TBK has OCD

 What do you notice about my cupboard? Everything in order ( Vinegars , sauces, cans, condiments) , all with the labels facing forwards.

How about the fridge?

Actually its a bit messy in this pic! But everything is grouped- still water, fizzy water, Milk, sauces, veg , dairy etc.

Then for each week I have a menu planner ( thanks to Jane Frost who has made this my annual Christmas gift for several years!)'

In the wardrobe the Tee shirts all hang the same way and in Rainbow order- red, orange, yellow, green, Blue, Indigo and Violet ( the ROY G BIV I learnt in Elementary school)

Shoes also positioned by colour- all the black shoes at the back, coloured shoes at the front!

So what causes this?

It is called Obsessive Compulsive Disorder  ( OCD for short) and according to the American Psychiatric Association:

"Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a disorder in which people have recurring, unwanted thoughts, ideas or sensations (obsessions) that make them feel driven to do something repetitively (compulsions). The repetitive behaviors, such as hand washing, checking on things or cleaning, can significantly interfere with a person’s daily activities and social interactions.

Many people without OCD have distressing thoughts or repetitive behaviors. However, these thoughts and behaviors do not typically disrupt daily life. For people with OCD, thoughts are persistent, and behaviors are rigid. Not performing the behaviors commonly causes great distress. Many people with OCD know or suspect their obsessions are not realistic; others may think they could be true (known as limited insight). Even if they know their obsessions are not realistic, people with OCD have difficulty disengaging from the obsessive thoughts or stopping the compulsive actions.

 A diagnosis of OCD requires the presence of obsessions and/or compulsions that are time-consuming (more than one hour a day), cause significant distress, and impair work or social functioning. OCD affects 2-3% of people in the United States, and among adults, slightly more women than men are affected. OCD often begins in childhood, adolescence, or early adulthood; the average age symptoms appear is 19 years old."

Source: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/ocd/what-is-obsessive-compulsive-disorder ( accessed 13.7.2021)

The good news is it diminishes with age as Phil Gregory can tell you. When he came to my house in the UK many years ago for a party he , and Huw, spent many hours rearranging my videos. They were all in cases numbered 1- 100 and I had a book with an index telling me what was on each video. They managed to rearrange them all and swap the cases so for months I could not find anything. 10 years before that I had 300 cassettes and they were all stored in alphabetical order by artist from Abba to ZZTop. Anytime I bought a new cassette - lets say by David Bowie, I had to move 280 cassettes to fit it in. Eventually I started buying cassettes by artists whose name started with Z!

Strangely I only have some of the compulsions listed below:

Typical compulsions:

• Excessive or ritualized hand washing, showering, brushing teeth, or toileting
• Repeated cleaning of household objects
• Ordering or arranging things in a particular way
• Repeatedly checking locks, switches, or appliances

Julz, my nurse following my hip replacement , was amazed at how bad I was at cleaning my teeth ( 3 times a week compared to his 3 times a day) and lack of showering ( I never shower before going to bed at night) . However I do clean obsessively. My flat in Juffair had a white tiled floor which I swept and mopped daily ( and then Corleen would walk all over it in his dirty Converse),

Likewise it drove me mad for the 4 months that I lived there that so much of the furniture and the toilet was badly marked by cigarette burns from the previous tenants . Jake had to scrub the headboard and sofa with Jif to get all the dirt off. The windows had never been cleaned . 

I hope that the architect for my new house in Palawan is reading this- easy clean windows ( single story) and flooring that does not show the dirt please!

I have read stories of people with severe OCD who will not shake hands and have to keep washing their hands. Some check everything is turned off and all the doors are locked before leaving the house . I occasionally double check the doors are locked when I leave. I also used to turn off and unplug everything before I went on vacation when I lived in Awali. However I rarely used hand sanitizer during  COV 19 and did not have any in my car until Nurse Rachelle pointed out the error of my ways.

The reason I shared this was so that others with OCD can see that they are not alone and you can learn to live with the disorder. Also that the impact on your life can reduce in time. In the article I quoted from above it says that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can be used to cure OCD, and also medication , but it warns that this is stronger than that used to cure depression.

No thanks, been there, done that, NEVER AGAIN

If you have any comments or questions please do not hesitate in contacting me