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Hi everyone ,

Since lock down I have worked on my OCD a lot . I feel I have made great progress. I have been to work, to shops even hospital. Considering in march I couldn't even leave my room I feel I have made progress.

I have not been anywhere 'fun' and constantly hear if other people taking holidays, days out etc. The thing is I've always had an issue with travelling because I worry I'll need the loo. I always plan my days out around loos .eg if going to beach.which I think effects my families fun a lot.

Lockdown was a relief for me as I didn't have to go out , but now I know I need to challenge this and I am getting extremely bored which is massively effecting my mental health.

I don't know if this is OCD but I have hyper responsibility OCD which is making me not want to go out because I have chosen to . I have to go to work and food shop but I don't have to go on day out. I feel like if I could get over my toilet concerns I could also face this next level of leaving my comfort zone.

Has anyone else experienced this or have any tips for me please .thank you.

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20 hours ago, ecomum said:

I have been to work, to shops even hospital. Considering in march I couldn't even leave my room I feel I have made progress.

That does sound like great progress ecomum! Way to go!

20 hours ago, ecomum said:

The thing is I've always had an issue with travelling because I worry I'll need the loo. I always plan my days out around loos .eg if going to beach.which I think effects my families fun a lot.

Toilets are an on-going challenge for me even before covid and now i just feel like it's something so far beyond me.

20 hours ago, ecomum said:

Has anyone else experienced this or have any tips for me please

I don't have any great tips on how to approach this since I'm in the middle of trying to figure my own way back to being a little more normal in this situation. The hyper-responsibility is a tough one--i have that too and I find with covid it has really brought that out even more! 

Sorry I couldn't be of better help but just wanted to say you aren't alone in this!

I hope you'll post about your progress here...and hopefully someone will post some more helpful advice :)

 

 

 

 

 

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Thank you LM .just knowing someone understands helps a lot more than you realised .thank you for lovely reply.

yeah I'm trying to find a way back to being things being a bit more normal too. I find making small steps -  but keep making them -helped me a lot .I'm a lot farther on than I was and continue to progress. Sometimes it's hard to know what is OCD and what is common sense guidelines.

At the moment I'm going with if there's a lot of 'what  it's ' then it's likely OCD but it's even trickier these days.

Thanks again for your reply.means a lot .

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22 hours ago, ecomum said:

.thank you for lovely reply.

:) you're welcome

22 hours ago, ecomum said:

I find making small steps -  but keep making them -helped me a lot

That sounds like the perfect approach. That's what I'm trying to do myself these days...

I think you are on exactly right track with the progress you've made and the next step will be working with the cognitive stuff behind the hyper-responsibility and being ok with actually choosing to have some fun and not just doing what is necessary (like work and the hospital and stuff). I'm at a similar point except that I don't have to work right now so the only necessaries I have is shopping really. But yes, I too hear of a lot of people having fun days out, (all while following the covid guidelines,) but it is making choices that open them up to more possible exposures. But they are willing to make the choice to have fun (again responsibly and within the guidelines) while I won't even get on a bus these days. 

Covid does add to the trickiness because yes, there is an actual  chance of getting it (unlike some of the other things I've worried about in the past) But how much do we let that decide what we do? 

On 21/08/2020 at 01:19, ecomum said:

ockdown was a relief for me as I didn't have to go out , but now I know I need to challenge this and I am getting extremely bored which is massively effecting my mental health.

When you mention it actually affecting your mental health, that is certainly something to take into consideration as well.

Wishing you well :)

 

 

 

 

 

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On 21/08/2020 at 17:19, ecomum said:

I don't know if this is OCD but I have hyper responsibility OCD which is making me not want to go out because I have chosen to . I have to go to work and food shop but I don't have to go on day out. I feel like if I could get over my toilet concerns I could also face this next level of leaving my comfort zone.

Has anyone else experienced this or have any tips for me please .thank you.


I think a lot of people, even those without OCD, are struggling to determine the right amount of going out that is "OK", so definitely don't feel like you are alone in that worry!  Its hard to know and hard to balance given the current uncertainty, and we all know that OCD hates uncertainty.
For myself I have tried to find a balance by allowing myself to go out to do things that are mostly outdoors, avoid crowded places etc.  I make sure to wear my mask when I go out too.  Going for a walk at a local park on a nice day for example.

As to the toilet situation, I think its great you want to tackle that.  My recommendation would be to make a plan and have some concrete and measurable actions you can take.  Build up to things as best you can.  For example you could start with simply spending a few moments inside a public restroom area, not even going in to the toilet stall itself.  Maybe next you could use the sink in one.  Later you could actually go in to the stall, but not use the toilet.  Etc.  Work your way up to it, get used to the anxiety you feel at each stage and build your confidence.  Often that's more sustainable than trying to force the situation all at once.

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