Debunking the myths of OCD - Natascha M. Santos 

Saying you're slightly OCD when you don't have it is like coughing and then saying "oops I'm a little asthmatic" when you don't have asthma

People say "haha I'm so OCD" meanwhile I'm here still thinking about that one misstep I took earlier this morning

A doctor once told me “OCD patients are the most ‘sane’ of all mental illnesses, because we KNOW what we’re doing feels crazy.” We’re aware just how nuts it is what our brains are telling us to do. That’s half the shame. People that just use “oh I’m so OCD” as a catch phrase because they like to keep things tidy is infuriating and completely opposite to how someone with OCD acts. People with OCD often feel extreme shame and will hide it at any cost.

I've suffered from OCD since I was 17yo and can vouch that this is an EXCELLENT video!!! OCD is a BRAIN FREEZE...you cannot focus on anything else while your Obsession is present until you perform a Compulsion to help ease the panicked feeling. Meds and CBT DO help...ALOT!!!! I know.

"OMG I am so OCD!" No. Stop. Go away.

Having OCD is actually really serious, people should really stop using this word randomly as a joke….

I wish people also understood the difference between OCD and being a perfectionist. You can have OCD and be a perfectionist but not always a perfectionist with OCD.

This video almost made me cry. I have diagnosed OCD (I have to say diagnosed because so many people pretend to have it) and I have never heard anyone explain OCD better than this video

*"Knowing that your own brain is lying to you while not being able to resist it's commands can be agonizing."* That was so true it hurt.

Ocd isn’t just being fuccin tidy. It’s flipping the light switch on and off 8 times so you don’t stab your brother

I heard a friend saying I’m so OCD because her wedding invitations didn’t look perfect to her. Meanwhile I just threw away all my makeup thinking “what if I hide drugs in here and I used them to abuse people I care about”. (My type is harm ocd). So yeah, she completely knows what ocd feels like…

I hate when people are like “I have ocd I need to organize things” like no ocd is more like “I need to turn the light switch on and off 11 times or my house will burn down”

It drives me crazy when people think they have OCD if they’re organized. A lot of people are organized! And lots of people with OCD are messy Thanks for all the likes woah

the worst part is when you spend ages obsessing over something and then you get angry at yourself for spending so much time obsessing over it and then you start ruminating and getting angry at yourself. such an exhausting cycle

I’ve had ocd my whole life but was just diagnosed this year. It is absolutely horrible and is greatly affecting me. Thank you for making this video it really does show what the disorder is. My prayers go out to anyone else struggling with this disorder. Remember no matter how hard it gets know you’re not alone and that your going to be okay. Don’t give up and have faith and trust in the Lord for he had a reason and a plan. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 God Bless you all ❤️✝️🙏🏼😇

I was diagnosed with OCD in my early twenties when a specific obsessive thought became constant. (I struggled with this for a while although my thoughts, constant, usually would cycle every week so it was bearable) It now was to the point of the thought entering my dreams, being there while I had conversations with others, sitting in the back of my mind while I thought about other thoughts just to remind me it won’t leave me alone. I stopped leaving my house because the thought would get worse. I had panic attacks in bed without telling anyone because I felt crazy. I was a recluse for a while trying to understand myself. 5 months in I told myself I would go see a therapist if it didn’t stop at 6 months. 7 months hit and I caved. Took my therapist 5 minutes to diagnose me. I felt so relieved. Took me about 11 months and some meds to finally understand what was happening. I feel so free. I don’t wish this upon anyone.

I get soooo angry when people blindly use the term OCD with no knowledge of what it actually is

OCD is not being a perfectionist OCD is not just a type a personality OCD is not getting triggered by everything not being perfect OCD is a disorder

