BelAnna

Hi Iamwesker, Coincidences just happen all of the time but usually we are not focused on them so we don't notice them as much. It's only if you're tuned into them that you notice them. Also you didn't actually dream about Pinocchio (not that it would matter if you did!), you just dreamt that you had a long nose so that particular case is not really a coincidence. Nonetheless the ones that are still don't matter- they're just a normal part of being human and don't mean anything! Keep studying and the less attention you put on coincidences, the fewer coincidences you will notice.

No, you absolutely can and most people will, still get OCD thoughts when on SSRIs. Some people actually find their thoughts get worse on certain SSRIs so it absolutely doesn't mean anything!

Nope- just totally normal and definitely not worth worrying about! These coincidences honestly mean nothing. If God wanted to warn you to/not to do something then he wouldn't do it using bizarre coincidences that seem to have no relation to the thing you're worried about. Also why would God not want you to learn Japanese? ** I am saying this as someone who has similar OCD and is worrying about whether or not to do a Linguistics course next year or whether God is warning me not to - so I'm basically a hypocrite!

Haha, yes I think so. The word order is Verb-Subject-Object/VSO, which takes some getting used to but there's no new characters to learn and it's fairly easy to pronounce with regular spelling!

Amazing work! that's brilliant. Show OCD who's boss. Also that's pretty cool that you're learning Japanese! I'm learning Scottish Gaelic, which is less cool but still fun!

Hi Gemma, Thank you! 🙂, you're right. I guess that as I feel the biggest risk is actually to my parents' health then whether I attend or not doesn't actually make a huge difference (except if I somehow caught it first and spread it throughout the household; which is fairly unlikely). If this was anything other than my niece's Christening I would definitely cancel though. Thanks so much Ashley! I know my parents and younger brother just plan to attend and take the risk so I guess that's my main template for 'normal' at the moment. My worry is that because my older brother, his fiancée and kids have had Covid-19, that their 'normal' (using public transport, hugging friends etc., seeing quite a lot of people, using public loos) wouldn't be a good approach when we haven't had Covid yet and that they maybe aren't considering that our parents could fall seriously ill. My contamination OCD mostly revolves around Norovirus so I'm not sure that this is OCD but I do have aspects of hyper-responsibility to my OCD so perhaps that does play a role. I don't think that the requests are based on OCD but I've decided not to message my brother as I don't think it will change anything! I think I have to attend otherwise my brother will be very hurt so I will probably just do that and hope for the best. I would love the link to Prof Salkovskis talk- thank you! Thanks so much Caramoole! That's helpful to know that your friends who own holiday rentals are being so careful. I think hopefully the holiday rental accommodation will be okay and that the vicar will be taking all of the necessary precautions too. We'll wear medical grade masks, gloves and use gel in church to reduce the risk. My niece and nephew are too little (under 3) to understand social distancing but we'll hopefully be able to sit socially distanced from the other guests. Hi Angst, Yes I really wish it was but unfortunately it's in Scotland. I think I'm just going to take the risk and hope for the best, I just feel so uneasy about it!! Hopefully I can write back in a couple of weeks to say that we're all okay! (OCD means I'm scared I've just jinxed the situation!). Thanks Lollipop, I might do that. Thanks again Angst, Ashley, Caramoole, Gemma and Lollipop for your advice!

Hi iamwesker, I hope you're okay. I can really relate to the 'fear that God is warning me to/not to' thing, despite the fact I'm agnostic (undecided about whether God exists or not!). Coincidences happen all the time but you notice them more if you're looking for them. I had a breast cancer scare with a two-week cancer pathway referral two years ago and literally everything that I saw in the 2-week wait for my appointment was about cancer. Of course they were just coincidences and I didn't have cancer but it felt like God/the Universe was telling me something at the time! All of the things you mention sound like absolute coincidences but even if something happened that seemed like it couldn't possibly be a coincidence then it's a huge jump of logic to assume that it's God warning you! Also why would seeing the same name as you had thought about earlier, equate to God telling you not to learn a language? It stinks of OCD (I say that as someone with similar OCD thoughts!).

Hello, I know this is a bit odd but I was just wondering what your approach to this situation would be @Ashley and @Caramoole but totally understand if you're snowed under with helping people.

