OCDs? - Empty Closets - A safe online community for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered people coming out

MisterMason · 23rd May 2011, 08:40 PM

Has anyone else had some obsessive compulsions? If so what were they?

As for me, I had obsessive compulsions having to do with the number 4. It affected my blinking, breathing, walking, touching, and I even started having these weird hand twitches I did compulsively. But it stopped when I was around 10 or 11.

NoPlanB · 23rd May 2011, 09:15 PM

I get really OCD about clocks and time. When I'm in a room with a clock I can't take my eyes off it. It's pretty bad.

I also get OCD about really small noises and will go crazy even at the slightest sound. :P

**Martin** · 23rd May 2011, 09:18 PM

I have to check things. I can't sleep or relax if I haven't checked that doors are locked, lights are switched off or that I've turned the electricity off somewhere.

My most frequent one is checking whether I have locked the front door and switched all the lights off. It's not unusual for me to go back when I know that I checked and it was all fine, but I still have to do it anyway. I also have a little routine of checking doors 10 times before I go. I'll test the handle 5 times, put the key on my pocket, and then check another 5 times before leaving. >.<

MisterMason · 23rd May 2011, 09:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin

I have to check things. I can't sleep or relax if I haven't checked that doors are locked, lights are switched off or that I've turned the electricity off somewhere.

My most frequent one is checking whether I have locked the front door and switched all the lights off. It's not unusual for me to go back when I know that I checked and it was all fine, but I still have to do it anyway. I also have a little routine of checking doors 10 times before I go. I'll test the handle 5 times, put the key on my pocket, and then check another 5 times before leaving. >.<

That seems kinda normal at least.

Random Dent · 23rd May 2011, 09:56 PM

I have Pure-O OCD (Intrusive thoughts). Mostly I fear harming others and myself; I fear turning into a pedophile; I fear going crazy/schizophrenic; and I have had intrusive sexual thoughts about....people....I can't say. I did not enjoy the thoughts and I was, literally, in hell for almost five years.

I'm taking Prozac (20mg) now and things are soooo much better. I can control my intrusive thoughts much easier....though I do still have to sleep with my headphones on.

Markio · 23rd May 2011, 10:37 PM

I do not have obsessive-compulsive disorder, but I often do this thing in parking lots. I imagine the lines in between the spaces extending outward and across my path of walking, and I try not to step on where the line would fall. Or I try to take the same amount of steps within each space. Usually I'll realize I'm being weird and can stop. I look up or away from the ground so I don't notice the lines.

Z3ni · 24th May 2011, 06:46 AM

I have OCD with my appearance, and when I look at the clock and away from it, I forget what time it was so I look at it again.. then again.. & again lol

And I used to move my eyes in "inifinite" motion

Connor22 · 24th May 2011, 06:51 AM

I get pretty OCD about loads of things, even numbers, those long and short tiles on the footpath, I can only stand on the long ones, the pathway to my house is like all small stones in like an interlocking pattern and I can only stand on ones that make a decent diagonal, it's hard to explain without being able to show, I get really worked up about letting people down which isn't helpful at all, I get all worked up about cleaning too, sometimes I just need to clean everything around me and it all has to be accurate and neat and such :/ I'm weird also I'm OCD about my teeth and jaw, it's misshapen at the back and I can dislocate it on one side at will and I do that when stressed also I grind my teeth. wow I have a lot.

whiterosebeka · 24th May 2011, 07:55 AM

clean. its either really immaculately cleaned, or really trashy.
after i take a bite of food, and there is still food on the fork and i'm going for something different, i have to clean the fork off.
when i'm doing dishes, everything has a certain order in the dishwasher and i have a certain routine with what dishes are first and what not.
if i have a pimple with a white head, it has to be popped or i sit there and scratch at it.