To anybody who is going through this, I've been through it but I also came out successfully. There is hope and remember difficult issues don't really need to have hard solutions. Sometimes it's the easiest thing one can do: 1) Instead of trying to prevent these emotions/thoughts from coming, just love the one who's always in doubt and fear (you). Most likely OCD has stemmed from deep wounds to your inner child that you have unconsciously suppressed. Once you realise this, it ceases to be disorder. Rather, it's a way of your subconscious mind to direct your attention to your core wounds which are presenting themselves as mental health issues but in reality are not. 2) Connect with your inner child (Read Jung's guide to inner child work) and embrace and accept your dark and positive sides completely. Let go of focusing on the dichotomies of good/bad. I tortured myself over for having certain thoughts against people I hold dear(family, god, children) but now I've realized I might not really be as "good" as a person my ego wanted me to be and I am OKAY with that. And that's liberating. Even the most kindhearted and pure people in the world also have dark sides to their personality which they hide (called the shadow self) Radically accept that there cannot be light without darkness. And our shadow side only becomes self sabotaging as long as we reject it. The moment we accept it, it becomes empowering and we become complete as a person and it no longer presents itself as anxiety, shame, etc. Remember you don't have to do everything alone, if you can, please seek THERAPY and work with professionals who will help you through the inner child and shadow work(Read up on Carl Jung) 3) Practice disconnecting with your thoughts whenever you find yourself falling into the cycle. Realise that it is not YOU but your EGO which is separate from you. And remember your ego is the worst enemy. 4) The most importang thing is to LOVE yourself every moment in time. Give yourself a hug, say "I'm here for you and it's going to be okay" and if it's hard, visualize embracing your childhood self within you who has gone through so much and acknowledge them. This is an opportunity to heal and you'll come out better than before. Life will become so easier

I was diagnosed with OCD since my teenage, spent my whole life fighting OCD. I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Not until my husband recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 8 years totally clean. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.

I wish I could show this to everyone in the world

Whenever someone says "I'm so OCD about that," I want to scream in their ear "YOU DON'T KNOW MY STRUGGLE!"

I have had OCD for as long as I can remember, and I can remember how helpless I felt when these thoughts came to me. I wish I had only seen this video earlier, so that I could have had a better understanding of my disorder. My parents never did understand what I was going through, and they seemed to think that I was faking it for a while. It took several years for them to come to a partial understanding that this is a real disorder that real people like me have.

dear all . Permission to complain and ask for help :) I'm a girl and I'm still 16 years old I dropped out of school when I was in elementary school because of violence by my teacher. The incident was in 2018. I was really traumatized and depressed since the incident that happened to me when I was in elementary school, I didn't leave the house for almost 2 years, I really didn't leave the house at all even on Eid al-Fitr I just locked myself in my room, I'm just crying and contemplating even the effects until now. because since the incident at that time I was often ridiculed and bullied by my neighbors. god, I don't want me to die in vain, what about my family? Yes, those who should have supported me and defended me at that time hurt my heart and mentality even more because I was required to school with a mental state that is completely destroyed, no one understands me at all, even the teachers who hurt me don't think they have done anything wrong to me. Many people came, the teacher told me to go to school and continue elementary school at that time. Even though I said I didn't want the impression they were pushing me, in the end I left, only to take the class 6 exam because at that time I already had an exam. I went to the exam and was accompanied by my first older brother who worked at the jkt, my sister was willing to take leave to return to Java so that I could take the exam so I could pass. After completing the exams and getting my diploma I decided not to continue school because of my mentality, I was really in a state of being very afraid of people, even the effects of being afraid are up to now, Even though my relatives and relatives insisted I used to be cheerful now I'm not! After I shut myself up for 2 years I was forced by my first kin to go to JKT to learn about work At that time I decided to participate even though I was very scared Finally I worked at the age of 14 and that was also under the supervision of my brother I was born in a family that doesn't have all the shortcomings. Even in Jakarta, I was also beaten mentally by the boss, my brother, I'm often told that if you can't do it, it's better if you don't have to work like that But I managed to survive for 1stngh 1yr Because it was also forced by my brother, Now I'm at home for almost 1 year unemployed I don't know what to do, I don't even know what to do because I don't have a diploma. Many people advise me to go after packages b and c But that also costs money. I sometimes wonder where the money comes from The effect that I get is that I often have trouble sleeping, even until 5 in the morning. Sometimes I just daydream thinking about what I will do in the future, I'm confused, I'm very depressed I have told my life story to several groups, but people commented suggesting that I go to a psychologist I'm confused, I just don't have money to eat, it's hard, who do you want to complain to? Friends don't even have one at all Sometimes they even complain about fathers and mothers, they don't know how to help because of limited funds. Is there a locker like that, is it okay to help or is there another solution I really need help 🙏😭 I want to work without using a diploma because in the city there must also be a certificate for sure, If I work, I want the money to go after the package and help my parents :(( Please info and solutions :)))))))) Indonesia area. Thank you IG:@haduhel

