OCD: General Discussion Thread

Wenceslaus, what else could it be? Obviously, that’s the whole reason behind my handle.

d.s.o. said:Symmetry drives me crazy. Everything around me has to be absolutely perfect before I can even think about studying or getting anything done... honestly, it’s kind of entertaining... it doesn't bother me too much... but yeah, it’s a total waste of time.

The one time I actually panicked was over some stupid door (whether I locked it or not, I couldn't remember), but I just told myself: Fine—just lock it. And then I walked away.

good luck

👋

😲 😲 😲

Reading this post felt like a psychological horror movie, similar to when you experimentally call your own cell phone just to satisfy that weird, terrifying fear that you might actually end up picking up on the other end. 🙄 😳

Given whose mental hands shaped us, there were times we probably all came from the exact same lump of clay. 😛

Scarlet Petal said:Yeah... 😢 I'm having the exact same issue with number 8 too.

😁 😁 👋

Man, this thing where you rub your tongue against the roof of your mouth is killing me—I'm completely exhausted from it.😢 😢 😢

Hey everyone, what's up!👋

I don't hang out in this corner of the forum all that much, so I’m honestly not sure if this—let's call it a "thing"—has already been brought up before. If it has, please don't come for me, mods! 😬

So, here's the deal: whenever I'm walking down the street, I go out of my way to avoid stepping on the cracks. 😵
You know how it is—sidewalks can be absolute death traps sometimes, whether it's because they're old or just built with cheap materials, and they end up covered in these deep grooves or lines. So there I am, hopping around and maneuvering like a total maniac—basically making a complete fool of myself—just so I don't land on a line.
I've been doing this since I was a little kid. At first, it was just a game, but now? It's definitely a full-blown habit.
It even got to the point where I started avoiding lines on playground courts, which actually messed up my game sometimes! 🤣
For the longest time, I was convinced I was just being weirdly obsessive, but then I watched that movie with Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt "As Good as It Gets" and realized the main character deals with similar "quirks." Okay, granted, he's a pretty intense guy—he basically avoids sidewalks where you *can't* help but hit a crack—but hey, at the rate I'm going, I might actually reach his level of eccentricity! 🤣.

So, does this "disorder" actually have a fancy professional name? Like, is this even considered a real thing in that category?

I’ll admit, I’ve definitely done things just for the hell of it before...
but this feels more like a compulsive disorder (you know, like when someone feels they have to wash their hands three times or double-check the door locks five times in a row).
at least, that's my take...

Yeah, it’s compulsive. There's some underlying conflict there, a thought you just can't put into words.
I'd suggest seeing a pro, honestly, just so things don't spiral even further—which usually happens eventually.

I honestly, I catch myself doing that too—especially if it’s a tiled sidewalk,
then I find myself trying to walk strictly within the squares. 🙄

Come on guys, don't scare me like that!😁

Look, I could stop doing this whenever I felt like it—honestly—but it’s just become such a part of who I am since I've been at it for so long. It's kind of like how I bite my nails🙄. I remember this one girl I used to date told me she absolutely hated when I did that, so I actually quit for a while. But then we broke up, I went right back to it, and yep, here I am still biting them today😬.
But hey, just as an example, you can do anything if you really put your mind to it😳.

wearyotter24 said:I do that sometimes too—especially if the sidewalk is made of tiles,
then I try to walk only inside the squares.

Haha. People like that are my absolute favorites👍>

Look, I haven't met a single soul who hasn't cut a few corners at some point in their life... In my view, it’s perfectly natural for a healthy brain—especially when things get a bit slow—to find entertainment in those little rule-breaking moments.

Nicole James said:Honestly, I don't think I've ever met someone who hasn't skipped a line at some point. It’s totally normal for a healthy brain to look for little distractions when you're bored.

I'm with you. I did it way more when I was a kid, but I still find myself doing it today.
Elizabeth Price2: Don't sweat it as long as it doesn't mess with your daily routine—like being too afraid to walk into a Target because the floor tiles look weird, or getting into a fender bender because you were too busy trying to stay inside the lines of a crosswalk.😁

I have a question🙂

From what I can tell, I might actually deal with OCD myself because every single morning I find myself double-checking if I turned off the iron, the space heater, and the gas stove😁 But I’ve found a dead-simple fix that works every time—whenever I shut an appliance off, I literally say out loud to myself, "Okay, it's off!" Once I do that, I don't give it a second thought for the rest of the day and I'm totally fine.

Anyway, I have a question about this disorder regarding someone very, very close to me. I'm honestly not sure if her behavior qualifies as a clinical disorder or if it fits within this category, so I'd appreciate some input.

Basically, my friend has this overwhelming, almost manic need to "file away" and organize every single aspect of her life. There isn't a single thing that happens to her during the day that she doesn't immediately sit down and document on paper, followed by endless, exhaustive analysis. She basically "materializes" every event or emotion onto a page. She has this intense compulsion to run her entire existence through a mountain of planners; everything from "buy toilet paper" to massive one-year and five-year strategic plans is logged in there. Everything. While being organized is fine to an extent, seeing her write down "sex" in a planner is where I start to get worried. For God's sake, you can't schedule that.😁 Setting the planners aside, what really concerns me are these long monologues she goes on, accompanied by frantic scribbling, whenever she talks about any part of her day. I often notice her forcing herself into various activities just to fill up her day, week, or weekend, because I get the feeling she'd lose her mind if she woke up on a Saturday morning without a pre-set itinerary. She's incredibly active, stays fit, and is successful at work, but I'm already exhausted just listening to her aggressively analyze every tiny detail of her actions, documenting them, and then planning the next day.

