puddingmouse wrote:
I do this. It's like OCD, only I don't have the rituals to make the bad thoughts go away.
You don't do ANYTHING in response to a bad thought? Not even something in your head? Having true obsessions without any form of compulsion whatsoever is very rare. For "pure obsessionals" (such as myself), the name is a bit of a misnomer, because the vast majority DO have compulsions. They just are mental compulsions and aren't visible to others or quickly identified as stereotypical OCD rituals.
Mental rituals can take many forms, and they often are just as bizarre, embarrassing, and superstitious as the pure obsessions themselves. Common mental rituals that I do are mentally reviewing and checking an event/conversation to make sure I didn't do something "bad," using a "counterimage" to turn a "bad" image into a "good" image, and mentally reciting prayers. Also, I often get snippets of songs stuck in my head as background noise (to an OCD level, not what is commonly experienced by people), and if the song won't quit, sometimes, I mentally imagine the side of my head being hit with a cartoon-like mallet to "beat" the song out. While I envision the mallet, I also try to make the song slow down like an old record stopping. Sometimes, it works to get rid of the song. Sometimes, it doesn't. But there's a detailed description of a type of OCD mental compulsion that never gets described in the media.
And to answer nick007's question, I am on OCD medication. I'm on Anafranil. Benzodiazepines only help me with severe panic attacks/breakdowns. Anafranil is the only medication that has ever worked for my OCD. It has been a Godsend.
_________________
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