Thursday morning zoom support group

[L.M.]

Thanks @BelAnna and @Ashley

I will definitely give the group some thought. I think I could really benefit from something like that. The only problem is I don't feel my apartment is that soundproof so get self-conscious when talking out loud about some of these issues...we'll see...even when talking to family on the phone about it, I tend to go off in a far corner and whisper about it lol...but maybe i could just use the chat box...anyways will give it more thought.

 

i do think i might try to log onto here daily about progress and struggles though.

The other day i was saying to a family member that with the pandemic, it's much harder to work on my contamination issues, but I realize that I may be using that as an excuse. Sure the pandemic can add some obstacles but overall there are lots of things i can work on.

I will focus on yesterday--

My loss--

So went for a run in the morning, got super sweaty which can become an ocd issue for me, I showered and changed and limited the amount of cleaning i did afterward (i often want to wash all the floors I walked across while sweaty!) but I also like to clean any chair that i sit in or touch while sweaty. Well i hadn't sat or touched any chairs as I went straight to the shower...But later an intrusive thought popped in that maybe i had sat in the chair, contaminated it with sweat, and now had sat on it with clean clothes. I knew it was all ridiculous--knew i hadn't sat down, knew that even if I had it wouldn't have mattered really (though I was only half sure of that)

Anyways did end up having to change my clothes, wash the chair, and that all felt like a bit of a failure...at least i didn't have to take another shower...

My win yesterday was shortening my laundry method--i have gotten into the habit of rinsing all my clothes twice--not because of sensitivity to laundry soap, but just to make things feel cleaner. So yesterday I only did one rinse cycle.

 

 

 

 

[BelAnna]

6 hours ago, L.M. said:

So went for a run in the morning, got super sweaty which can become an ocd issue for me, I showered and changed and limited the amount of cleaning i did afterward (i often want to wash all the floors I walked across while sweaty!) but I also like to clean any chair that i sit in or touch while sweaty. Well i hadn't sat or touched any chairs as I went straight to the shower...But later an intrusive thought popped in that maybe i had sat in the chair, contaminated it with sweat, and now had sat on it with clean clothes. I knew it was all ridiculous--knew i hadn't sat down, knew that even if I had it wouldn't have mattered really (though I was only half sure of that)

Anyways did end up having to change my clothes, wash the chair, and that all felt like a bit of a failure...at least i didn't have to take another shower...

My win yesterday was shortening my laundry method--i have gotten into the habit of rinsing all my clothes twice--not because of sensitivity to laundry soap, but just to make things feel cleaner. So yesterday I only did one rinse cycle.

 

That's brilliant that you didn't rinse your clothes twice! That's a great step forward. I am trying to cut down my use of laundry disinfectant (e.g. dettol laundry liquid) at the moment as I have a lot of problems with laundry too. 

It's also really good that you tried to limit the amount of cleaning that you did after your run and didn't have a second shower- definitely focus on that (which sounds like a big deal) rather than on the couple of compulsions you did engage in and then you can just work on those next time. 

I agree that contamination OCD (depending on the type of 'contamination' obsession) is harder to cope with with Covid around- I don't think you're making excuses! Have you had any therapy since the pandemic started? I'm finding CBT helpful at the moment although I've not got round to doing my ERP 'homework' (mostly picking things up from the floor without washing my hands!) for this week so need to try doing that tomorrow! 

6 hours ago, L.M. said:

Thanks @BelAnna and @Ashley

I will definitely give the group some thought. I think I could really benefit from something like that. The only problem is I don't feel my apartment is that soundproof so get self-conscious when talking out loud about some of these issues...we'll see...even when talking to family on the phone about it, I tend to go off in a far corner and whisper about it lol...but maybe i could just use the chat box...anyways will give it more thought.

It took me quite a while to cope with the idea of joining the support group too! If it helps you can wear headphones to listen to the meeting and then just type to talk to everyone (which is what a lot of people do during the meeting). So far I've only been able to listen to the meeting and type. I haven't managed to keep my camera on for long (due to BDD) but I can see why it's encouraged as it's nice to see some of the same friendly faces each week so I will work on it! 