Kerze · 24th May 2011, 08:53 AM

I have an obsession with the number three. I arrange things into threes, I eat things in multiples of three and I do things (turning off lights, plugs locking and unlocking the door) three times.
I also have to turn off plug sockets which are switched on but have nothing in them. My registration class at school is in a science lab with tables grouped around plug sockets and people think it's hilarious to keep turning them on to see me panic and turn them off. It wasn't so funny when I pushed the guy of his stool and kicked him in the stomach.
I got the teacher wasn't there so I wasn't in detention or anything but the dude stopped doing it pretty dam fats after that.
I also can't sleep until I've tidied my room, put everything in its place, vacuumed, dusted and made my bed before getting in it (I make my bed every morning, but I re do it again before I go to sleep)

bouncingsouls · 24th May 2011, 09:32 AM

I have problems with facial ticks :L at the moment i'm in control of them, but I catch myself doing them sometimes and I have to stop at once or I know i'll start again. Its really weird looking stuff, flexing the muscles in one side of my neck one side of my lip gets pulled down. I also like really scrunching my nose up. And I have more than a bit of a trout mouth and I get real obsessive about like, the bottom of my lip touching my chin. Oh, and rolling my eyes as far as I can. How freaky looking do I now sound? In all fairness i've never had more than two together, and for the last five years or so i've been in control of it. Before I didn't even know I was doing it, other kids used to take the piss so much! Actually, so did my mam, she used to do impressions of me.

malachite · 24th May 2011, 09:36 AM

When I was a teen had an issue with being used before opening a new one.

Like with water jugs, if someone used water from a full one when there was 1/2 empty, I'd have to take the 1/2 empty one and fill up what was used from the full one.

And, the volume on the TV or Radio had to be on a divisible of 5, it would drive me nuts if it was at 11 or 4 or 19 it HAD to a divisible of 5, it just seemed right.

I out grew this though, I think all the crazy stress of growing up can do odd things to you.

I out grew that though.

Pseudojim · 24th May 2011, 09:38 PM

I used to have issues but overcame them.

For a few years i would obsessively tap out the staccato-rhythm of the syllables of anyone's speech (including my own) with the fingers on my right hand. I still catch myself doing it sometimes, but it's not a problem any more.

alan t · 24th May 2011, 09:53 PM

I wash my hands a million times a day. And volumes have to be set on even numbers.

steel03 · 24th May 2011, 10:33 PM

I have OCD. I catch myself doing things in fours (or until I feel satisfied). So that means blinking, touching, breathing, etc. All kinds of stuff. I also need things to be even, especially on my person. So, for example, if I itch my right ear with my left hand, I need to itch my left ear with my right hand to balance it out. When I'm playing piano (which happens often), I have to keep correcting my mistakes over and over until I'm satisfied. And sometimes I'll feel like I need to "itch" something and I have to make my brain imagine satisfying that need (like maybe someone talks about a tropical island, and for whatever reason, I decide I need to "itch" the back of the palm tree I'm imagining, I have to imagine it turning around and then I have to isolate the spot that needs my attention - good lord, this makes me sound crazy). I also correct grammar under my breath, though I'm trying to quit this one), by saying the word or phrase before the mistake, the correction, and the word or phrase after the mistake.
And remember the Game? The one where you lose if you think about it? I have a legitimate excuse to not feel obligated to participate, that being that my OCD latched on to it in about ninth grade and it started taking over my life.
Then there are the little rituals, you know.
I don't have that many obsessions, but I definitely remember crying myself to sleep one night in high school because I was sure my mom was going to die of skin cancer overnight (she didn't actually even have skin cancer).
One thing I can't stand is when people don't understand what OCD actually is. There's a huge difference between being anal and having OCD. I don't care much about alphabetical order, although it is a handy way to sort things, and it's fine with me if there are a couple pencils out of place on my desk. OCD is deeper than just wanting things to look a certain way. It translates in your brain as a need, not a desire. Like if this doesn't happen, the world will fall apart.

WOW, I promise I'm a normal person. Seeing it all listed out like this makes me want to take more steps against it.

