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Dealing with multiple themes


Guest Hockey30

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Guest Hockey30

I was just wondering if it is quite common to deal with certain themes at the same time? I feel that at the moment I am generally dealing with a variety of intrusive thoughts, such as relationship, harm, and P. I guess this is where it is valid to suggest that the theme is irrelevant, as it is OCD in general that is the issue. But right now I feel that I am questioning everything. The recent shootings in america got me thinking about his mental condition and how he could be capable of that, which led to harm thoughts. I have always had intrusive thoughts about my relationship, like do I love her, does she love me, is she cheating, does she think I'm cheating etc. But it just feels like I am dealing with lots of variations of different types of intrusive thought that make me question me as a person. They all end up with me questioning if I am 'evil' or 'bad'.

Also, I got a little worried after therapy last night, as I am pretty sure my therapist still doesnt really believe I have OCD. She asked me if I think I think something bad will happen if I dont do a ritual i.e. "magical thinking". And I said no, as I dont have any external or internal rituals or mantras that I do to stop a bad event from occuring. Then I asked why, and she said "I was just checking, because if you do then I would definitely say you are OCD", and so I think that she doesnt constitute repetitive intrusive thoughts as a trait of OCD. I think she still thinks that I just suffer from GAD. Obviously this then made me worry that she thinks I am not OCD and there is actually something wrong with me. I have tried to tell her a few times before that, although I worry alot about the future and things like that (which would be more of a GAD related thing) but I told her that mainly I suffer from intrusive thoughts about particular irrational things like I mentioned at the start.

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Guest sarah1984

Hi Hockey,

Yes, I would say it is very common to experience multiple "themes" all at the same time. I read somewhere that around two thirds of OCD sufferers have more than one obsession. You're absolutely spot on that the subject matter of the thoughts is irrelevant and that it is OCD in general that's your problem. I also agree that all your "themes" seem to boil down to a worry about being a bad person.

Unfortunately, it seems as if there are still a lot of mental health professionals out there who are not very competent at diagnosing and treating OCD. I've never been diagnosed with OCD per se - my official diagnosis from my psychiatrist is "severe generalised anxiety disorder with depression and obsessive ruminations". Personally, I believe my symptoms fit a diagnosis of OCD much more than GAD, despite the fact that there is an overlap in symptoms between the two disorders. This isn't the first time I have been diagnosed with GAD - I was also diagnosed back in 2006 when I developed excessive anxiety about my academic performance. I believe that the diagnosis was correct on this occasion because I was worrying about something real that was actually happening in the here and now. In contrast, I fully acknowledge that my OCD thoughts are irrational and exaggerated. However, back in 2006, I felt my worries were totally logical.

I think the reason why I haven't been diagnosed with OCD is because my intrusive thoughts don't fit with the conventional themes of sex, violence and blasphemy. Since you experience both harm and P thoughts, I would have thought it was obvious you were suffering from OCD! Like yourself, I've never performed external or internal rituals to prevent bad things happening because I'm aware that I don't have any control over my intrusive thoughts coming true or not. However, I did perform subtle mental rituals including rumination, thought suppression and reassurance seeking.

The important thing is that you receive the right treatment - CBT with a focus on ERP. Are you happy with this therapist's approach?

Sarah

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Guest Hockey30

Evening Sarah!

You are always so good at replying to everyone, just thought I would ask how you are getting on? I have also been given a diagnoses very similar to yours. My GP said I suffer from general anxiety disorder as well as "reactionary depression" and intrusive and obsessive thoughts....sounds pretty much like OCD to me! Ha, but I am not so bothered about getting an official diagnoses as I know deep down what it is, Ive been dealing with it long enough. Its a weird one really because I get on really well with my therapist, but I kind of know that she isnt completely clued up on OCD. But she is well aware of ERP and managing thought patterns etc. Do you still receive CBT?

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Guest sarah1984

I'm doing very well at the moment, thanks. I had a short course of CBT at the start of 2011. I'd had to wait 5 months between my referral to psychology and my initial therapy session. My OCD was so severe that I couldn't wait that long so I started looking into self-help using CBT techniques I learned from books and articles online. By the time the actual therapy came round, I was pretty clued up about what I needed to do to deal with my intrusive thoughts so it was just a case of confirming with the therapist that I was doing the right things.

Sarah

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