Hope you have a good day tomorrow- do post updates on here to say how things are!  

 

 

 

[BelAnna]

8 hours ago, Ashley said:

 

 

You can stay off camera, and most people do the first time they join. But we are encouraging users to share their cameras eventually when they feel able to as we are trying to recreate traditional support group environment the best we can, so that we can see and support each other, rather than just creating a telephone type support group.  Some people share their camera when talking, but turn it off when not talking, which is also fine

Thanks Ashley! I know I really need to work on keeping my camera on for meetings. Initially I kept putting off joining because I was so worried about appearing in the meeting so I decided that it was better to join with my camera off and work towards it than to avoid the group!

[L.M.]

Hi @BelAnna (and anyone else who might join in this support thread)

Did you manage some of your erp homework? I have similar issues with things on the floor and needing to wash them and my hands...

Sounds like we have a lot of the same issues actually! I am also trying to stop using so much disinfectant, both in laundry and just in general. And then just trying to cut back on amount of laundry I do altogether. One cognitive side that really supports me in doing that challenge is realizing how much more free time I have if I don't do as much laundry so that is really motivating, but it is a lot of work getting there.

Yesterday my success was I accidentally put my sweater down on what I thought of as a possibly contaminated chair when I was out, so I was really afraid that with that intrusive thought, I would end up having to not only wash my sweater but also all my other clothes I was wearing since my sweater then touched them. Happily I was able to put that aside and continued to just wear the sweater, didn't put it or any of my other clothes in the wash when i got home. Yay!

You mentioned a holiday in Scotland a few posts ago--how did that go? That seems like it could have a lot of challenges involved?

I realized I can't actually join the Thursday morning Zoom group as I'm in a different time zone than you guys and it would be in the middle of the night for me!

 

 

[Gemma@OCDUK]

Hi Everyone,

It's great to see you all supporting each other on the forum between meetings

You can register for our online support groups at https://www.ocduk.org/support-groups/online/ As OCD-UK is only funded to offer services for UK residents and advice offered will be UK specific, it's important to highlight that we are unable to make the groups available to anyone living outside the UK at this time.

If you aren't a UK resident then you are still welcome to use our forums to chat and share your experiences tackling OCD

Gemma

[BelAnna]

20 hours ago, L.M. said:

Hi @BelAnna (and anyone else who might join in this support thread)

Did you manage some of your erp homework? I have similar issues with things on the floor and needing to wash them and my hands...

Sounds like we have a lot of the same issues actually! I am also trying to stop using so much disinfectant, both in laundry and just in general. And then just trying to cut back on amount of laundry I do altogether. One cognitive side that really supports me in doing that challenge is realizing how much more free time I have if I don't do as much laundry so that is really motivating, but it is a lot of work getting there.

Yesterday my success was I accidentally put my sweater down on what I thought of as a possibly contaminated chair when I was out, so I was really afraid that with that intrusive thought, I would end up having to not only wash my sweater but also all my other clothes I was wearing since my sweater then touched them. Happily I was able to put that aside and continued to just wear the sweater, didn't put it or any of my other clothes in the wash when i got home. Yay!

You mentioned a holiday in Scotland a few posts ago--how did that go? That seems like it could have a lot of challenges involved?

I realized I can't actually join the Thursday morning Zoom group as I'm in a different time zone than you guys and it would be in the middle of the night for me!

 

 

Hi L.M, 

That's amazing that you kept wearing the sweater that you thought might be 'contaminated' and didn't do any cleaning compulsions for the other clothes that might have come into contact with your jumper either. That's a huge achievement.

It's also great that you are working on reducing your use of disinfectant and generally reducing how much laundry you do! I really need to do the same- I've actually got piles of laundry because I feel the need to change clothes several times a day and you're right- it wastes so much time! I also only manage to do the laundry by wearing disposable gloves, which obviously is expensive and terrible for the environment.

I actually really struggled with the touching the carpet and resisting washing ERP task so my therapist suggested starting by touching door handles in the house as a first step!

Sorry to hear you can't join the OCD support group but it's good to hear from you on here anyway! 