Aya McCabre · 25th May 2011, 08:24 PM

I seem to have a couple of OCD type tendencies that show up when my depression gets bad. The most intrusive one is breathing - when I'm in the car what I see out the window has an effect on when I can breathe and when I can't, and if it's breathing in or breathing out.
Also a couple of random rules when there are different colours or materials on the floor. I think they're quite common ones (? I've heard them from a couple of unrelated sources but never actually looked it up) and they don't seem to change with my mood. They're not always there, but I can't say when they will be and when they won't.

thecolorofstars · 25th May 2011, 09:14 PM

I haven't been diagnosed, but that's because it only gets really bad when I get stressed out (and my parents don't have the cash to pay for more medications). Everything has to be even. If tap my right middle finger on my right leg seven times, I have to tap my left middle finger on my left leg seven times. Also, sometimes I have to even something out or organize it. Like line up a stack of books so they're all organized alphabetically and stacked perfectly in line. Which is ridiculous because when I carry around books at school, they're a huge mess.

Ghostly · 25th May 2011, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin

I have to check things. I can't sleep or relax if I haven't checked that doors are locked, lights are switched off or that I've turned the electricity off somewhere.

My most frequent one is checking whether I have locked the front door and switched all the lights off. It's not unusual for me to go back when I know that I checked and it was all fine, but I still have to do it anyway. I also have a little routine of checking doors 10 times before I go. I'll test the handle 5 times, put the key on my pocket, and then check another 5 times before leaving. >.<

Omg I totally do that^ 0_0

I also wash my hands alot, also everything has to be properly placed? for example, if I see a pencil kinda pointing diagonal I have to put it straight XD

RenegadeSappho · 26th May 2011, 02:20 PM

My OCD was washing my hands because I believed they got filthy every time I thought about sexual predators... I washed and washed until they cracked and bled, it was embarrassing and so hard to explain. Another form it took was everytime I had a bad thought, it was as if my saliva turned to poison and I had to get rid of it. There were places I couldn't go into and things I couldn't touch because of imaginary germs or negative associations. OCD is a living hell when it becomes acute and I nearly committed suicide to get out of my own head. You MUST have therapy along with meds for OCD that is so severe it inhibits your lifestyle. Mine has been well controlled for 10 years now, but people who tend to obsess to process new info never really lose that, and that's ok. But take heart, I don't even need medication now because it was so well treated, there is hope :-)

**Chandra** · 26th May 2011, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steel03

There's a huge difference between being anal and having OCD.

This. OCD isn't the same as being hyper-concerned about cleanliness and tidiness, or being forgetful and having to check things over and over. These can be symptoms of OCD, but there's a lot more to it than that. If you think of your little "tics" as merely being funny, cute, or harmlessly weird, you probably don't have OCD.

I suffered full-blown OCD from adolescence until my early or mid-twenties. My intrusive thoughts were mainly about my parents dying, usually in a car accident but sometimes in other horrible ways. I had rituals, counting, repeated phrases, twitching, etc. I managed to mostly cure myself of it, although I still get the odd little episode now and then.

I have also suffered from acne-related dermatillomania for about 20 years, although I now have that mostly under control too.

23rd May 2011, 08:40 PM	#1
MisterMason Kitty boy Regular Member Gender: Boy Orientation: Gay Out Status: Out to everyone Location: California Age: 19 Posts: 40 Join Date: May 2011	OCDs? Has anyone else had some obsessive compulsions? If so what were they? As for me, I had obsessive compulsions having to do with the number 4. It affected my blinking, breathing, walking, touching, and I even started having these weird hand twitches I did compulsively. But it stopped when I was around 10 or 11. __________________

23rd May 2011, 09:15 PM	#2
NoPlanB This is a warning, a courtesy call Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Homoromantic asexual Out Status: Still in the closet Location: Michigan Age: 20 Posts: 289 Join Date: Dec 2010	Re: OCDs? I get really OCD about clocks and time. When I'm in a room with a clock I can't take my eyes off it. It's pretty bad. I also get OCD about really small noises and will go crazy even at the slightest sound. :P __________________ We all want to be somebody We just need a taste of who we are We all want to be somebody We're willing to go, but not that far

