Worries change daily

[LO_xxx]

Hi, this is my first time posting here. I have been under the impression I have OCD for a few years now everything fits and I have done a lot of research and reading up on it. I do have an assessment coming up soon so we will see then. BUT recently my worries have been changing almost regularly, for instance, one day I will fret that I have been caught speeding and I will spend days worrying and googling and thinking of the worse possible things that could happen. Then a few days later I’ll be over it and onto the next thing, for example I’ll be worrying that I’ve left a plug on at home and the house will burn down and my dog will die, I’ll then spend the next few days turning off all plugs before leaving and doing checks. Then a few days later it’s on to something else. I know that all types of OCD are different but the majority of stories I’ve read, the person only worries about one or two things repeatedly whereas mine changes from day to day, week to week. 
 

am I just a worrier in general?
I am going to mention all of this to my doctor in my appointment but wondered if anyone else suffers similarly?

[paradoxer]

'am I just a worrier in general?' Within the question lies the answer - your rhetorical question sounds like quintessential OCD. 

Try to let the 'if it's not one thing, it's another' nature of your worries, work for you. There's your cognitive insight. 

 

Edited October 17, 2019 by paradoxer

[LO_xxx]

9 minutes ago, paradoxer said:

'am I just a worrier in general?' Within the question lies the answer - your rhetorical question sounds like quintessential OCD. 

Try to let the 'if it's not one thing, it's another' nature of your worries, work for you. There's your cognitive insight. 

 

By work for me what do you mean? Sorry I am slightly new to the fixing it part, I’ve lived with it for a while but never attempted to resolve it until now. 

[Closed for repairs]

Well that all sounds familiar,

Welcome aboard.

I haven’t got a dog but apart from that, you could be describing me.

Speeding.. I’ve spent ages googling, how speed cameras work as I’m convinced I set them off, but it goes away after a few days.

I have some constant long running checks, but a lot of the time I come up with new ways to upset my self.

so ignoring the various lights and locks, this week I have;

turned closeing a cupboard into a detailed technical inspection.

had a panic attack over the positioning of some scrap sheet metal

 brought home a load of scrap electronic parts as I had to keep checking they weren’t catching fire,

spent ages worrying that I would go to prison for stealing scrap electronic parts from work.

Wasted a lot of time as I had to know the whereabouts of a specific pen, an old pound coin, and a small bit of wire , this has invoked going through a bin and emptying a vacuum cleaner.

Went back to work at night to check that no one was stuck in the lift.

Next week  some of these will still be “live”, but others will be replaced .

Dont get me wrong they are all vitally important at the time, and I don’t use the term panic  attack lightly.

On the other hand there are all sorts of irritating, and possibly dangerous things going on that I don’t care about at all, I’m not going to make a list as that would seem to be tempting fate...

 

 

[LO_xxx]

5 hours ago, Closed for repairs said:

Speeding.. I’ve spent ages googling, how speed cameras work as I’m convinced I set them off, but it goes away after a few days.

Wow this is literally me the amount of times I’ve googled, how do speed cameras work, have I been caught speeding, penalties for speeding. 
 

5 hours ago, Closed for repairs said:

brought home a load of scrap electronic parts as I had to keep checking they weren’t catching fire,

I’ve been taking a portable charger to work with me in the car so I can keep an eye on it so it doesn’t catch fire. Because I worry it will blow up at my house and my pooch will be harmed. 

 

5 hours ago, Closed for repairs said:

Wasted a lot of time as I had to know the whereabouts of a specific pen, an old pound coin, and a small bit of wire , this has invoked going through a bin and emptying a vacuum cleaner.

I have also been known to start being irrational and done this, last week I made my partner empty the black bin in the garden and the hoover so I could find something that I knew deep down probably wasn’t in there but you feel like you have to. It’s almost like I’m drunk with it sometimes it fully takes over 

 

Its almost like you know deep down that this is all ridiculous but you physically cannot help it. Have you found anything to calm it down? 
 

also thanks for sharing  

[paradoxer]

10 hours ago, LO_xxx said:

By work for me what do you mean? Sorry I am slightly new to the fixing it part, I’ve lived with it for a while but never attempted to resolve it until now. 

What I mean is this - the fact that your worries change daily, tells you that they''re really nonsense. When you're going through whatever the current worry/theme is, it no doubt feels like a real concern. But your feeling isn't valid. Try, if you can, to remember that OCD cries wolf, and no matter how real that concern feels now, it's nonsense. 