Oh and the trip to Scotland involved lots of challenges but also helped me to feel more capable of doing things like visiting cafes and pubs, which I haven't been able to do for a long time (even pre-pandemic). 

How are you getting on today? Are you having therapy at the moment? 

 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2021 by BelAnna

[L.M.]

3 hours ago, BelAnna said:

h and the trip to Scotland involved lots of challenges but also helped me to feel more capable of doing things like visiting cafes and pubs, which I haven't been able to do for a long time (even pre-pandemic). 

That is so great! That will be one of my big challenges going forward. I was ok pre-pandemic going to cafes but things did trigger me and I did always have to shower and change afterward. I haven't been out to cafes at all since the pandemic--I imagine that will be down the line for me. (Maybe in another couple of months?) I love the challenges like that that allow for more fun in one's life. Really makes the ocd work worth it!

That's good to be able to modify the erp when necessary--touching doorknobs sounds like a good step. How is that work going?

I'm not getting therapy at the moment. I have tried in the past to find a therapist that works for me but haven't been successful so I mostly do CBT work on my own with the help of a self-help book. Posting here is an excellent help to keeping me working at things--so thanks for your support!

Yesterday was a mmix of success and failures. Putting out the garbage and bringing the can back to the house is often difficult, but that went well. I got some dog poo on my shoe while running, and dealt with that well. However the laundry didn't go quite as well. I ended up getting some water on the floor which ended up in an over-reactive floor cleaning/disinfecting as well as a second shower. sigh. I had a couple of more triggers later but seemed to manage ok. Today I'm going to try and wear some pants that I fear got 'contaminated' in the process of yesterday's cleaning. I feel pretty confident I can do it and will save me doing unnecessary laundry again.

Hope your day goes well!

[BelAnna]

On 26/05/2021 at 16:05, L.M. said:

That is so great! That will be one of my big challenges going forward. I was ok pre-pandemic going to cafes but things did trigger me and I did always have to shower and change afterward. I haven't been out to cafes at all since the pandemic--I imagine that will be down the line for me. (Maybe in another couple of months?) I love the challenges like that that allow for more fun in one's life. Really makes the ocd work worth it!

That's good to be able to modify the erp when necessary--touching doorknobs sounds like a good step. How is that work going?

I'm not getting therapy at the moment. I have tried in the past to find a therapist that works for me but haven't been successful so I mostly do CBT work on my own with the help of a self-help book. Posting here is an excellent help to keeping me working at things--so thanks for your support!

Yesterday was a mmix of success and failures. Putting out the garbage and bringing the can back to the house is often difficult, but that went well. I got some dog poo on my shoe while running, and dealt with that well. However the laundry didn't go quite as well. I ended up getting some water on the floor which ended up in an over-reactive floor cleaning/disinfecting as well as a second shower. sigh. I had a couple of more triggers later but seemed to manage ok. Today I'm going to try and wear some pants that I fear got 'contaminated' in the process of yesterday's cleaning. I feel pretty confident I can do it and will save me doing unnecessary laundry again.

Hope your day goes well!

Hi L.M,

Yes it's so great facing the OCD in a way that sort of 'opens up' life again and means you can do things that you enjoy! I've not managed to go to another cafe yet (I think I made an exception for being on holiday but I need to do it again now that I'm back home). Are you mostly worried about Covid with eating out or is it that and other contamination worries? 

How is the self-directed CBT going now? I understand what you mean regarding past OCD therapists but it sounds like you're making lots of progress on your own. 

Well done for coping with taking the rubbish/garbage out and with the dog-poo incident! Sorry you struggled with the laundry though. You did so well with the other triggers that it sounds like it was just a blip. I hate getting stuck in a cycle of compulsions like that- it's horrible isn't it. 

I hope you managed to wear the 'contaminated' pants!

I've had a mixed week really. We're trying to get our house on the market, which involves lots of cleaning tasks, all of which are a huge challenge! I've not started the ERP task of touching door handles yet but need to start tomorrow really! I'm planning some trips to local places (mostly outdoor historic site/castle/manor house/gardens type places) to try to face some more challenges! 

How has your weekend gone?