My OCD has taken over my entire life. It's gotten to the point of where I can't sleep at night, I never feel hungry anymore, I got terrible pain around my heart and lung area. All of this is because of the constant anxiety, I avoid eating because I think about things too much and when I eat I feel like I'm going to throw up, I don't sleep out of the fear I'm not going to wake up because of what happened in my chest. I'm constantly in my bed, monitoring my breathing, checking my pulse, making sure I "feel" hungry or tired. Trying not to think of things that make me upset so I can be happier in my life and relationship. It's fucking terrible. So the next time I hear someone say "I'm so OCD" because they like clean shit, I'm slapping the everliving fuck out of them.

If you suffer from intrusive thoughts that bring on anxiety, embarrassment or disgust, remember that those thoughts don’t reflect on you as a person, the reason they’re intrusive in the first place is because you don’t want to have them and the fact they bring on such a negative reaction from you proves that those thoughts are simply part of the disorder, it’s not who you really are

As an OCD sufferer, I’m glad more videos like this have been made. When I was first diagnosed there was little publicly known information about it and these types of videos that are actually informative go a long way to combat that.

This. This is it. This video does such a good job of explaining it, even down to the intrusive thoughts and compulsions and exposures! Thank you for helping spread awareness

OCD needs to be discussed more in the media. Thank you for bringing attention to this.

Oh my god thank you for making this video. I don't have OCD, but I HATE it when people just blindly throw it around

Hi. I am an 18 year old boy, and i have had OCD for almost 8 years. I have almost control over my OCD, and I hope that sometime in the future, it won’t bother me, and I won’t have it anymore. If there are sitting anyone out there with OCD, or are beginning to get some weird new thoughts, I have 3 good advice. The first is to trie as much as you can to not listen to your thought. I know it is so hard, but it is the only way. Try to ignore them and think of something else. The second is to talk out loud about it. Tell about your thoughts to your mom, dad and siblings and your friends if you want to. It is important so you don’t have all your thoughts for yourself. The third is to try and stop it as soon as possible, don’t think that you will get to it, you have to stop it right away, so it doesn’t get to be a big problem. Remember also that you can get help but in the end the only person that can get rid of it, is you. Good luck stay strong😄😄

I have severe OCD its pretty bad I have terrible thoughts and I get so anxious that I burst into tears when there is the TINEST FREAKING MESS I don’t keep checking things but OCD does run in my genetics so yeah

"My OCD is going crazy, take that thread off of your shirt!" Ignorance. Just plain ignorance.

As someone with OCD, it really pisses me off when people think that they have OCD because they like things to be organized

Just started my own channel and its taken a lot of guts as I have suffered all my life with OCD but your site is amazing and really encourages me and others to challenge OCD. thank you so much for spending the time to help people like me.

I can finally understand what it is that I’m experiencing. Thank you so much for this informative video. This new found freedom has me in tears knowing what this is and how I can cope with it.

Am I the only one who felt some heavy weight while watching this? I don't have OCD, but I think this video gave me a glimpse of it.

An important part of OCD that makes it different from "normal" repetitive or compulsive thoughts/behaviors is the fear behind NOT completing the compulsions. It could be fear that if you don't check, count, wash, etc something bad will happen to you, your family, a natural disaster etc.

I am very glad that this is a topic being cleared up for people. The misconceptions about it hurt those who deal with OCD, so this is great to see and watch.

This. This is it. I have OCD. And it’s not just being neat, it’s your brain making you agonize over things that don’t need to be dealt with like that. It sucks. And it’s made worse by all the misconceptions. For example right now I have to read a certain amount of pages for school but my OCD makes me consistently re read pages over and over scouring for details I missed. I’m talking 15 mins a page. I hate it. But this video does a great job of talking about it and explaining it correctly! Good job!

this is pretty late but I absolutely hate when people normalise OCD. Literally people are in constant mental pain because of this disorder

My boyfriend has OCD and he tries so hard to control it. Its really distressing to see how he suffers almost every day, yet Im so proud of him for being this brave and fighting it ♥️

This video is wonderful! Recently I was diagnosed with OCD and it’s been hard to ignore the thoughts sometimes. Just knowing seems to help a little but this would be impossible alone tbh

really great video! I have OCD, the only thingI think that wasn’t addressed is that compulsions aren’t always physical. They can be mental - like thought countering or rumination. For example, if someone had an intrusive thought, they’d NEED to counter it, not just let it pass by.

