Jump to content

OCD


[Gm...]

Recommended Posts

Can any of you please fill me in on OCD alternative treatments. I am not familiar with this very common disorder, and I have no clue if there is alternate treatments. I know it is a form of anxiety ( which I suffer from) and I don't think what I was taught to battle my anxiety would have the same effect. Maybe the distraction method would work, but not the breathing techniques.

 

From Wikipedia:

 

 

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts that produce anxiety, by repetitive behaviors aimed at reducing anxiety, or by a combination of such thoughts (obsessions) and behaviors (compulsions). Symptoms may include repetitive hand-washing; extensive hoarding; preoccupation with sexual or aggressive impulses, or with particular religious beliefs; aversion to odd numbers; and nervous habits, such as opening a door and closing it a certain number of times before one enters or leaves a room. These symptoms can be alienating and time-consuming, and often cause severe emotional and economic loss. The acts of those who have OCD may appear paranoid and come across to others as psychotic. However, OCD sufferers generally recognize their thoughts and subsequent actions as irrational, and they may become further distressed by this realization.

 

OCD is the fourth-most common mental disorder and is diagnosed nearly as often as asthma and diabetes mellitus.[1] In the United States, one in 50 adults have OCD.[2] The phrase "obsessive–compulsive" has become part of the English lexicon, and is often used in an informal or caricatured manner to describe someone who is meticulous, perfectionistic, absorbed in a cause, or otherwise fixated on something or someone.[3] Although these signs may be present in OCD, a person who exhibits them does not necessarily have OCD, and may instead have obsessive–compulsive personality disorder (OCPD), an autism spectrum disorder, or no clinical condition. Multiple psychological and biological factors may be involved in causing obsessive–compulsive syndromes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know anything about OCD - other than it is an anxiety disorder - but am going to be watching the new A&E series, "Obsessed".  They had a similar series on people with difficult phobias and I was fascinated by what the treatment plans were.  Not everyone could go along with their plan, but those that did got better.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know anything about OCD - other than it is an anxiety disorder - but am going to be watching the new A&E series, "Obsessed".  They had a similar series on people with difficult phobias and I was fascinated by what the treatment plans were.  Not everyone could go along with their plan, but those that did got better.

 

That show looks interesting.

 

I guess OCD is a tough subject. I wish I knew how to address it with alternative tricks. I will have to research online.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gman7470, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is the best treatment for OCD.  Better than meds, they say.  Google it and you will get a lot of information.  Best, ~~mbr
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank for putting me in the right direction mbr. This is interesting, better then drugs! Im sure the pharmaceuticals don't want to hear that!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank for putting me in the right direction mbr. This is interesting, better then drugs! Im sure the pharmaceuticals don't want to hear that!

 

No, I'm SURE they don't!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello Gman,

 

In my 20's, was diagnosed with Panic Disorder and OCD. The OCD I have had, ever since I can remember. You know, that kid with the chemistry set, Lego's and puzzles. The one that has their mother kick them out of the house to go outside and play. In my youth seemed to handle the OCD very well, although every time I had a cut or broken bone, thoughts of the worst crept in, like bone cancer or some rare blood disease.

The Klonopin that I was taking helped for panic, but didn't really help to much with OCD. I think the Doc's really have no idea how to treat it.

There were times just watching a movie and I would see a violent act and wondered if that act was in me. Things like that would just eat at me.

I would ask myself why I would even think such a thing and obsess for weeks about it. I could give you more examples, but believe you have the idea. I'm no expert on how to treat it, but will share my thoughts on how I was able to basically beat it.

Did you ever think about people like Mozart, Beethoven,Tesla, Einstein, great poets or musicians? My thought is, although they were gifted, they had to obsess about coming to a conclusion on all their great works.

For me I approach it this way, problem, action, solution.

When the OCD hits if I'm at work, being a automated machine programmer I try to think how to make the machine process run smoother. Basically I reinvented some programming. When asked who made the changes to the process, I said nothing fearing they didn't like it, but they did.

When at home, when it hits I try to study history, battles, government, mathematics..etc. There was even a time when I studied water quality for my Koi pond, so I now have the healthiest, clearest water for the fish.

I now kinda welcome the OCD, just so I can learn something new. All this took me about 5yrs to accomplish.

This probably won't work for everyone, but it may work for some.

 

Take care,

Mikey

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I watched "Obsessed" last night on A&E and the therapists used CBT with all 4 people profiled.  All of them had some kind of compulsion, which apparently is the most common form of OCD, but since CBT is also the best therapy for anxiety, I imagine it works similarly for other types of OCD.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

thanks byby,

 

Very Interesting Story. It sure sheds some light on the things I wanted to know about OCD.  :thumbsup:

 

Is it safe to say  people diagnosed with OCD ignore the fact that OCD is making them fixated on 1 or 2 imaginary issues over and over and over?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

bybymatrix, I do that same annoying thing of panickign "what if i were capable of doing something bad" and I know good and well I would never do it, but I panick anyway and plus worrry what if I go cxrazy then wouldn't know what i was doing.  OCD is so annoying.  All i know is try CBT also.  It doesn't seem to totally get rid of it, but possibly it's helped some.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

thanks byby,

 

Very Interesting Story. It sure sheds some light on the things I wanted to know about OCD.  :thumbsup:

 

Is it safe to say  people diagnosed with OCD ignore the fact that OCD is making them fixated on 1 or 2 imaginary issues over and over and over?

 

No, it isn't. OCDers (like myself) are aware of this, it's just hard to focus on something else when it happens. We definitely don't ignore anything--that would imply a conscious choice.

 

You've probably experienced it before. You have this worrying thought that you know is illogical, but you can't get it out of your head. I believe it's usually called "intrusive thoughts" here. The CBT technique you have to learn is ignoring the thought when it first starts(which actually weakens it) rather than trying to stop it (which causes you to think about it).

 

To show how hard it is to do, I like this classic example: Don't think of a pink bunny. Impossible, right? To not think about it, you have to think about it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The way I took Gmans reply was, although I was very aware of those thoughts, I failed to realize how much they were controlling me.

 

Sounds like you had a good Doctor to help you

 

 

 

You've probably experienced it before. You have this worrying thought that you know is illogical, but you can't get it out of your head. I believe it's usually called "intrusive thoughts" here. The CBT technique you have to learn is ignoring the thought when it first starts(which actually weakens it) rather than trying to stop it (which causes you to think about it).

And I agree with this 100%

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I always know what I'm doing, but that doesn't mean it's easy to stop.  I've always been smart at noticing patterns, but then for some reason it's difficult to stop them.  And really a lot of my "problem" is this type of thing.  I'll obsess over something that does me no good to obsess over.  Although lately I've obsessed about something important... Although now it won't do any good to worry about that either.

 

Overall I feel great though.  I think I'm better at shifting focus than I was.  Since getting off the benzos I've felt awesome most days and I think my brain is more able to change things I want to change.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The way I took Gmans reply was, although I was very aware of those thoughts, I failed to realize how much they were controlling me.

 

Well, yeah, I agree with that.

 

Sounds like you had a good Doctor to help you

 

Sure did. The best. If only my medicaid didn't stop paying for him. :(

 

Also, the CBT technique I mentioned even gets really hard for me in withdrawal. It's like I'm having to relearn all the CBT techniques, and that I'm having to work a lot more to apply them. When it works, it's awesome, though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...