[Guy R]

Hi guys,

Shame about this weeks meetings being cancelled. I was sent this by someone from another support group I'm in - thought it might be something you guys are interested in.

https://ocdaction.org.uk/conference/

Hope you are all doing alright

[BelAnna]

Hi Guy, 

Hope you're getting on okay this week?

Yeah it is ashame that it's cancelled this week- looking forward to next week's!

Thanks for the link to the OCD action OCD-BDD conference- looks good. 

Isabella

[Faultybraintank]

Hey All! 
 

Thanks for the link @Guy R! I’m having a bit of a rough week so I’ll check it out! 
 

How is everyone doing? 
 

looks like support groups will be back in next week so that is good!

[Gemma@OCDUK]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your patience

The groups should be up and running as normal next week, so look forward to seeing you all then,

Gemma

[BelAnna]

13 hours ago, Faultybraintank said:

Hey All! 
 

Thanks for the link @Guy R! I’m having a bit of a rough week so I’ll check it out! 
 

How is everyone doing? 
 

looks like support groups will be back in next week so that is good!

Hi Faultybraintank, 

Hope you're okay? That's great that it's back on next week.

2 hours ago, Gemma@OCDUK said:

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your patience

The groups should be up and running as normal next week, so look forward to seeing you all then,

Gemma

Thank you Gemma! I think we're all just really grateful that the group exists and to you, Kirstie (and sometimes Ashley) for running the group!

 

 

[Faultybraintank]

Hey @BelAnna, 

Im doing a bit better now thanks! Phew  

 

how are you getting on? 
 

Registration for the support groups is back open again! Yay  

[Faultybraintank]

On 10/06/2021 at 11:44, BelAnna said:

 

Thank you Gemma! I think we're all just really grateful that the group exists and to you, Kirstie (and sometimes Ashley) for running the group!
 

 

 

I second this!

[Ziggyy]

Could someone tell me how I would access this group? Sounds really helpful

[BelAnna]

4 minutes ago, Ziggyy said:

Could someone tell me how I would access this group? Sounds really helpful

Hi Ziggyy, 

It's a lovely group and really helpful. You just sign using this link www.ocduk.org/support-groups/online/ by clicking whichever meeting (Tuesday evening at 7 or Thursday morning at 10.15) you want to join.

When you join on the day, you're automatically muted and your camera is turned off and then you can choose to turn your camera on and/or ask to speak during the meeting if you want to or you can sit and listen. There's also a chat box so that you can reflect on what other people are saying and ask questions in the chat box if you want to. 

 

 

 

[Ziggyy]

@BelAnna awesome, thank you! Sounds great I’ll think about joining the evening one 

[BelAnna]

 

//////

Edited June 23, 2021 by BelAnna

[BelAnna]

On 10/06/2021 at 09:00, Gemma@OCDUK said:

 

Hi Gemma@OCDUK,

I was looking forward to and thought that I had signed up for tomorrow's support group meeting but I now can't find the confirmation email so I wonder if I started filling in the sign-up form and then navigated away from the page. I've emailed Kirstie to ask but just wondered if there have been any cancellations?

 

[Gemma@OCDUK]

Hi BelAnna,

I'm sorry I've only just seen this. I hope you managed to access the support group on Thursday

Gemma 

[BelAnna]

On 28/06/2021 at 10:36, Gemma@OCDUK said:

Hi BelAnna,

I'm sorry I've only just seen this. I hope you managed to access the support group on Thursday

Gemma 

Thanks Gemma! there was a cancellation in the end so it was all sorted  

[BelAnna]

Just going to bump up this thread in case anyone pops along from this morning's group. 

Edited July 1, 2021 by BelAnna

[Faultybraintank]

Hey all, 

 

Just thought Id make a quick post as i'm struggling a bit at the mo. Im feeling overwhelmed and stressed, and a bit let down as I have been pushing myself and it hasn't always worked. Ive got some trigging things coming up to and I know I need to deal with them, but i can feel the old shutting down behaviours sneaking in. 

 

How are all you guys doing? 

[ivybasil]

Hi! Sorry to hear you're struggling! Notice it's a wee while since you posted this - how are you doing now?

I'm in the Thursday group too - didnt realise there was a thread! ^_^