Sorry didn't tag you @dksea, @Angst.

Thanks so much Dksea and Angst. I am not so scared about catching it myself but terrified for my parents who I think are very much at risk of serious illness. They have already booked accommodation (a 'covid-secure' holiday rental in a nearby quiet, beach town, so at least it's not a busy hotel in the city) and are sure that they're going. I insisted on it being a holiday rental as they had refundable hotel rooms booked in a busy city hotel. We're going to stop at a quiet pub en route for a loo break rather than a service station (I will stay in the car). Unfortunately due to the God-awful severity of my OCD I would be too anxious to stay at home (which wouldn't have been a problem in the past- I've lived alone and with flatmates) so that's not an option. I also think my brother would respond poorly. I've just had an argument with my parents over this and they are refusing to let me email my brother with some suggestions that might mitigate the risk (such as asking for my little nephew not to attend nursery the day before and for us to sit at the back of the church). What on earth can I do???

Hi Everyone, This weekend I'm travelling 300 miles (by car) to a close family christening and feeling so worried about it! My family and I stayed quite close to the same city two weeks ago but the Covid rates have gone up massively in that time and I'm very worried about being indoors in the church, in relatively close proximity to 16+ people (and their kids who aren't counted for in the max. capacity for church services); who may have Covid and not know it. In terms of taking risks with Coronavirus we have been really careful so far- we have only eaten outside at a couple of cafes/pubs (not indoors) and have tried to be incredibly careful with wiping clean all our groceries, wearing masks and gloves and using gel from March onwards, limiting supermarket trips to once/twice a week and showering after going out etc. This situation feels so much more risky. It is legal to attend christening services but the infection rate is so high and I'm terrified that my 60+ y/o parents who have Vascular conditions (coronary heart disease and an unruptured brain aneurysm) may contract Covid and suffer serious complications etc. I'm actually finding it hard to sleep at night because I'm so worried that they might die from it. I'm unwell with a virus at the moment and it is making my asthma much worse, which has just made me even more scared about Coronavirus. I would love some advice if anyone could help- how can I cope with this? I should add that I really have no control over this- it's my niece's christening so we cannot not go!

Hi Everyone, This weekend I'm travelling 300 miles (by car) to a close family christening and feeling so worried about it! My family and I stayed quite close to the same city two weeks ago but the Covid rates have gone up massively in that time and I'm very worried about being indoors in the church, in relatively close proximity to 16+ people (and their kids who aren't counted for in the max. capacity for church services); who may have Covid and not know it. In terms of taking risks with Coronavirus we have been really careful so far- we have only eaten outside at a couple of cafes/pubs (not indoors) and have tried to be incredibly careful with wiping clean all our groceries, wearing masks and gloves and using gel from March onwards, limiting supermarket trips to once/twice a week and showering after going out etc. This situation feels so much more risky. It is legal to attend christening services but the infection rate is so high and I'm terrified that my 60+ y/o parents who have Vascular conditions (coronary heart disease and an unruptured brain aneurysm) may contract Covid and suffer serious complications etc. I'm actually finding it hard to sleep at night because I'm so worried that they might die from it. I'm unwell with a virus at the moment and it is making my asthma much worse, which has just made me even more scared about Coronavirus. I would love some advice if anyone could help- how can I cope with this? I should add that I really have no control over this- it's my niece's christening so we cannot not go!

Yeah no, that's B.S. - it is absolutely legal to sign off for OCD, anxiety and/or stress. Arrange an appointment with a different GP at your Medical Practice. If you've not previously been diagnosed with OCD then they might resist writing 'OCD' on your sick note but they should sign you off with stress/anxiety; if you have an OCD diagnosis then they absolutely should sign you off with it. It might be best not to mention the Pandemic and just say that due to various severe life stressors, you are currently experiencing an acute exacerbation in your OCD and unable to function sufficiently to work at the moment.

^^ This is classic OCD- Welcome to the forum!

I quite like American sitcoms/dramas. Recently I've enjoyed 'This is us' (drama) 'Life in Pieces' (comedy); 'Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist' (musical, comedy/drama) and 'The Marvellous Mrs Maisel' (comedy; which I thought sounded terrible but gave it a go because it is award-winning- it was great!).