23rd May 2011, 09:18 PM	#3
Martin EC's Red Queen EC Admin Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: Some people Location: Merseyside, UK Age: 21 Posts: 8,047 Join Date: Nov 2007	Re: OCDs? I have to check things. I can't sleep or relax if I haven't checked that doors are locked, lights are switched off or that I've turned the electricity off somewhere. My most frequent one is checking whether I have locked the front door and switched all the lights off. It's not unusual for me to go back when I know that I checked and it was all fine, but I still have to do it anyway. I also have a little routine of checking doors 10 times before I go. I'll test the handle 5 times, put the key on my pocket, and then check another 5 times before leaving. >.< __________________ The blue whale ejaculates up to 40 gallons during sexual intercourse, but only 10 gallons enters the female. Do you still wonder why the sea tastes salty?

23rd May 2011, 09:56 PM	#5
Random Dent Liebe ist für alle da! Full Member Gender: Female Orientation: La la la ladies Out Status: I don't care who knows Location: California Age: 27 Posts: 1,692 Join Date: Feb 2011	Re: OCDs? I have Pure-O OCD (Intrusive thoughts). Mostly I fear harming others and myself; I fear turning into a pedophile; I fear going crazy/schizophrenic; and I have had intrusive sexual thoughts about....people....I can't say. I did not enjoy the thoughts and I was, literally, in hell for almost five years. I'm taking Prozac (20mg) now and things are soooo much better. I can control my intrusive thoughts much easier....though I do still have to sleep with my headphones on. __________________ No government has the right to tell its citizens when or whom to love. The only queer people are those who don't love anybody Rita Mae Brown

23rd May 2011, 10:37 PM	#6
Markio EC Addict Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: Family, friends, and staff! Location: California Age: 21 Posts: 1,139 Join Date: Oct 2008	Re: OCDs? I do not have obsessive-compulsive disorder, but I often do this thing in parking lots. I imagine the lines in between the spaces extending outward and across my path of walking, and I try not to step on where the line would fall. Or I try to take the same amount of steps within each space. Usually I'll realize I'm being weird and can stop. I look up or away from the ground so I don't notice the lines. __________________ Celebrate diversity!

24th May 2011, 06:46 AM	#7
Z3ni Ec's ADD Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gayish Out Status: My Twin Location: England, Manchester Posts: 3,080 Join Date: Oct 2008	Re: OCDs? I have OCD with my appearance, and when I look at the clock and away from it, I forget what time it was so I look at it again.. then again.. & again lol And I used to move my eyes in "inifinite" motion __________________ Through pain, lies success.

24th May 2011, 06:51 AM	#8
Connor22 Stopped being (as) vague Full Member Gender: yes Orientation: up the bender Out Status: burned Narnia :D Location: Norn Iron Age: 17 Posts: 1,547 Join Date: Nov 2009	Re: OCDs? I get pretty OCD about loads of things, even numbers, those long and short tiles on the footpath, I can only stand on the long ones, the pathway to my house is like all small stones in like an interlocking pattern and I can only stand on ones that make a decent diagonal, it's hard to explain without being able to show, I get really worked up about letting people down which isn't helpful at all, I get all worked up about cleaning too, sometimes I just need to clean everything around me and it all has to be accurate and neat and such :/ I'm weird also I'm OCD about my teeth and jaw, it's misshapen at the back and I can dislocate it on one side at will and I do that when stressed also I grind my teeth. wow I have a lot. __________________ Kindness is a gift. Share it. Last edited by Connor22; 24th May 2011 at 06:55 AM..

