How to combat an OCD?!


Question: How to combat an OCD?
I keep fretting that I'm going to catch food poisoning and some other awful disease from merely touching door handles or opening the fridge door. I keep wiping suirfaces down with anti-bacterial wipes. Whenever I handle frozen meat packets in the freezer I get the sudden need to wash my hands for fear of falling ill.

It hasn't quite developed into an obsessive-compulsive disorder yet, but how do I combat it?

Answers:

Some form of exposure therapy would be helpful. By putting yourself in situations where you're not able to obsess over a cleanliness issue. It's also worth bearing in mind that in order to build a natural defence against germs we must be exposed to them. Wrapping yourself up in cotton-wool so to speak is largely counterproductive.

Also, by continually acting upon the compulsions to wipe down the surfaces and fretting over touching door handles etc, you're reinforcing the behaviour. So it becomes habitual. You need to be brave and break these habits. Ride out any fear and anxiety for as long as it takes. You should get better at doing it and learn how to relax and free yourself from it. You should start to see how irrational it is.



well every time that intrusive thourght (omg theres germs, im goanna get infected) pops into your head dnt try supress it,(it will rebound) do not carry out the impulsive behaviour (washing down surfaces) just ignore it, think about something else,, im sure if you watch someone else do it they are not getting ill and the more you ignore and do not carry out te behaviour, the more ule realise its not going to make you ill.




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