which ultimately has begun to induce anxiety and mess with my daily life. I don't know what I should be doing to prevent this. I normally have a psychologist I can speak to, but she's currently on maternity leave, so I have nothing and waiting is not doing me any good. Please help.

[kaliope]

xora
didn't your phd have a replacement for when she was gone? it is unusual for a T to just leave their patients without treatment. it sounds like you really need to talk to a professional to help reign in this thinking. doesn't sound like the meds are being of much use either. talk to pdoc about trying something different. take care.

[Xora]

Originally Posted by kaliope

xora
didn't your phd have a replacement for when she was gone? it is unusual for a T to just leave their patients without treatment. it sounds like you really need to talk to a professional to help reign in this thinking. doesn't sound like the meds are being of much use either. talk to pdoc about trying something different. take care.

thank you for the advice and I agree with you 100%. I'm waiting to get a referral to a psychiatrist in terms of the pills not working too well, but it's taking forever...I did manage to get a replacement for my psychologist, but it's next to impossible to get a hold of her. Lots of trouble getting to speak to someone.