In a nutshell, Obsessive compulsive tendencies are NOT disorders... Like some sneezes aren't pneumonia.. A few Sleepless nights aren't insomnia And a single headache is not migraine... Disorders cause REAL mess ups in people's lives

when it said 'interferes with daily life' i almost started crying bc it really is exhausting going through this everyday... you KNOW the thought that you're letting consume your mind is something completely worthless but you'll spend hours thinking about it anyway. something as small as adjusting your tv's volume won't leave your head for hours

Thank you so much for this video!! OCD is so distressing and has made me feel like a bad person over the years. Im so glad that healthcare professionals are now beginning to understand and look into this a bit more.

I have OCD and was really surprised how well this video captures it, by far the best I've seen.

At the end when he said OCD is knowing your brain is lying to you and not being able to control it-that summed it more succinctly than I think anyone ever could. I've been living with OCD since I can remember. I took meds for 7 years and have developed a lot of skills to live better day to day. But OCD is something that will always be with me in some capacity. That's the thing I will always have to accept. But it can get better.

I'm so sorry for anyone who deals with OCD :( you're so strong

I wish I saw this video sooner because for about half a year I felt like I was going insane. I was dying in agony alone feeling like I could not open up to anyone. It drove me to depression and exacerbated my anxiety. It pushed me into isolation and the self hatred I experienced is something I am working on to this day. But I was lucky enough to know that I needed help. I sought therapy and eventually started medication. There are so many good people out there willing to help and you might not think it but they are more understanding than you think. I want anyone seeing this to please don’t keep this inside because it was and maybe is killing me inside. Get help wherever speak to those you love it is not your fault it is your condition.

I have OCD for many years and is suffering from it RIGHT NOW VERY MUCH. And this video came to me. Maybe, because I searched for this topic so often... I hope, all will be well with us, who suffer from it and with our family, close people, who also suffer so much❤️

I think I’m more OCD than you... NO. STOP. OCD is NOT an adjective.

I never really thought I had OCD when I was younger, cause I didn’t know much about it. But a couple years ago I realized I had it, and a couple people actually called me out on it too. I’m not the type of OCD where I have to wash my hands all the time, or be neat. But I repeat stuff A LOT and it switched every once in a while. For example at one time I would have to use my right hand/foot for everything, to grab things, step over things and much more. Another thing is that my brain tells me to do something, or else something bad will happen to me, and the bad thing is usually pretty specific. Currently I’m having this thing where I would have to repay everything three times. I don’t why but I can’t stop myself. It really takes over my life and gives me a lot of stress and problems. So I hate when people say they have OCD when they really don’t. If you read all of this then thanks :)

What I hate about having both OCD and anxiety is that one makes the other worse. If my anxiety is high, my ocd will worsen, which will make my anxiety higher, which will worsen my ocd etc. I've gotten pretty good at stopping the loophole but it can be really uncomfortable. If you feel the same that's okay!

I’m often accused of having OCD because I wash my hands often, it’s just basic hygiene. I was laughing when the CDC ordered people to wash their hands! ☺️ For those suffering from it I wish you the best in finding a treatment that works!🍀

People don't know what it's like to tap something and have the urge to keep tapping it right each time.

I’m very unorganized and I have been diagnosed with OCD

Having suffered with OCD and an eating disorder called ARFID I can definitely relate. I used to get bad thoughts about things such as crashing my car or a family member would die etc. if things weren’t correct and I was often late to various activities. I would highly recommend speaking to a therapist. I initially done this for my eating problem and the OCD has been virtually subdued as a result. It feels great to break the tendencies and know that I’ve got a little one up on OCD.

