OCD: General Discussion Thread

So, my girlfriend definitely shows some classic OCD traits.
Quick question for the group—does anyone else deal with their feet turning outward when they walk? I know, I know, it sounds totally random and maybe a bit unscientific, but I’ve started noticing this weird link between certain personality types and the way they carry themselves. Like, if you look at folks like Howard Hughes or Nikola Tesla...

Richard Murphy6 said:So, my girlfriend definitely shows some classic OCD traits.
Quick question for the group—does anyone else deal with their feet turning outward when they walk? I know, I know, it sounds totally random and maybe a bit unscientific, but I’ve started noticing this weird link between certain personality types and the way they carry themselves. Like, if you look at folks like Howard Hughes or Nikola Tesla...

Not me.

I haven't found anything either!
But hey, keep digging—maybe fadedmarlin27 and I are just the exceptions to the rule 😁

I don't have any 🙂

I have a bit of an obsession where I refuse to listen to anyone but myself.

Bed. Just throwing another theory out there into the void🤣 🙂
But hey, I’m not backing down. I’ve learned a thing or two from those obsessive types—you can't let anyone walk all over you, no matter what😁
Don't sweat it, guys. This too shall pass. Don't let anyone try to convince you that you're the bad guy. You aren't. We're all good people here👍

Richard Murphy6 said:Bed. Just throwing another theory out there into the void🤣 🙂
But hey, I’m not backing down. I’ve learned a thing or two from those obsessive types—you can't let anyone walk all over you, no matter what😁
Don't sweat it, guys. This too shall pass. Don't let anyone try to convince you that you're the bad guy. You aren't. We're all good people here👍

😎

wanderingbadger51 said:😎

So what’s your angle here?!!
You want me to sit here and tell you that your conscience is eating you alive? That you're just a bunch of bad people, total liars, and that's exactly why all that anxiety is hitting you so hard? Like, you're suppressing everything and just waiting for some cosmic lightning bolt to strike because you can't even face the thought of death? Honestly, it's like watching a group of people too scared to even look in the mirror! Are you feeling satisfied now?!!!??

Richard Murphy6 said:Bed. Just throwing another theory out there into the void🤣 🙂
But hey, I’m not backing down. I’ve learned a thing or two from those obsessive types—you can't let anyone walk all over you, no matter what😁
Don't sweat it, guys. This too shall pass. Don't let anyone try to convince you that you're the bad guy. You aren't. We're all good people here👍

So, basically, I'm not a bad person even if I skip a few steps?
Yeah, baby! 😬
I love that "don't let them get under your skin" line—so true! 😁
Honestly though, people with OCD are kind of hilarious (well, the non-extreme ones, anyway). Like, the other day I was watching my brother toss a tennis ball against the wall, and it was driving me crazy, so I told him to knock it off. And he's just like, "Just five more times." And then, after exactly five times, he actually stops. Just like that.😁

I deal with OCD too, though maybe not quite as extreme as someone needing to check gas valves, water taps, or locking every door. Still, I can’t help avoiding the grout lines between tiles. Like, back when I was working in Cleveland walking along the waterfront, I felt this intense urge to touch everything an even number of times. Or if I’m hammering a nail, I feel like I have to strike it an even number of times.

Richard Murphy6 said:So what’s your angle here?!!
You want me to sit here and tell you that your conscience is eating you alive? That you're just a bunch of bad people, total liars, and that's exactly why all that anxiety is hitting you so hard? Like, you're suppressing everything and just waiting for some cosmic lightning bolt to strike because you can't even face the thought of death? Honestly, it's like watching a group of people too scared to even look in the mirror! Are you feeling satisfied now?!!!??

Geez, what's gotten into you? That smiley face meant I thought what you said about everyone being "fine" with this disorder was cool.. 😕

Anyway, guilt, pathological liars, suppressing things, fearing God, being afraid to think about death... wow. Who are you even talking about? If you know one specific person who deals with OCD and anxiety, that doesn't mean everyone fits that mold. So... 😕

Back in my day, I was so deep into the party scene that I’d actually sit there and count, tracking every single session—sometimes hitting five rounds of edging before finally reaching the finish line, which added up to hundreds of times over the course of those wild nights.

Honestly, I’m feeling pretty certain that I’m dealing with this disorder.
I can't quite pin down when it started, but over these last few months,
there are days where things just spiral out of control.

It’s this intense need for order—lining everything up in a specific sequence,
obsessing over symmetry, or following some sort of internal "logic";
and if I get interrupted while I'm mid-task, I have to start the whole thing all over again,
not that I want to go into too much detail right now.

Some days, these habits end up eating up so much of my time.

I’ve actually noticed a bit of an improvement over the last couple of days,
mostly because I finally became aware of what was happening
and tried to use a little common sense to push back against it.
It was actually kind of fun to intentionally leave something "out of place"—
I even felt a strange sense of satisfaction from it. It’s mostly just small things, though.

I really wish I understood what the root cause of this is.😕

It would be great to hear from someone who actually knows about this stuff.

It would be great if someone with actual expertise would weigh in here.[/QUOTE

And it would be just as great if you actually reached out to an expert yourself for once!

[QUOTE="David Nelson74, post: 20190, member: 3690"]It would be great if someone with actual expertise would weigh in here.[/QUOTE

And it would be just as great if you actually reached out to an expert yourself for once!
Honestly, even better? It would be amazing if there were any experts left anywhere at all!😍[/QUOTE]

Honestly, it would be a lot better if we all spent a little less time hanging out on these message boards and instead headed out into the great outdoors to actually get some damn healing done.

I’M GOING ???? sorry, I meant WE’RE GOING.

David Nelson74 said:I’M GOING ???? sorry, I meant WE’RE GOING.

🙂
😂

For me, this struggle was all about keeping the apartment spotless. I actually managed to dial it back significantly by getting a dog—a Cane Corso who’s going to be a massive 70-pounder when he's fully grown. Honestly, I realized there was zero point in obsessing over cleaning from midnight to dawn, otherwise, I’d end up checking myself into a mental health facility. It wasn't easy at first, but I got there. You just need patience, which is pretty much true for most things in life. Let's be clear: my place is still incredibly clean, and you'd never guess a big animal lives in these few hundred square feet, but I stopped losing my mind over every little crumb or tiny spot on the floor or furniture.🙂

Man, there are days when this constant need for symmetry just absolutely drains me. It’s not like I’m obsessively scrubbing the house or feeling the urge to repeat certain actions a specific number of times, and I don't go dodging floor patterns like Mr. Monk does. But everything in my life just feels wrong if it isn't perfectly symmetrical. I can't wrap my head around the idea that perfection doesn't exist—I'm just like that guy mentioned in an old thread who bought a pair of glasses only to realize they weren't symmetrical. I know it’s not "normal," and I know most people don't pull out a ruler before buying something, but honestly, I can't help myself.