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Do you know anyone with an OCD?

J

jtvang125

Diamond Member
I don't know anyone personally but there's this lady that goes to the local YMCA center that looks like she's suffering from one. I usually go to the park next to the center for lunch. She does this exact routine every time I see her. Here's what I noticed and thought was quite interesting.

1. Parks on the street. Gets out and checks how far she's from the curb. Too close and she corrects it. Too far and she corrects it.
2. Then proceeds to walk around the whole car looking at it from all angles. Not exactly sure what she's checking for.
3. Once she's back at the driver's door she closes it and locks the car. Walks around the whole car checking passenger door, trunk and then driver's door to see if they're locked.
4. Walks around the car again and looks through all windows one after another. Once she's satisfied she'll cross the street to the center.
5. Once across she'll stop and look back at her car checking it carefully. Then she'll cross the street back to her car and go around checking all doors again and peep through a few windows.
6. As she crosses the street again she turns back every now and then to look at her car. She then finally continues on into the center.
 
Sounds like she's paranoid more than OCD. Is this a big city where crime happens a lot?

Crossing half the street then turning around is the most stupid thing to do though. There was a lady killed that way several years back. She was crossing the highway and then changed her mind half way and turned around. Taken out by a transport, probably did not feel a thing. The transport driver probably saw her but she was not in his lane and walking the other way, so it was safe to keep going, but then she turned around and he could no longer stop.
 
Yes. It's not "an OCD", it's just OCD, there aren't more than one OCD. There are several behaviors associated with OCD though and what you're describing is called "checking", which is typically on the compulsive side I believe. However, just because she's behaving that way doesn't mean she has OCD, though it sounds likely.

Sounds similar to a common form of checking where someone will check all the doors in and windows in the house repeatedly before going to bed, when leaving or just at random.

She could also just be performing a ritual if she does it that exact way every time. It's similar but a ritual is something someone with OCD does a certain way to prevent "bad things" from happening. Sometimes they have an idea of what bad thing they think might happen, other times it's just "something bad".

It could also be a combination of the two, rituals are frequently used by those who fear contamination. Many will have handwashing rituals, etc..

At it's root it's an anxiety disorder and people who have it behave these ways to try and lessen the anxiety they're experiencing as rational "normal" methods typically don't work for them.

Edit: Meant to mention it could just be paranoia like Red Squirrel suggested.
 
Wow, yeah that ain't normal at all. Dunno if she's got OCD but it sounds like she's got some disorder.

As for myself, I can't think of anything I'm OCD about. Well, maybe cracking my knuckles? I do it a couple times a day, every day.
 
Anything volume that is number, must be on an even number. If it a series of bars, it has to be on a full bar.

But, no, I don't know any real OCD people. I know quite a few that claim to be, but they have no idea what it means to be OCD.
 
I have OCD. Mine manifests on the obsessive side and is turned inwards for the most part as opposed to manifesting in external behaviors. It used to be the other way around when I was a kid. Sounds like your friend is displaying some form of magic thinking in your example. She's likely afraid something is going to happen if she doesn't do those things and it will be her fault.. which is of course nonsense, but realizing that doesn't change the behavior alone.
 
I don't have a heavy form, but I do have some quirks that border on obsessiveness. When going out I'll check my pockets for my wallet, keys, ID card and phone. And not once, but dozens of times. I sometimes catch myself walking around with my hand in my pocket checking each item over and over again.

Also when I leave the house I lock the door and then push the door to check whether it's locked. If I'm sleepy and can't remember doing that while walking away I'll often walk back to do it again. Although if I am in a hurry I sometimes don't, and instead am worried about it the rest of the day (but not so bad that it controls my day).

Finally washing my hands. I'm not that bad, but I will wash my hands often. And when it's a tap you have to touch I'll wash that first so I don't have to touch a dirty tap when turning it off. Oh, and of course I'll find a way not to have to touch a doorhandle with clean hands either.
 
I don't know anyone personally, but my first job was at a restaurant and there were a couple patrons that came in at the same times everyday (yes, twice a day), and would do the same routine. Like walk around their car a certain number of times and stuff like that. One guy would wash his hands so much the double sink counter in the bathroom would have 3 feet of bubbles. at first I was like lol, but then it would make me grumpy because of hte time it takes to get rid of the bubbles.
 
Isn't watching people excessively a form of OCD?


At my son's house all shoes are to be removed and then placed on a mat facing south.
 
My wife has OCD. She has to check all the exterior door multiple times at night, and she sets the alarm on her smartphone for 6:00, 6:05, 6:10, 6:15 because she's afraid that she'll oversleep. And when setting her alarm at night, she has to talk to herself and verify that the slider is set to the "on" position for each alarm time and she makes gestures in the air with her index finger to "write" the numbers in the air as she repeats them to herself.

Then she makes me verify that the alarms are set correctly before she's "finished" with her alarm settings (I just roll my eyes and barely look).
 
I had to adjust my monitor resolution so numbered points 3 and 5 of the OP's post would display on a single line.
 
I have some OCD tendencies but probably not enough to be diagnosed with it.

Things I do:
Check for my wallet/phone in pants every 2 minutes even though I know they the are there from the last time I checked
Keep checking for other things I need packed even though I know they are in there
Flick some types switches if the flip doesn't seem "all the way"
Recheck doors multiple times before leaving on vac.
Must keep things closed (e.g. water bottles, wife drives me nuts here!)
Measure the distance furniture is to the wall (must be parallel within a 1/4" or so)
Throw out things that are perfectly good if one of the set breaks and needs replacing (mismatched things make me uneasy). e.g. If I had to replace a door knob in my house because one broke, I would have to replace every door knob in my house because having them not the same is no good.

But most of that doesn't come up on a daily basis so no big deal.
 
NFS4 said:
My wife has OCD. She has to check all the exterior door multiple times at night, and she sets the alarm on her smartphone for 6:00, 6:05, 6:10, 6:15 because she's afraid that she'll oversleep. And when setting her alarm at night, she has to talk to herself and verify that the slider is set to the "on" position for each alarm time and she makes gestures in the air with her index finger to "write" the numbers in the air as she repeats them to herself.

Then she makes me verify that the alarms are set correctly before she's "finished" with her alarm settings (I just roll my eyes and barely look).
Click to expand...

I'm like that, but I just have the alarm on my phone & then I put an actual alarm clock on the other side of the room so I have to get up to turn it off (because I usually hit ignore on my phone's alarm to wake up, haha).
 
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