This is the most straightforward, informative video about the condition! Thank you!

when people see unorganized stuff and they're like "Oh my goodness, I'm so OCD!" and I'm like "ARE YOU ARTHRITIS TOO?"

It's funny this video popped up on my home page, because today I celebrated being able to open only one cabinet door at a time. It was really painful, but I did it and I'm so proud of myself. Never forget that small steps and improvements add up to make a big difference.

I had a major episode of ocd last year, I couldn’t sleep, eat, or do anything in fact. I just stared at the wall while having anxiety attacks. It was awful. I still have some side effects, such as different ocds here and there. I have told my friend about it and they were pretty accepting and tried to help me, which I’m grateful for. However, those who don’t have ocd always just tells me to “cope with it”, as if it’s that easy. A lot of people also like they say they have ocd for things related to tidiness and such. But there’s so much more to ocd that many don’t know about

I am currently a 2nd year student in BS Psychology and this has helped me understand more about OCD and become more determined to study well about the human mind. I want to do more research about the brain and someday, I hope I’d be able to contribute to the advancement of knowledge and medication when it comes to treating patients with OCD. I’ll work hard and do my best!

Exactly. I was diagnosed with OCD and everytime i tell someone they're like: but youre so messy! And its like ??????

it really pisses me off when people are like 'ugh i can't stand things being uneven or unsymmetrical {or whatever, i'm so ocd!!' and i'm just like 'no. ocd is a MENTAL DISORDER' at least now i can show them this and hopefully help them understand.

This channel is a blessing

I shed a tear while watching this video and reading the comments, knowing my poor young self suffered from OCD. I was always paranoid if I don't wash my hands 'enough' though I'd done it a lot. There was a moment when I cried because I couldn't stop, even if I wanted to. It was so, so tiring.

I hate it when people be like : I'm so OCD! When they don't even have it. Yeah people say: " I'm so Obsessive Compulsive Disorder omg! " Yeah right.

I think what most people don't fully understand is that the difference between actually having OCD and just being very meticulous or super organized is the THOUGHT or motivation in their head that's making them be that way. If you're super clean and organized because you want to have your shit together, then that's very healthy and normal. The reason people with OCD do things, is to keep the the constant, intrusive, horrible thoughts entering their head from coming true, like " if I let any of my belongings touch the floor, then my dad will be killed in a car crash tomorrow." So people mistakenly see this person as a neat freak, when in reality, they're trying really hard to just keep the these constant, irrational fears that invade their thoughts from "coming true". It's not about being clean for clean's sake. Or if don't do tap on the wall 16, 32, or 64 times, then a the fear I just experienced of a loved one dying will come true. Trust me, you don't want to have OCD...

OCD is definitely hereditarily. Also OCD can vary in severity. Some of the things he said aren’t OCD are likely just milder cases.

Great presentation. So many people use the term OCD incorrectly & do not understand the complicated nature. Thank you

Ocd is not ”Oh those pens arent organized, thats annoying!” Ocd is something that makes you wanna blow your brains out...

Pet peeve: "omg I'm so OCD!!!" Like um tell me the last time you stood at a light switch flipping it up and down for 30 minutes because it "didn't feel right" or had to walk with exactly two steps in every sidewalk block (and if you messed up you had to go back to the last corner you were at and start over) or felt like someone was in the house every night for years despite logically knowing that no one was there etc etc etc Go on and tell me... Or did you mean you like your silverware sorted a particular way and get mildly frustrate when someone does it differently?

My son 12yrs old was diagnosed with severe OCD today!! He Will be treated with medications and therapy! Unfortunately there’s a long waiting list for therapy but his medication will start asap!! So not a lot of support out there and of course the need is greater than the available doctors unless your able to pay for private psychiatric therapy at $200/per hour? So as a parent you have to educate yourself on this disorder and the coping skills that are needed to live everyday helping your child survive and have some peace and Oder in your family life !! Wow !!! I’m drained daily from the outbursts the unreasonable behaviour the screaming the crying the unbearable routines he puts himself through !! I understand and try to help him cope with everything and then he wants hours of no interaction and no social life !! I’m already homeschooling and keeping our home as peaceful as a can….. even bought him a little kitten to bring some Joy !! So life is difficult but our faith keeps us sane doing the best we can do !! 😇

bro, I really hate when my friends don’t take me serious when I say I think I’ve got ocd, they desorganize things on porpouse so I get frustrated like, wth. And there’s so much people in the world that say it as a joke, and it’s so annoying

I’m actually diagnosed with OCD, so I hate when people say “I’m such a perfectionist”, “my OCD is so bad”. like no you’re not. You don’t know what it’s like to have yourself as your own enemy when your alone at night, at school, all the time 24/7.