To my untrained eye, it looks like it could be this disorder. Just like someone might wash their hands ten times in a row, she feels the need to over-analyze the exact same thing a million times a day and then plan out the next step, right down to what she’s having for lunch. I should mention she struggled with anorexia a while back, which tells me she's sensitive and perhaps a bit unstable... honestly, I feel responsible and I'm wondering if and how I can help her. Does she even need help?!

Quick question—is there actually some deeper root to OCD? Like, am I secretly a genius who just struggles to express myself properly 😬 🙂 😬 or is it just a random disorder that doesn't really mean anything else?


actually, screw it... I'll just 😁

Jose Chase2 said:Quick question—is there actually some deeper reason for OCD? Like, am I secretly a genius who just struggles with expressing 😬 🙂 😬 or is this just a random, pointless disorder that doesn't mean anything else?

I seriously doubt it’s just random stuff
that's basically what it does—it forces you to obsess over something totally useless instead of the things that actually matter in life
doesn't mean you aren't a genius, though

just drop the anchor and move past it🙂

Jose Chase2 said:One quick question—is there some deep-seated reason for OCD, like maybe I’m actually a misunderstood genius who just struggles with expression 😬 🙂 😬 or is it just some random disorder that doesn't mean anything else?


whatever, I don't care 😁

The theory goes that it stems from repressed aggressive or sexual impulses—supposedly tied to being stuck in the anal stage or potty training stuff—but honestly, generalizing like that is pretty stupid.😉

I can’t help but feel that we all harbor our own little obsessions and compulsions—those tiny, peculiar superstitions we cling to... OCD is really just the term used when those tendencies become a bit too loud for anyone else to ignore...

(By the way, they’ve actually demonstrated superstitious behavior in mice, too)

Personally, my particular fixation involves calculating the shortest possible route between two points.
No matter where I find myself wandering, I am constantly hunting for the most efficient path available.
I’ve even gone so far as to optimize an algorithm for climbing stairs; depending on the total count of steps, I decide which foot to lead with to minimize the actual number of movements required... and things of that nature.

It isn't that this habit disrupts my life; if anything, it might actually be somewhat beneficial—a minor little mental workout for whenever my brain finds itself without any more significant tasks to tackle.

circles said:Well, I think the title pretty much speaks for itself.
Has anyone else (unfortunately) dealt with this, and how do you manage? I’m not talking about those rare, one-off moments, but rather the kind of struggles that are part of your daily life—things you live with constantly.
For me, it specifically manifests as an obsession with washing my hands.

My mom thinks I should be seeing a psychiatrist or even checked into a mental hospital because of it.🙄
😢
On almost every assessment I've taken, I score around 80% for OCD.
It's been getting more frequent lately, and honestly, life just feels heavy sometimes.

Back when I was renting a room in a roughly 1,000-square-foot apartment—and if my two roommates ever headed out for a few days, leaving me solo—I would spiral into this absolute obsession with checking the locks. I’d constantly be pacing around, obsessively verifying which doors were secured. Every single time my boyfriend would drop by, I’d badger him about it, insisting he 😬 make sure the door was locked, and then I’d end up asking him five different times later just to be sure.

Even while I was stuck at work, I couldn't shake it. I’d find myself mentally rewinding the "movie" of my exit from the apartment, desperately trying to replay every tiny detail to confirm with 100% certainty that I had actually turned the key. The fear of having forgotten was just... constant.

Now that I'm back home with my parents, that anxiety has finally vanished, mostly because we have one of those deadbolt setups where there isn't even a handle on the outside. Once the door shuts, it stays shut; you can't get in without a key. Honestly, for anyone struggling with this kind of lock-related paranoia, the ultimate fix is to just install a lock that can't be opened from the exterior. If it's physically impossible to enter without a key, you don't have to spend your life worrying about whether you turned the bolt. 😬

It was also the perfect solution for my brother, who used to sprint out the door for school in such a rush that he'd leave everything wide open—doors swinging, lights blazing, total chaos. 😬

Whenever I start second-guessing myself—like if I actually locked the front door or whatever—I just flip the switch immediately. I tell myself, "It was an autopilot move, which is why you don't remember, but you definitely did it."

Why is everyone freaking out about doors so much?😕 Honestly, I don't even bother locking mine👍.
Seriously guys, focus on the actual lines😵😬. Like, I’ve reached the point where I’m practically stepping over my own shadows now🤣

Johnny Depp said:Why is everyone obsessing over lines?😕 I don't even bother locking my own door.👍.
People, just focus on the facial features.😵😬 Honestly, I’ve even started dodging my own shadow lately.🤣

Look, I'll step over a line or stand squarely on those sidewalk tiles if I feel like messing around. But that's purely for the hell of it. It's not like I actually pay attention to that stuff. 😬