Guest TinplyDinply Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 Hi all, I'm 20 weeks pregnant and have been distressed for a long time over various thoughts. They can range from fearing I'm going to swerve my car in a certain way to kill innocent bystanders, to my husband dropping dead any second, to dropping my baby once she is born, to literally biting my tongue around strangers because I'm afraid I'm going to hurt insults at them. Well, I was dx'd yesterday by a new psychiatrist with a "moderate amount of OCD" and was given anafranil which I was told is okay to take during pregnancy, but my pharmacist disagrees and will not prescribe it to me until he talks to the pdoc. That's another story I guess. I guess my question is, how do I know these thoughts are not some form of unconscious, repressed sociopathy? I'm constantly being told I'm a good person (partly because I ask close family members a lot if I really am) but for many years I've been carrying around this shame that I'm really a monster; an evil defect in personality and character, why else would I have these thoughts? I'm particularly anxious being around small children, so this will probably be particularly bad for me once I give birth. Anyone else relate? Link to comment
Guest Tricia Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 (edited) Yes, very much so. This sounds nothing like repressed sociopathy, but totally OCD. My thoughts were very similar to yours (many years ago). I was also prescribed anafranil during pregnancy. I truly would avoid it if you can. SSRIs like Prozac are much safer. Prozac was not available to me in 1981, but my psychiatrist assured me that anafranil would be safe. My obstetrician had a very different view - after my son was born (he was very angry with me and accused me of behaving irresponsibly). I cannot say (and neither can doctors) whether problems my son had/has were caused by the drug, but it looks likely. I am not medically qualified, but I'd urge you to seek another opinion and to focus on CBT, although if a drug like Prozac were to be prescribed, all I have read stresses it's believed to be fairly safe in pregnancy and is certainly better than leaving a pregnant woman highly stressed, if therapy alone doesn't help much. Edited August 29, 2014 by Tricia Link to comment
Saad Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 Wise thing I always heard, "If you're wondering whether is OCD, most of the time is." Of course, I would agree with Tricia to go and seek another opinion, it's always helpful to have medical justification. Link to comment
Guest Tricia Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 Just want to stress the reason I mentioned a second opinion is over the anafranil, and therapy, not the diagnosis of OCD. Link to comment
imhotep79 Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 I've been through Harm Ocd for nearly 2 years. At my worst, I was sure I was a sociopath ready to go on a killing spree. I was always comparing myself to sociopathy symptoms and guess what, I felt like I really was one. I was even trying to say to myself that I've always be a good and compassionate person and in response my Ocd made me feel like I wouldn't care. In the end, it was only my old friend Ocd...when you're anxious, when you have this condition, it's easy to be confused in the midst of this disorder. Link to comment
PolarBear Posted August 29, 2014 Share Posted August 29, 2014 The answer to your question is if you were a sociopath you wouldn't worry about being a sociopath. That simple. Regardless the type, OCD presents itself in a very standard format. There are intrusive, unwanted thoughts that cause distress we call obsessions. They are followed by actions, behaviours or rituals performed to alleviate the distress. There is usually a good deal of anxiety and doubt thrown in. Doubting you have OCD is a very common symptom of OCD. It happens to a lot of people. The good news is that there are treatments available. You can get better. Link to comment
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