Anyone diagnosed with OCD?

[portkey]

:imbari have read several articles and even have an ocd workbook. i have not been diagnosed yet... but i am certain that i have it. for one, i can hardly read the workbood b/c i get "stuck" on words and sentences. it could take me 20 minutes to read one page. i read the words over and over. i understand the words and the sentences, but strongly feel that i have to go back and read them again and again. this is so frustrating. i love to read. when i was young, i could read a book easily in a week. now it takes me months to finish a book. i have tried several different meds. but as i said, i have never been fully diagnosed. i really think that i am at the point of needing therapy. i also have the counting thing going on. for instance when applying make up or turning off a light switch - i will count in my head while performing simple tasks.

frustrated!!!!!!!

[smartshoppinmama]

Yeah I figured that a lot of nurses themselves have stress-disorders. I myself have an anxiety disorder and I going back to therapy. You gotta do what you gotta do you know. I figure that if I got to therapy and deal with all this, maybe do some Cognitive Behavioral Therapy then I will be of better use to my patients and family.

[Journey_On, BSN, RN]

I have OCD (haven't been officially diagnosed currently), but mostly with compulsive hand-washing due to my fear and extreme dislike of germs. I've probably had a mild form of OCD for at least 2 years now, but the compulsive hand-washing has never been as bad as it is now.

I also have the re-reading thing, too. I will dwell on a sentence or a paragraph and keep re-reading it, sometimes even if I understood what it said - which means that it takes me a while to read something. When I turn the pages, I check the page number to make sure I don't skip a page.

My OCD causes me anxiety and frustration as well. I think I would benefit from therapy and possibly meds, but I am trying to avoid that as much as I can because I have been there, done that (and maybe quit the meds prematurely, on my part) and as a student, I don't have much free time. I don't know if I would be willing to go to therapy right now either.

If you feel like your OCD is causing you much frustration, I think that you could explore options for treatment. It is worth it to get help! Hope things go well.

[lamazeteacher]

At the risk of sounding like a lecturer........

Remember that the lawyer, doctor, or nurse who treats themselves, has a fool for a client/patient.......

Anxiety follows any fear, and unless you have been diagnosed and treated by a specialist in the field of psychology/psychiatry, you should get that ASAP, rather than "spin your wheels" worrying.

OCD, as other posts indicate can be very mild to severe. The indicator of need for help, is how much time is taken up by the disorder. Counting is good when washing hands, and all healthcare workers ought to do that or sing a song while washing their hands before and after touching things in patients' rooms, or the patient. Unfortunately that does carry over to home activities, and since I am always washing my hands before preparing food, after using the bathroom, etc., my son acquired the habit and has rough, red hands - but neither of us has hospital transmitted infections.

There are positive aspects to being somewhat compulsive, such as preparing meds and giving them correctly, counting the seconds when passing a stationery object while driving, to be sure you're not tailgating, etc.

Being a slow reader isn't harmful, but it can be upsetting, unless you enjoy what you're reading. I like to return to a part of a story I liked, or something I didn't thoroughly understand, or just to see how a word is used/spelled. I say I'm a slow reader.

Just as love is unconditional between you and others, it's important to accept yourself unconditionally in order to accept good things and foibles in behavior.