You put the table straight “Do you have OCD” You line up pencils out of boredom “You are so OCD” You actually have OCD “Stop lying” I don’t have OCD but I hate it when people self diagnose themselves with that sort of stuff and uneducated people ‘diagnosing’ people with it. It’s a real problem and people need to stop making it out like it’s a joke.

Aggressive Therapy- game changer. -acknowledgment -embrace -learn to separate the irrational -focus on dealing with only the irrational Definitely still have it however the 3x check ,for example, is no longer a constant. Hand washing hasn’t changed. Have embraced being “meticulous”; is actually needed to function & personally, I think it’s a positive. The transition happened slowly; therapy 20yrs/ongoing. This video had me recognize how far I’ve come💞. 4th Gen military; Disabled vet. Being neat & orderly is all I ever knew. PTSD- numerous anxiety disorders. One of the meds- bad side effects; OCD affected. Ironically- had extreme difficulty functioning independent living!! Never fully recovered😔. I hope anyone who has OCD can benefit in some way from my experience🙏🏼. Not all aspects of OCD are negative & there’s hope🤗. Blessings❤️

I’ve never met anyone with OCD who goes around saying that they’re “So OCD.” It’s just not something people who actually have the disorder do. It’s really frustrating when people throw around the term “OCD” as a joke. They don’t know what it’s really like…

People in the shop wondering why I keep glancing at them. Me: sorry I cant help it, bear with me, I have 2 more glances to do

Whenever I think of mental illness, I always feel like I’m trying to trick myself into thinking I have a problem when I really don’t. And I keep thinking that I’m doing things to make it seem like I have some mental illness and this all confuses me so much I break down crying when I think of mental illness.

Ive been suffering from OCD since I was 5 year old. It's so bad, it gives me so much stress and takes so much of my time. I told my family about it yesterday and they did not take it seriously at all.

Thank you for making this. I’m diagnosed and medicated and it really is misunderstood. I think this really helps

I'm glad that everyone in the comment section is tired of people throwing around the word OCD without understanding how serious of a disorder it really is.

This is actually one of the reasons I plan to study the brain. I want to find the underlying cause of mental disorders like OCD so we can create medicine and stop it at its root. Truly informative video! Everyone needs to see this!

i’ll never forget my moms face when the doctor told us “she has the most severe case of OCD we’ve seen in a child.” it’s been 10 years, it’s torn my family apart. 6 months in the hospital working on ERP and dozens of medications and it still can’t repair the damage. nothing has worked.

I've been struggling with OCD since I was seven years old, I remember when there was a family party at my place and I didn't want to step on the lines of the floor, I HAD to skip them, otherwise my brain told me my grandma would have died, I specifically remember her saying: "sweety, what are you doing?" and I started screaming:"I don't know I can't help myself!" and I started crying, ever since then I've been struggling with it, I'm 17 now and I struggle with it every day, no one notices it instead of my parents because I've told them, it's way less heavy for me now, but it's something I will always live with...

THANK YOU SO MUCH! OCD to some people is putting things in order or just simply being clean. That’s totally not OCD. I failed 2 classes in college and lost my bachelors degree because of OCD. I thought about killing myself so many times because of OCD. I’d randomly touch strangers hair and put myself in awkward situations because of OCD. In exams my OCD made me delete all my correct answers and end up handing an empty paper, EMPTY!! Even though I knew the answer. It’s like there’s a demon inside my head that controls everything I do and if I don’t obey him I’ll face consequences

Nice to see something related to my subject,my teacher used to emphasize and of course I realized it after living in society ,that almost every other person has tendencies of some disorder but it will be called disorder or sickness when that person can no longer work as a normal person and he is dysfunctional in his daily life.

