Sometimes checking Increases Anxiety

[Guest Creative Cat]

Hi All,

Do you ever feel like once you give in to a compulsion to check things that it only makes things worse because then you think of something even worse related to the same thing - but with a different angle? Yesterday, I refused to check something because I knew that if I did that I could quite possibly get triggered with even more fears.

I just gave in to checking on a fear today -- which of course is never real -- only to develop some new fears around the same subject after checking. I knew that I never should have checked to begin with!!

I've told you all this before but it reminds me of a Frazier episode where Niles thinks his pants are wrinkled before a date and then pulls out the iron in the living room -- only in the end to burn the couch, his pants, and make a huge disaster. I often remind myself that the nagging urge to check on something (or in Niles' case to iron) -- could quite possibly just make the anxiety spiral out of control even more. So, I just need to leave things alone!!!

I've been driving myself crazy today with possible scenarios of things to worry over and its just getting out of control! I'm forcing myself to "not check"!!!

Marie

[Guest summerleft]

I always found that, if you do give in and check your brains going oh its ok youll only do it once and of course if ocd convinces you i found i ended up thinking different things around the first thought i had and would be there for hours sometimes ending up worrying about something completely different to when i started.

If that makes sense :lol2:

[Guest ScottOCDid]

Hi Marie

I'm forcing myself to "not check"!!!

37438[/snapback]

Definitely the best move! Often far easier said than done, it's much better in the long run to break the cycle. You can guarantee that more checking leads to a greater [perceived] need to check.

When I stayed with my folks ("stayed" meaning permanent residence in Scottish dialect!), I would always try to be out of the house before everyone else so I didn't have to check. It didn't seem to matter that I knew perfectly well that nobody else would check the things that I would have checked. I think that personal responsibility was the big issue for me. If I wasn't the one last to leave (and "expected" to check), I couldn't be held to account for any unfortunate consequences.

Checking can certainly be a real pain so I hope you succeed in forcing yourself to limit doing so. I have found a "tailored" check to be effective: go into each room and, instead of checking all of the same things, in the same order, causing the same anxiety... try to stand in the doorway, visualise the sockets, switches, taps etc that you were about to check and then think "no, I haven't switched that on this morning", "I haven't used the hob today" etc. etc. and reduce the check to the "yes, I did use that" items. If the compulsion to check is the bigger problem than the obsession, it can actually work. I guess this is because you're forced to engage in a rational thought process, rather than becoming further embroiled in checking that you checked, that the check was a thorough check etc.

It's certainly a challenge - but I wish you luck!

Scott

[Caramoole]

It's certainly the right way Marie, like you say checking and giving in sort of buys you into the loop.

Good Luck with it

[whitebeam]

could quite possibly just make the anxiety spiral out of control even more.  So, I just need to leave things alone!!!

37438[/snapback]

This is something I have found, doing one compulsion often leads to a worsening of the scenario and instead of 'just a quick wipe' to improve a situation it grows into the need for a shower or cleaning the whole floor or whatever.

So, I just need to leave things alone!!!

Difficult to do but so true!!

[Guest hayley73]

IN TOTAL AGREEMENT!!!!!!!! Don't give in in the first place!!!!!!!!!!!! So hard to do though.

When things are particualry tough I speak my checking out loud. For e.g when checking each gas tap I say off, off, off, off, off, off (one OFF for each tap) If someone is around though I will mutter under my breath or they will definately cart me off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :tongue:

If I'm really anxious I will ask my boyfriend to check. If he says it's fine I have to trust him that everything is fine. Not always easy either!!!! But, I know he loves me and so as my best interests at heart. Besides if the gas isn't off and he blows the house up, it will be his fault!!!!!!!!!!! (only joking)

OCD always says 'what if?'. I haven't learn't that the hard way.