[OCD_No3_Son]

My 10 year old son is OCD. We first brought him to see a doc two years ago because he had difficulty focusing at school. He was diagnosed as ADD. We explained to his psychiatrist that he does wash his hands frequently, he is germ phobic and that he was to wipe (after using the bathroom) 9 times, 3 times each. At the time, we thought he just had a little anxiety and some mild OCD like behaviors. He was put on Ritalin which the dr said it might calm his anxiety down. About 6 months ago, things started to escalate. His hand washing was getting out of control. His hands and wrist were bright red, cracked and bleeding. He wont wear certain clothes because he thinks the item is possessed and he will get possessed if he wears it. He hears voices in his head both negative and supportive. He can see images in his head very clearly ex: if he looks at a chair he can picture it in his head and make it talk. The bad voices will tell him that he needs to wash his hands because if he doesn't he will get back luck. They laugh at him when he messes up playing basketball. They tell him he is stupid. or he sucks. He also describes the main bad guy, as a person wearing a black suit, that is like a church guy. But he likes his friends "the supportive voices" they are mostly characters. But they laugh at his jokes, encourage him and cheer him on. He knows that they aren't real. He says he can hear them in his head. What I don't understand is the Dr. said this is classic OCD... but everything I have read points to audio hallucinations/schizophrenia. I am trying to find a behavior therapist but I also don't know what I should be looking for? What skills or schooling should they have?

[kaliope]

i would start by finding a new psychiatrist. ritalin is not the right meds to get rid of these voices. ritalin is a ADHD med. i have not even heard of it being used for OCD. i cant remember the med for OCD but i think it is an antidepressant and many of them have antianxiety qualities as the two go hand in hand. but the voices usually indicate psychosis which requires an antipsychotic. i had the same type of voices in my head. let me tell you how miserable they were to live with. by 16, they were telling me i just needed to die and by 18 i was listening. antipsychotics got rid of them immediately. my daughter was hearing voices as well. she took them for a couple months and they got rid of the voices right away for her. (she missed having her friends) she claims she no longer hears voices so it doesnt have to be a lifetime issue for your son. she was ocd as well and is much better with that too.

when it comes to counseling, you are looking for a phd, lcsw, or mft. what you want to do is sceen them and make sure that they have experience working with your child's disorder. make sure it is experience, not just knowledge. lots of therapist know about ocd and may have taken trainings but unless they have really worked with it, they arent really going to understand what your son is going through.

welcome to psych central. you will find we have several forums where you can post about your concerns and receive feedback from other members. you will get a lot of support here. again, welcome