PolarBear

How's that working for you? Listen, you can't have access to the video, even if there is video. You have no valid reason. The store manager would think you're off your rocker. Seeing the video would be just another compulsion and it won't make the problem go away.

OCD is taken seriously. We need lots more qualified therapists, but it is taken seriously. Do you not think we all don't take OCD seriously?

You want reassurance, which you feel will quell the anxiety you feel. It won't. Even if you looked at video, OCD will not let you be sure. The way forward is to leave this alone. Refuse to debate this with yourself. Get your mind on other things.

Now go do something fun. And have an ice cream. Or chocolate!

NLL, don't let Howard's inept advice sway you. As many people have told you, your problem has NOTHING to do with fantasies. Your problem is OCD. Focus on fixing the problem.

Daps, you've taken a positive step by reaching out here. Your problem is not asbestos. It's OCD. A thought has got stuck in your head and you're now fixated on it. For you it's asbestos. For others, it's something else. The challenge for you is to get that thought unstuck. I suggest you get a good OCD book and learn about the disorder, how it manifests. Learn what your obsessions and compulsions are. Become knowledgeable. A good first step. Er, second step!

Heh, no. Thoughts are thoughts. They come, they go. You have little to no control over them. What you can control is your reaction to those thoughts. You choose to ruminate over them. You choose to confess here. You choose to seek reassurance. Doing so hasn't solved your problem for many years. So maybe you should start doing something different.

What could you have done differently?

This is the wrong approach. You can't win an argument with OCD. So don't argue. Just continue with your day.

Conclusion: compulsions don't work. From a cognitive aspect, there is no reason for it to feel right anyway.

Stuff happens. Why be so hard on yourself over a little accident?

MarieJo, you certainly don't want to replace the app with other compulsions. That said, the app has to go. How about reducing your reliance on the app by setting limits when you will use it and gradually increasing the time period between checking? This only works if you keep yourself busy between checks so you aren't watching the clock and ruminating.

You've got to get rid of that app. It is doing you no good. Using it is a compulsion and compulsions don't work. They only make your situation worse. It's too darn easy to keep checking that app and even when you know where they are, your mind thinks up all sorts of scenarios of harm coming to them anyway. Delete the app.

In all likelihood, I would not have cleaned the laptop screen. It was a ball, not uranium. What you need to do is nothing, besides getting your mind off this non-issue and onto more important stuff. By the way, you didn't make a mistake.

Just about anything you do can be a compulsion. Or at least a distraction. You won't get better by simply reading posts. You have to DO the work. Recovery is about doing.