24th May 2011, 07:55 AM	#9
whiterosebeka Well Known Full Member Gender: Female Orientation: Lesbian Out Status: Out to everyone Location: Greenville, SC Age: 22 Posts: 188 Join Date: May 2011	Re: OCDs? clean. its either really immaculately cleaned, or really trashy. after i take a bite of food, and there is still food on the fork and i'm going for something different, i have to clean the fork off. when i'm doing dishes, everything has a certain order in the dishwasher and i have a certain routine with what dishes are first and what not. if i have a pimple with a white head, it has to be popped or i sit there and scratch at it. __________________ You've crossed the finish line, won the race but lost your mind. Was it worth it after all? I need you here with me, cause love is all we need. Just take a hold of the hand that breaks the fall. I know that I'm no Superman

24th May 2011, 08:53 AM	#10
Kerze Formerly Concretehands Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: two Location: London Town Age: 17 Posts: 1,297 Join Date: Aug 2010	Re: OCDs? I have an obsession with the number three. I arrange things into threes, I eat things in multiples of three and I do things (turning off lights, plugs locking and unlocking the door) three times. I also have to turn off plug sockets which are switched on but have nothing in them. My registration class at school is in a science lab with tables grouped around plug sockets and people think it's hilarious to keep turning them on to see me panic and turn them off. It wasn't so funny when I pushed the guy of his stool and kicked him in the stomach. I got the teacher wasn't there so I wasn't in detention or anything but the dude stopped doing it pretty dam fats after that. I also can't sleep until I've tidied my room, put everything in its place, vacuumed, dusted and made my bed before getting in it (I make my bed every morning, but I re do it again before I go to sleep) __________________ Please Understand. We don't want no trouble, we just want the right to be different. That's all. - Pulp/Different Class

24th May 2011, 09:32 AM	#11
bouncingsouls Well Known Regular Member Gender: Ftm Orientation: Gay Out Status: You guys :) Location: Cambridge, UK Posts: 155 Join Date: Jul 2009	Re: OCDs? I have problems with facial ticks :L at the moment i'm in control of them, but I catch myself doing them sometimes and I have to stop at once or I know i'll start again. Its really weird looking stuff, flexing the muscles in one side of my neck one side of my lip gets pulled down. I also like really scrunching my nose up. And I have more than a bit of a trout mouth and I get real obsessive about like, the bottom of my lip touching my chin. Oh, and rolling my eyes as far as I can. How freaky looking do I now sound? In all fairness i've never had more than two together, and for the last five years or so i've been in control of it. Before I didn't even know I was doing it, other kids used to take the piss so much! Actually, so did my mam, she used to do impressions of me.

24th May 2011, 09:36 AM	#12
malachite EC's realist Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: Out to everyone Location: Orlando Posts: 6,480 Join Date: Apr 2009	Re: OCDs? When I was a teen had an issue with being used before opening a new one. Like with water jugs, if someone used water from a full one when there was 1/2 empty, I'd have to take the 1/2 empty one and fill up what was used from the full one. And, the volume on the TV or Radio had to be on a divisible of 5, it would drive me nuts if it was at 11 or 4 or 19 it HAD to a divisible of 5, it just seemed right. I out grew this though, I think all the crazy stress of growing up can do odd things to you. I out grew that though. __________________ It's the 21st century, your bigotry is outdated. Either upgrade or go away.

24th May 2011, 09:38 PM	#13
Pseudojim Part robot Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Bi - Kinsey 2ish Out Status: All but family Location: Australia Age: 27 Posts: 2,154 Join Date: Sep 2009	Re: OCDs? I used to have issues but overcame them. For a few years i would obsessively tap out the staccato-rhythm of the syllables of anyone's speech (including my own) with the fingers on my right hand. I still catch myself doing it sometimes, but it's not a problem any more.

24th May 2011, 09:53 PM	#14
alan t EC Addict Regular Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: A few people Location: ontario, canada Age: 27 Posts: 340 Join Date: Jun 2010	Re: OCDs? I wash my hands a million times a day. And volumes have to be set on even numbers.