In summary, when OCD cries wolf, again and again, it's giving itself away as the fraud that it is. Use that knowledge against it. 

[Gemma7]

Hi Lo_xxx and welcome to the forum

I agree with others that what you describe sounds like OCD. Who are you having an assessment with? The best therapy for OCD is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). Usually your gp can refer you for this or in England you can self-refer to your local IAPT. 

It doesn't matter that your worries keep changing, in fact they all fall under worries caused by an inflated sense of responsibility (very common in OCD sufferers), so aren't really different at all

I highly recommend Break free from OCD while you wait for therapy, it's a self-help book that will get you familiar with CBT and hopefully help you learn more about OCD and how to start tackling it 

[paradoxer]

2 hours ago, LO_xxx said:

Its almost like you know deep down that this is all ridiculous but you physically cannot help it. Have you found anything to calm it down? 
 

 

I liken that urge to ritualize like a giant rubber band that just catapults you automatically to perform the compulsion. It's like a reflex. 

If you want to 'calm it down', you have to first do the opposite, resist the compulsion. In the near term it will create more anxiety, in the long term the urge to perform the compulsion will lessen. 

Edited October 18, 2019 by paradoxer

[Closed for repairs]

I'm struggling a bit at the moment, doing online CBT,

But I'm determined I'll sort this 

I've read Break free from OCD,

And am on fluoxetine to help with the anxiety.

It's not a sprint I'm afraid.

The good thing about CBT (and the bad), is it's fairly active, you have to do the work, conquer your own demons, so you do feel your achieving something when it goes well.

4 hours ago, LO_xxx said:

Its almost like you know deep down that this is all ridiculous but you physically cannot help it. Have you found anything to calm it down? 

This is one of the worst bits for me, it makes you feel so stupid, you know it's ridiculous but you keep doing the compulsions, even when you know they don't work.

[LO_xxx]

6 hours ago, Gemma7 said:

I agree with others that what you describe sounds like OCD. Who are you having an assessment with? The best therapy for OCD is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). Usually your gp can refer you for this or in England you can self-refer to your local IAPT. 

I have an appointment with GP and them hoping they refer me to IAPT but I checked my local IAPT website and couldn’t find anything in relation to OCD which has worried me. I’m always a bit wary talking to GP as I feel like they think I’m stupid. 
 

6 hours ago, Gemma7 said:

I highly recommend Break free from OCD while you wait for therapy, it's a self-help book that will get you familiar with CBT and hopefully help you learn more about OCD and how to start tackling it 

I ordered it last night after reading so much about it on here, I’m looking forward to it arriving. I’ve been dealing with this now for too long and I want my life back!! 
 

Thank you for replying

[Gemma7]

18 minutes ago, LO_xxx said:

I have an appointment with GP and them hoping they refer me to IAPT but I checked my local IAPT website and couldn’t find anything in relation to OCD which has worried me. I’m always a bit wary talking to GP as I feel like they think I’m stupid. 

Don't worry too much about your local IAPT, perhaps wait till you get there and see what they offer. If you have problems with accessing appropriate treatment get in touch with the charity via email. The email address is support@ocduk.org

As for the gp thinking you're stupid, try not to let that worry you. The first time I saw a gp I just went in and said I think I have OCD. That gets them asking the correct questions normally

If you're still concerned OCD-UK have also got a gp icebreaker that you could check out here, 

https://www.ocduk.org/gp-ice-breaker/

[LO_xxx]

Thank you Gemma I’ll take a look at that. 

[Closed for repairs]

14 hours ago, LO_xxx said:

I have an appointment with GP and them hoping they refer me to IAPT but I checked my local IAPT website and couldn’t find anything in relation to OCD which has worried me. I’m always a bit wary talking to GP as I feel like they think I’m stupid. 

Don’t worry too much about the IAPT not dealing with OCD, they will do an assessment, I did an online questionnaire and then a phone consultation.

Your mileage may vary, but I was quite impressed, I thought the phone interview would be awful but it was pretty good, I felt that although there is obviously a points based diagnostic  system , the Interviewer seemed able to interpret my  responses  to  get to the heart of my problems.

eg a question like;

how has you social life been affected , on a scale of1 to 10, can be used to open up a discussion, as opposed to just recording a score.

cant remember if I was asked that exactly but you get the point.