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At school, my OCD is more difficult to deal with because there are triggers everywhere, and I can't exactly get up and play my clarinet in the middle of Algebra, nor can I pull out my cell phone and play solitaire in the middle of Geography. My mom gets upset because she'll get in trouble if I don't go to school, and that's a very valid reason to be upset, but nothing that I've tried to do to handle it works. Writing in my journal doesn't help, and neither does taking a 5-10 minute break from class. Using a stress ball doesn't work, either. Listening to music is beneficial, but those stupid earbuds that I'd have to use hurt my ears. I asked for headphones (you know, the ones that cover your entire ear), but those are pretty expensive, and my mom said that you can't use them during class, anyways. Some people think that I'm making excuses, but I'm having a lot of trouble and I was wondering if any of you had any suggestions.

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I take it you mean you have difficulty picking something to concentrate on rather than performing compulsions.

Are you getting any help? A therapist? Someone to help you come up with strategies for handling triggers at school?

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Yes, that's what I mean. I'm seeing a psychologist at the moment, and he's been helping me with mindfulness meditation. We've been working of breathing exercises for about 3 weeks, now, and they're really helpful when dealing with sensory overload, but not so helpful when I'm trying to focus on class instead of engaging with my OCD. Edited by Purplepiper7
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Okay. I understand what you're talking about. I'll tell you, it takes a lot of practice when you have OCD to sway your attention back onto what's important. It's really hard to ignore the thoughts popping up in your head and screaming, "Pay attention to me!" But it can be done. It takes practice and commitment. Say to yourself, "That's an OCD thought and I'm not going to deal with it right now," then stop yourself from reacting to the thought and refocus onto what is in front of you. Practice, practice. You'll get there, piper.

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Thanks PolarBear. :) I try to resist engaging with my OCD, but I always end up giving into it. I know that it takes practice and all, but teachers don't wait for you to catch up. It's kind of like one of those "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situations, because when I engage with my OCD, I'm distracted, and if I ignore my OCD, then I can't focus. You said that you've had OCD since you were a teenager, right? Did you have similar problems? How did you deal with it during school?

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Junior high was good. High school not so much. My grades started to suffer. I had a terrible time concentrating. All my effort was going to ruminating. It wad a tough time. I didn't have a clue about OCD or CBT back then. I just suffered along.

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That must've been awful. :( My OCD started affecting my schoolwork when I was in 4th grade. It got a little bit better in 6th grade, but towards the end of 7th grade, it got much worse; since then, things have been going downhill. I'm going to do what you said (I'm practicing right now). I'm just getting frustrated, because things that worked earlier this year aren't working now.

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