AmandaG

This thread is an interesting read. I've been off here quite a while now, partly because I find the medication I've been taking is close to 100% successful in reducing distressing intrusive thoughts about illness. However, it never quite removes the distress and agitation I feel about various physical sensations and repetitive noises, and no talking treatment has ever so much as touched (no pun intended) on those symptoms. If anything, exposure, focusing on them through meditation, and even talking about these things magnifies the sensations and the distress, rather than gradually resulting in desensitisation. I just start shutting down completely. I'm not coming from the angle of jumping to catastrophic conclusions about certain sounds or physical sensations, either, I don't associate negative outcomes like a physical threat, illness, 'going mad' etc. While I've experienced things like the thought loop of over-focusing on breathing before, too, this is something different, a gnawing unbearable sensation that's distressing, intrusive and causes intense irritability or even anger. Nothing lessens it apart from sleep or being in pain or strong physical discomfort. I'd like to think neurological research could come up with something in addition to the current ways of treating OCD.

Glad you've find a place you're comfortable to talk about this. I can absolutely relate as I had an appalling fear of bat rabies in the past, and it manifested itself in a very similar way - marks on my hands caused panic, I didn't want to go out after dark, wanted to wear gloves to protect my hands, and I couldn't stand touching animals (other than horses, for some reason). Happily, it can be managed and even go away completely. (I went into the bat cave at Chester Zoo a few years later and it didn't bother me at all). I found an OCD self help book about challenging phobias, which was difficult, but I'd like to think it helped me recover quicker, along with drastically cutting back on and managing several very stressful situations in my life. The big breakthrough for me, though, was medication. In the space of a month the constant thoughts and nightmares subsided, and I could look at words that reminded me of the feared situations. I'd absolutely recommend appropriate therapy for OCD and phobias. There can be a waiting list, though, and if you feel your OCD is too acute, or that therapy will initially make you feel worse, there are medication options to complement this. (Personally, I was happiest with the SSRI I was prescribed, and refused the diazepam). Therapy might not necessarily be about digging into the past, either, more about acknowledging and coming to terms with intrusive thoughts, daily stress, and circumstances you currently have. As you've said, you have another area of OCD phobia, which suggests generic treatment for OCD would be helpful. It's possible for OCD to switch between different phobias or attach itself to a completely unrelated pattern of thoughts. The same principles always apply to treating it, though. I hope you can get back to fully enjoying the company of your cats!

I've had spells where I've been fine off medication, and not gone back to an old phobia, although I tend to find I gradually become more susceptible to new phobias and don't think as clearly as I do on medication. I might be very unusual, though, in that my SSRI of choice (fluoxetine) works after only about a week, not the three to four weeks expected, and I only need a very low dose to almost entirely alleviate all symptoms of OCD.

It's not for everyone, but I personally found that in this type of situation, only prescribed medication suitable for OCD could diminish that cycle of thoughts. I worked really hard on not rising to the urge to ruminate or act on intrusive thoughts, and just accept that they exist, when my OCD has been at its worst. But these thoughts were incredibly disruptive, vivid, and were appearing repeatedly in dreams and affecting my sleep. If you haven't tried medication and have a really stubborn pattern of intrusive thoughts, despite working through appropriate therapy long term, medication could be worth looking into.

Since you're here, you already know it's OCD. It's hard to guess how soon you'll make progress, but I always think that if it feels like the OCD is resisting hard, you're obviously doing something positive to challenge it.

OCD can be so irritaing. Abandoning its grip on one line of thinking and seizing on another. It's as if you overcome or start to overcome it, only for the repetitive and intrusive thinking to shift and centre on a slightly different theme. Personally I think there is something positive about this, though, as it tends to be a sign that you have succeeded in defeating the OCD in relation to one theme, and have the ability to overcome it again.

I'm not an expert on depression, really, I've only experienced it very temporarily. Anxiety is the much bigger thing for me. If you've read about CBT, then using CBT methods to identify and challenge the negative feelings or thinking driving the low mood could help - eg feelings like 'I'm never going to be able to cope with these intrusive thoughts', when you can't really predict the future and say that, and it's possible to learn to manage intrusive thoughts.

Are you receiving any help or trying any self help for depression too? Depression can often be the flip side of anxiety conditions.

Not giving OCD thoughts the pleasure of getting too much of a reaction out of you, is one way I like to look at it They're like bullies. As for why, maybe people with OCD thinking are just natural troublemshooters, analysts and problem solvers. We can't stand unresolved issues.

I had no idea. I'm glad high profile people are speaking about it.

If they're hesitant to diagnose anything (maybe they'll think again and consider making a diagnosis when he's a little bit older), I'd personally ask them for some form of strategy or action plan to help manage his distress. I'd be hesitant to opt for purely OCD-targeted therapy, with an exposure element, when they haven't really exhausted possible causes and he may have sensory integration difficulties.

Only a medical professional can really make a diagnosis. Repetitive intrusive thoughts are typical of OCD, but extreme sensory sensitivity can be a trait of autism, ADHD or a standalone sensory condition, and a need for orderliness isn't strictly an OCD symptom, althought it can be part of OCD compulsions to alleviate a tangible fear. They'll probably want to look at all kinds of possible explanations or diagnoses before they decide on one or more.

Great to hear that the CBT is already helping

If the workman was working at your house, it would only be fair to let him use your toilet. If he sort of offered the use of your toilet when he was working elsewhere, that's a bit strange

Those all sound like positive steps, you can always tackle more once you've become acclimatised to those changes