Initial help? What to do, where to start?

[MammyC]

I am finding it hard to try and manage some of the rituals my daughter has. 

She is 7 and I wouldn't say anything OCD like had manifested 18 months ago, but we are finding mornings and evenings particularly difficult at the moment as she has to go through a number of rituals to get dressed or ready for bed, e.g she has to go to the toilet but will get up and check she is in the correct position, sit back down try to a wee, count to 3, try for a poo count to 3, has to wipe with 3 squares on 3 occasions each trip. Hand washing has to be a specific pattern in an order counted, then has to pick her nose in a set way. If this is disturbed she gets very upset and will start from the beginning again. Cut to clothing and knickers put on (pulled up and down slowly several times until they are just right) struggles with the feel of socks and has to pull them so tightly up till they feel just right. 

Nighttime is pretty much the same sort of rituals, which take upto an hour to get settled. 

During the day going to the toilet is not as much of a struggle for her unless we are heading somewhere, but regardless she has to be positioned correctly, and will try to wee/poo every time counting as she does. And wipes the same. 

Does this sound like OCD? What do I do to help her?

[Gemma@OCDUK]

Hi MammyC,

As I'm not a health professional it's hard to say for sure that this is OCD, however compulsions in sets of 3 are quite common for those with OCD, often they will be done to relieve anxiety or in response to a worry. If the rituals are interfering with daily life then I would suggest seeking a referral for your daughter to her local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS). The recommended treatment for OCD is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) which will help her to find more helpful responses to her worries. Waiting times can be long unfortunately so in the meantime learning a little more about OCD could be helpful to you. 

We have some excellent presentations from our online conference https://www.ocduk.org/conference/conference-map/family/ that you might find helpful. We also host parent webinars for parents to learn a little more about OCD and tips on how to challenge it as a family. I believe the next one is sold out https://www.ocduk.org/parents-webinar/ but a new date will be added soon. If you have any questions you can email us on parents@ocduk.org

Gemma