OCD | Obsessive compulsive disorder poll for asexuals

[Marshmallow Tree]

I just wondered how many asexuals have/don't have this and what their general attitude is towards it. I have OCD but did not realise until mid-teens where I self-diagnosed myself.

Note that I made this for those who know if they have/do not have OCD. This is interesting as people are unsure on the criteria therefore I may make one solely for the intention of exploring the education people have on OCD in due time.

[Lixt]

I have OCD. I self-diagnosed at first (early/mid teens), and had it confirmed later. I briefly had psychotherapy, but didn't feel it was going anywhere. I'm now on medication, and it helps a bit. It doesn't make me stop, obviously, I make me stop, but it makes "not doing it" more bearable. I believe it can be debilitating, bur not in all cases and not always to the same extent. Some people will lose their jobs over it, some are fine, most are somewhere in between. In my case it did prevent me doing some things, but most of the "bad stuff" was/is coming from what fueled the OCD rather than from the OCD themselves. And there are definitely misconceptions, like with any other mental issue really.

[Perissodactyla]

How does one 'self-diagnose', assuming that's possible?

I feel that some who are driven to achieve and accomplish tasks might well share certain attributes assigned to OCD, but perhaps they've also learned to 'put on the brakes' or at least 'ease their foot off of the accelerator'.

I wonder a little if there's a conception of being 'meta-OCD' or 'being obsessive-compulsive about being obsessive-compulsive', thus perhaps lending some self-control to 'control'.

[Marshmallow Tree]

How does one 'self-diagnose', assuming that's possible?

I feel that some who are driven to achieve and accomplish tasks might well share certain attributes assigned to OCD, but perhaps they've also learned to 'put on the brakes' or at least 'ease their foot off of the accelerator'.

I wonder a little if there's a conception of being 'meta-OCD' or 'being obsessive-compulsive about being obsessive-compulsive', thus perhaps lending some self-control to 'control'.

Assuming it isn't possible? You are given the criteria, and like anyone else you apply it as intended. What you said reminds me slightly of Autism. By that I mean we are all on the autistic scale, but those who are not autistic are just very low on it.

[Guest]

"Do you have OCD?"

Uncertain.

[SkyWorld]

I have not been diagnosed, but I may have OCPD (a personality disorder), but since I'm not sure, I just say that I'm a "perfectionist". I was going to explain what OCPD is, but I see CBC beat me to it. :lol:

[AgentKEW]

I'm not sure if I'm OCD or just an extreme perfectionist. This has made my answers to the poll kind of all over the place. Which is, incidentally, bugging me.

[Skycaptain]

Non-OCD, but I can be a touch obsessive with some things, just not to a clinically significant level.

[Marshmallow Tree]

Interesting. I did this for people who knew if they had/did not have it but now I kind of want to explore the reasons why people are unsure. Thank you for the stories thus far everyone.

[Guest]

My psychiatrist has marked me down with possible/mild OCD but the main concern was the crippling anxiety and depression.

[Ace-TheTimelordsCompanion]

TW and TMI

I was diagnosed with OCD (by a doctor and a psychiatrist) when I was nine, it was the worst case that the children's mental health services had seen.

Alot of my memory of that time is gone, for which I am grateful (I remember facts I have repeated myself or been told, the rest is kinda hazy). I did a tonne of exposure and response prevention therapy. At my worst I was pretty much disabled, I remember peeing in a bucket, because I was too terrified of the colour red to leave the bedroom one day. I remember weeks on end where all I could do was sleep (after hours of rituals), go to the toilet (after holding on for hours in fear), eat (most days when the mats hadn't poisoned the kitchen), listen to storybooks on tape(I couldn't read anymore because I beleived my fingers and nails hurt the book, and I had to read everything forwards AND backwards anyway), walk around the house (in a very specific way, and no standing on mats, or even breathing when someone else stood on one), and do OCD.

I think that was all at once, and there was other stuff, like I say, it is hazy and lasted years.

Through the therapy, which was bloody terrifying, I made huge progress. I did it not because I was brave (although it did take bravery) but because I was so scared of being that way forever. It was a living hell, it wasn't living really at all.

I also had outbursts, I'd hit and kick, and I broke a couple of windows I think.

Do I still have OCD? Yep. But it is so much less, it is annoying, especially when I'm stressed, but it is a million times better. I have to check some things (locks, the pavement behind me when I am walking, the dates of things, posts before I post them) obsessively. I also have phrases I have to say when farewelling someone, or saying goodnight (that was actually hard to type in a non-OCD way).