Reading these comments have made my day. 🥰 I pick my skin compulsively, it’s been almost 10 years (since puberty) of almost daily episodes. I’ve spent my entire life in a bathroom, slathering on makeup just so I can go down for dinner without being ridiculed by my family (I still was hounded constantly by my mom for “looking like a burn victim”) finally, at 19 I’ve started to replace the habit with a skin care routine that makes me feel pretty damn fresh. The scars are finally beginning to fade.

I had OCD when I was like 5-6. Its literally mental Hell. You know what you're doing is ridiculous but you can't help it and that kind of internal conflict will literally make you crazy. I was also a hoarder because of the OCD. I cured myself not with medications or therapy but I just worked up the courage to take all my hoarded shit and throw it in the dumpster and just fighting my instincts. I cried for a week but it was worth it. I was free. If you don't have OCD, don't say you do because it's literally the worst thing that could happen to a human in my opinion.

OCD isn’t just having predetermined routines or compulsions, like having to shut the door exactly 3 times etc. It can also take form as in what I call “until it feels right/okay”. This causes compulsions that aren’t predetermined and have to be acted on, until you feel like you did the action just right. This can be even more dreading because you never know how it turns out. One time you might shut the door without a second thought, but the next time you shut the same door, it can happen that it doesn’t feel right (because of how you touched the handle for example). Then you will have to repeat the compulsions for an X amount of times (could be 2x, but could also be 27x). As someone with OCD myself I find these types of compulsions to be the worst, because you don’t know what you’re in for, as opposed to the routine/predetermined ones. As to the serotonin aspect, that’s something that actually has a big influence on how bad it can get. At times when I’m more stressed or less happy, compulsions get worse. When I am in a happy place and just living my life, it is likely to be less severe. It’s always interesting to me that this disorder can express itself in many different ways, depending on the individual. This sadly enough also makes it kinda stigmatised and often misunderstood.

There was a girl in my class who said, “oh yea I have OCD like, if I don’t shut my door 2 times I feel like my whole family’s gonna die or sm”

I have OCD and this video does a great job covering it.

I’m 13 and i have severe OCD. I found out that some of the things I did were unusual, because I was having panic attacks, so I went to the psychiatrist and she asked me to tell her my whole routine with detail. And, for example, at the end i said that before i fall asleep I have to swing back and forth 352 times, or else I won’t wake up the next day. And it never sounded weird until I said it out loud. Then I got diagnosed with panic disorder and OCD, and now my life is a mess!

Ocd isn’t just being obsessed with washing your hands, it’s checking if the door is locked 12 times so u don’t lose ur mind, it’s getting the same tattoo on both arms bc one arm felt heavy, no one explains it idk how to explain it myself

A couple years back while in the mental hospital waiting to go to rehab the clinical psychologist diagnosed me with anxiety, depression, and OCD. He didn't do this once, but 3 separate times on 3 separate occasions more than one year apart. I never really understood the OCD diagnosis and thought he was crazy due to the fact that I was HEAVILY on drugs and he was just fooled. Nope. 3.5 years sober and I'm just now studying what OCD is, and my goodness did he hit the nail on the head. It makes me feel better knowing I'm not the only one and that I'm not defective or crazy!

I’ve never been diagnosed with anything but my doctor prescribed me sertraline for my “anxiety” but it actually sounds more like OCD …. Either way the control of serotonin has improved my quality of life and has drastically minimized negative racing thoughts I use to have so much

I absolutely hate the phrase "I'm so OCD" and anyone who uses should be ashamed of themselves. OCD as terrorized me since I was very young. It can drag me down to my lowest point. Mine actually is more of oil than germs. I can't do it. I can't use lotion or touch any food that isn't fruit or vegetables. I eat my chips with a fork. I used to shower every 12 hours on the dot but at some points it was three hours. I can now go 12+ but after that 12 mark I cannot touch any blankets, pillows, etc. I compulsively wipe my face with baby wipes (face wipes too harsh at such excess), and when I was little, a doctor suggested I count sheep. This was when we really realized I was OCD. I hardly slept for two weeks. I was ill with exhaustion. I didn't understand it so I could intervene, or know to intervene but I would lay there counting, start to fall asleep and lose count, and have to start all over, until I'd be too exhausted to keep my eyes open. It's not s cute little quirk!