Is cleaning a compulsion?

Hello,
Okay so I'm almost 16 and I think I have a problem. See the thing is I clean non-stop all day everyday. If one thing is not in its place I freak out becuase I hate being messy, I hate things disorginized and it just drives me crazy. Everything has to be in a certian spot, everything has it's place. Everything has to be perfect 24/7. But what I'm asking is this turning into a problem? My siblings have told me that I compulsivly clean and sometimes yes I beilive them but I'm not really sure. I've just done this for so long so it seams natural to me ya know. So is this a problem or just normal?
Thanks so much,
Tinkerbellchick

There are a lot of house-wives who might have a problem very similar to yours but it really takes effeort to make out if they belongs to the same kind, namely, compulsive behavior.
my quiestion

Do you experience a mental pain( even to the slightest degree) when you see something not in place and want to put it where its belongs?

so far as i can see, you have that problem but its still a slight one.
Do you have a problem with the drawers or the moment when you shut a door and you might worry that its not shut properly?

keep us updated

(((((((((((((Tinkerbellchick )))))))))))))))))))
If your cleaning is becoming a bothersome thing for you then you may benefit from some therapy, plus you could find out there if it is a serious problem or not. Good luck.

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Behindthemoon said:
There are a lot of house-wives who might have a problem very similar to yours but it really takes effeort to make out if they belongs to the same kind, namely, compulsive behavior.
my quiestion

Do you experience a mental pain( even to the slightest degree) when you see something not in place and want to put it where its belongs?

so far as i can see, you have that problem but its still a slight one.
Do you have a problem with the drawers or the moment when you shut a door and you might worry that its not shut properly?

keep us updated

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

Behindthemoon
I don't think I experience any mental pain when something is out of place. I mean I don't really focous on something else untill I know it's put back to wear it belongs. But I'm not sure if you consider that a mental pain. I wouldn't consider one I don't think. I think it's normal to really neat clean and orginized. Like I said its natural to me but it takes so much out of you. I'm not even sure if I'm making sense but, Like I can't do anything unless my room is perfectly clean and orginized first. I don't leave my room in the morning untill I know its clean. I get so preocupid with things. I obses over being clean and orginized and my weight and food it's just all of that put together is emotionally draining.
Thanks for your advice,

Hi!
I just wanted to note that my husband was this way (now is medicated). It wasn't a problem when he lived alone, he could have things how he wanted. But after we got married and had kids it got to be a problem. (Kids can be somewhat messy! ) Anyway I think it becomes a problem if, like others have said, it causes you too much anxiety or gets in the way of living. It also can become a problem when you have to compromise, work with others who may not be that way. His cleaning got out of hand and in the way for the rest of the family (cleaning always came first). But, he did get on medication and is doing better now (he can be a downright slob sometimes!)

Also, my 14 year old son has the same thing as you do. His room is perfectly organized, everything has a place, One night he couldn't go to bed because his scissors weren't in the right place, we had to search everywhere, and when I moved something to look for them, and didn't get it precisely back in the right spot (I'm talking millimeters) he would adjust it. I think he has had some problems in school due to having to have things (numbers) lined up perfectly. It hasn't gotten to interfering with his life too much, and I've always told him to let me know if he needs to work on it.

Hope this helps.
Take care.

I am not currently on medication for OCD, the question my doctor submitted to me is “does it affect your life, and to what degree” since my rituals are manageable to my family and I medication is not needed at this time. My daughter calls my behavior “being a mom”.

If this is natural to you and does not prevent you from living a “normal” life it isn’t a problem at this time. If on the other hand you find yourself so distracted at school on a regular basis because you couldn’t find ____, then I’d definitely speak to a doctor. If it interferes with your social life on a regular basis I’d speak to a doctor. I think all of us at one time or another have misplaced something and it drives us crazy until we find it. But if that turns into a regular thing, it becomes a problem.

My grandmother is a prime example of someone letting their cleaning routine rule her whole life, and by default the rest of her family. She never drove and the nearest grocery stores, banks, and department stores are 30 miles away, so it is a bit of a project to go shopping. My mother did her running on Thursday afternoons, my Aunt on Saturdays. It has been that way my entire life, but my grandmother was unable to fit either of those weekly runs into her schedule. Nor would she make a list and let them pick stuff up for her. She had cleaning to do (she lived alone with no pets), until that cleaning was done for the day, she wasn’t budging. So inevitably my mother would get a call that my grandmother was out of groceries, medications or something and needed to go NOW. If my mother had something going on that day and suggested that they go the next day, my grandmother would say that she didn’t have time the next day, she was cleaning out her shed, garage, closet or some other thing that anyone else would/could put off. She has to go NOW.

She missed out on a lot of things because her compulsion ruled her life.

Every action has a positive intention. Try this experiment: Begin a journal. Don't clean for an entire day. Experiment with letting things get a little out of control. Then you can look at it objectively and see how much of a problem it is.

There are two sides to perfectionism.