Just yesterday I started a thread about ADHD med pills that I've started taking.There's been some noticeable changes to my behavior but I'm suddenly wondering if maybe I have OCD or something else as well. Here's some behaviors I'm wondering about. Part 1 -For as long as I can remember, I've had to eat an even number of raw vegetables during lunch -I sometimes feel a need to do things in a certain order at times (defeating enemies in a certain order in a video game) and get a brain "itch" if I don't -If I don't fully close a door, even if it's closed I have to push it until I hear the clickish noise -I sometimes feel a need to itch myself on both ears, sides of my neck, eyebrows, etc. even if I only have to itch one -I feel a need to blink with both eyes always -I feel the need to about something when given the chance even if I'm not in the mood (talking with my dad in the car, playing music without headphones when nobody's at home,etc) -I feel like I have to itch myself in 4 different patterns -Sometimes I feel like I'm going through a checklist of things I have to do and it feels un-natural Part 2 So now it gets a bit weird I often connect unrelated things in my environment and I don't actually believe them, but a part of me seems to. Here's some examples: -There's this guy at my school who is similar to me in some ways (not good at math, trans, possibly German, went to a church I had to go to once and coincidentally sat close by, likes drawing, likes nerdy stuff) but different in a few ways (transguy, significantly better than me at drawing, huge extrovert, has loads of friends). For whatever reason I keep thinking he's some alternate version of me. -I was in downtown Atlanta and there was a concert and a convention and I felt like there was some meaning to it. -I see a "sign" in everything that somehow connects to a big mystery about my life. Almost anywhere. Seeing people who look similar to people at my school, seeing certain buildings, all sorts of things. Now, this has a little connection to Bioshock Infinite. This isn't because of video game violence though. Things like me thinking of the Murder of Crows Vigor when seeing crows are fairly normal for me. Similar feeling came when I used to be super into Star Wars, Transformers, and other video games (that are also violent), etc. It's not even because it's a first-person video game. It's because of the alternate dimensional concept. But the thing is, I somewhat believe this. Unknowingly, yes, but still relevant. I don't really question my feelings and I know they're completely illogical but some part of me believes this stuff. Can anybody relate to this?
Yes, those sound like OCD. It's a perception thing, not a mental illness so as long as it doesn't interfere with your ability to function, and it doesn't sound like it does, then the best thing you can do is to not be concerned about it. I'll give you one observation that you may find useful in dating. People with OCD seem to be attracted to those of us with the opposite condition and vise versa. I know this because I'm one of those opposites and my partner has a bad case of OCD. I am very concrete and workflow oriented. That seems to provide a calm perspective for him. He helps me see alternative ways of thinking and he catches a lot of my mistakes with his attention to detail. But as opposites we can also drive the other crazy sometimes. I'm constantly having to wait for him to count things and go through checklists and he is often frustrated with my lapses, like when I forget to lock a door or loose my keys. But we have gotten used to each other's habits and we make a great team. One thing I think is really cute. Our dog won't step through the front door or get in the car until a certain amount of time has passed because she is used to waiting for my partner to count his list items. She does this even when he is not around.
Lots and lots of people have various compulsive traits. This is nothing to be concerned about. I would disagree that what you have 'sounds like OCD'. For one thing, none of us are qualified to mKe that assessment. Also, for clarity, OCD is not 'a perception thing'. True OCD is a severe and debilitating mental disorder. But more importantly, one of the defining criteria for any mental disorder is whether it is causing severe and prolonged distress, and/or impacting the quality of your life. What you are describing doesn't sound like it is causing meaningful distress or affecting the quality of your life. If that's the case, then it's nothing to worry about. And, as I said, having some of those traits is pretty common. Hopes that helps!
This is true. OCD is a "disorder" and is a serious mental illness that resides at the far end of the compulsive/obsessiveness. My friends and I use the term "OCD" to describe mild symptoms of obsessive or compulsive behaviors and that was what I was reading into your description, not the disorder. Hopefully everyone realizes that in a forum where we only have a few paragraphs to express ourselves, that no one is "qualified" to give exactly correct assessments about anything. It is wise to guard against reading too much into any one post and to not take offense where none is intended.