A close family member also has it, but won't admit it. He has had no treatment, he has done no therapy. I used to be so much worse than him, now he is alot worse than me. Please, if you have (or suspect you have) OCD then at least try the help available,or do your own research. Because I promise you, life does get better.

I now have anxiety and depression and am on meds for that, oh well, never a dull moment

[noparlpf]

Mine isn't currently particularly serious; I was diagnosed as a kid but might not technically qualify anymore. (Same for a few of my diagnoses.) I've overcome a lot of my difficulties in daily life (not all though), but they still affected how I grew up and how I think.

[AgentKEW]

@Marshmallow Tree I'm unsure because it's mostly just little things, like how I won't microwave anything for a time that doesn't end in 5 or 0 unless I averaged two times together and got a number that doesn't. Basically, any environment I'm in has to have some kind of order or pattern or I won't be able to get anything done until I either leave that environment or I fix it. I always figured it was just another high-IQ problem (gifted kid, and let me tell you, "gifted" is a serious misnomer) because I don't freak out about every little thing and compulsion is such a tricky thing to explain/define. If I don't notice or I can fit it into a pattern (which I have several that I kind of keep around in the back of my mind just in case of situations where I can't change something that's bugging me) I'm fine with it. If there's just really nothing that can be done, I've learned to deal to an extent, but I'm not good at it. So that's why I'm not sure if I have OCD or I'm just a major perfectionist.

[eeriesilence]

I was diagnosed with it as a young teen - I went through so much therapy, and several medications before I was able to say I made a miniscule step towards managing it better. BUT it did happen, slowly and steadily. However, once I turned 18, I had to find a different therapist because I was legally an adult - and the anxiety of having to go through the introduction/getting to know my therapist well enough to talk... again meant that I never continued my therapy. And now, four years later, I'm kind of back at square one. It's not taking over my life - but making things like school and work difficult. And now my ability to function in society is starting to matter, and my inability to do so is increasingly obvious.

Sometimes I stare at my insurance card, hoping that by willing something to happen, it'll happen. /shrugs/

As for the poll; one of the things that bother me the most about people flippantly mentioning "haha that's so ocd of me" is that I could educate them and explain all of those misconceptions, but every time that's happened; I've had to

A) explain why it was so important to me (why does it have to be "personal"??)

B) deal with being told "oh no, dont be offended, I was just joking!" (as if because it was a joke, I'm not allowed to be offended. /sigh/)

[noparlpf]

As for the poll; one of the things that bother me the most about people flippantly mentioning "haha that's so ocd of me" is that I could educate them and explain all of those misconceptions, but every time that's happened; I've had to

A) explain why it was so important to me (why does it have to be "personal"??)

B) deal with being told "oh no, dont be offended, I was just joking!" (as if because it was a joke, I'm not allowed to be offended. /sigh/)

Ugh, people.

[Marshmallow Tree]

These stories are really enlightening. Before this I've never talked to people with OCD before. The success tales are lovely and give me hope. One thing though that keeps cropping up is the (lack of) education that people have on OCD. Like other commonly-known disorders, such as Bipolar disorder, people with OCD suffer from the public that views it as somewhat of a "joke" and/or are seriously misinformed about it and so view it lightly. By this I mean some people may think because they are extremely 'neat' they have OCD and therefore they do not see it as a problem because to them it doesn't interfere daily life heavily like OCD does (though the level varies). Anyway I'll be making a poll on the above within time.

[OttRInvy]

I feel a great satisfaction in making spaces neat, doing methodical work, and sometimes I need to check several times that I've done something correctly. However, this is more of a perfectionist thing than OCD, as it isn't debilitating enough to be a disorder.

I tell people that I don't have OCD, I have "OCD tendencies." I don't want to make light on a disorder by claiming I have it, but people tend to assume I have OCD when I tell them how much I enjoy labeling and sorting. When they ask, I don't want to lie, but I also want to explain my behavior.

[Guest]

Anyone living with someone very un-OCD-friendly? I live with a parent who loves living dirty, is very chaotic and disorganised and is emotionally unstable, erratic and inconsiderate and likes interfering with any rituals and plans I happen to make. I'm not very organised, tidy or make a lot of plans but somehow they often find a way to get in the way. They also find me strange or funny and has to tell everyone like I'm one big joke, alien or nuisance that needs to be fixed.

[Guest]

This poll is being locked and moved to the read-only Census Archive for 2015. As part of ongoing Census Forum organization, and in an attempt to keep the demographics of the polls current with the active user base at the time, each poll will last for one year. However, members are allowed and even encouraged to restart new polls similar to the archived ones if they like them.

Serran
SPF&A & Census Moderator