24th May 2011, 10:33 PM	#15
steel03 EC Addict Full Member Gender: Male Orientation: Gay Out Status: mission accomplished Location: Iowa Age: 20 Posts: 480 Join Date: Jan 2011	Re: OCDs? I have OCD. I catch myself doing things in fours (or until I feel satisfied). So that means blinking, touching, breathing, etc. All kinds of stuff. I also need things to be even, especially on my person. So, for example, if I itch my right ear with my left hand, I need to itch my left ear with my right hand to balance it out. When I'm playing piano (which happens often), I have to keep correcting my mistakes over and over until I'm satisfied. And sometimes I'll feel like I need to "itch" something and I have to make my brain imagine satisfying that need (like maybe someone talks about a tropical island, and for whatever reason, I decide I need to "itch" the back of the palm tree I'm imagining, I have to imagine it turning around and then I have to isolate the spot that needs my attention - good lord, this makes me sound crazy). I also correct grammar under my breath, though I'm trying to quit this one), by saying the word or phrase before the mistake, the correction, and the word or phrase after the mistake. And remember the Game? The one where you lose if you think about it? I have a legitimate excuse to not feel obligated to participate, that being that my OCD latched on to it in about ninth grade and it started taking over my life. Then there are the little rituals, you know. I don't have that many obsessions, but I definitely remember crying myself to sleep one night in high school because I was sure my mom was going to die of skin cancer overnight (she didn't actually even have skin cancer). One thing I can't stand is when people don't understand what OCD actually is. There's a huge difference between being anal and having OCD. I don't care much about alphabetical order, although it is a handy way to sort things, and it's fine with me if there are a couple pencils out of place on my desk. OCD is deeper than just wanting things to look a certain way. It translates in your brain as a need, not a desire. Like if this doesn't happen, the world will fall apart. WOW, I promise I'm a normal person. Seeing it all listed out like this makes me want to take more steps against it.

25th May 2011, 08:24 PM	#16
Aya McCabre Beware of the Metaphor Full Member Gender: Female Orientation: Lesbian Out Status: Out to everyone Location: Dunedin, New Zealand Age: 21 Posts: 613 Join Date: Feb 2011	Re: OCDs? I seem to have a couple of OCD type tendencies that show up when my depression gets bad. The most intrusive one is breathing - when I'm in the car what I see out the window has an effect on when I can breathe and when I can't, and if it's breathing in or breathing out. Also a couple of random rules when there are different colours or materials on the floor. I think they're quite common ones (? I've heard them from a couple of unrelated sources but never actually looked it up) and they don't seem to change with my mood. They're not always there, but I can't say when they will be and when they won't. __________________ Time is on my side she said. He may be on your side I said, but it makes no difference in the end, He's coming after you my friend........

25th May 2011, 09:14 PM	#17
thecolorofstars Raxacoricofallapatorius Regular Member Gender: Female Orientation: Bisexual Out Status: They don't take me seriously. Posts: 11 Join Date: May 2011	Re: OCDs? I haven't been diagnosed, but that's because it only gets really bad when I get stressed out (and my parents don't have the cash to pay for more medications). Everything has to be even. If tap my right middle finger on my right leg seven times, I have to tap my left middle finger on my left leg seven times. Also, sometimes I have to even something out or organize it. Like line up a stack of books so they're all organized alphabetically and stacked perfectly in line. Which is ridiculous because when I carry around books at school, they're a huge mess. __________________ If you want to reply to me and make sure that I see it, send me a Private Message. Something here doesn't make sense... let's go and poke it with a stick!

26th May 2011, 02:20 PM	#19
RenegadeSappho Member Regular Member Gender: Female Orientation: Bisexual Out Status: A few people Location: Wilmington, DE Posts: 14 Join Date: May 2011	Re: OCDs? My OCD was washing my hands because I believed they got filthy every time I thought about sexual predators... I washed and washed until they cracked and bled, it was embarrassing and so hard to explain. Another form it took was everytime I had a bad thought, it was as if my saliva turned to poison and I had to get rid of it. There were places I couldn't go into and things I couldn't touch because of imaginary germs or negative associations. OCD is a living hell when it becomes acute and I nearly committed suicide to get out of my own head. You MUST have therapy along with meds for OCD that is so severe it inhibits your lifestyle. Mine has been well controlled for 10 years now, but people who tend to obsess to process new info never really lose that, and that's ok. But take heart, I don't even need medication now because it was so well treated, there is hope :-)