germ OCD

[kcareconnections]

I think the thing I am most OCD is germ fears. I try to avoid public bathrooms at all costs. If I use one, I must use one of the seat covers and not sit on it. I must flush with toilet paper so I don't touch the flushing part. I must get paper towels ready when I wash my hands. I obsessively wash and then dry and then have some papertowels to ope and close the bathroom door with. If I must sit in a seat in public, I look for the ones that look clean. i might take out my wet wipes and wipe. When I come home from hospitals and places like that, I change immediately and my clothes I had worn must be washed right away.

 

[pwarbi]

OCD affects many different people in many different ways, and I think that how you suffer is probably the most common form of OCD. That of course doesn't make it any easier for you, but at least you know that you are not on your own and there is help available if you think that you may need it. I've known people that have to wash their hands up to 50 times a day, not because they are dirty but because in their mind they feel they are, and that's what OCD is. Your mind playing tricks on you, and even though you know that your hands aren't dirty, or that there aren't germs on that handle or surface you've touched, your brain is telling you that there is and to try and overcome that, takes a lot of time and training if you want to call it that.

 

[Alex]

It may seem like OCD but at times it is considered sensible and practical. Look at how ebola got spread in hospitals to nurses, even though they were careful. When you see television reports and investigations into how much bacteria is on a phone, door handle etc., it's just using common sense really.


Even in hotels I clean things myself just so I know I have done it. Having caught some bugs I would rather be careful than to go through the pain again. It can still happen though even when you are careful, but I do try and prevent as much as I can without looking too obvious. My dad has been ill and his immune system is weak, so I insisted on wiping down the handles on shopping carts for him before he used them as a precaution. Maybe it would seem OCD to someone, but as he been in intensive care recently I couldn't take that risk.

 

[LovelyLiz]

I think the difference is whether it affects your quality of life. Do you feel that you need to go out of your way to put these precautions into practice? Do they slow you down excessively? Do you worry excessively about what will happen if you dont do these things? I think it's important to remember that, unless you have a medical condition, then doing less than ideal things probably won't have a major effect on your health. People have gone through more disgusting things than anything youre likely to experience and lived to tell the tale.

 

[pwarbi]

You are right of course and the big question is if it's interfering with the rest of your life and stopping you from doing things that you want to do. People will have gone through worse and come out the other side, and I think that's another reason why a forum such as this is important as it lets you see that what you yourself is going through pales in comparison to what others have dealt with. The motivating factor of course is that they are here, telling their own tales and willing to help and without a forum such as this then we can often be left feeling isolated.

 

[djanx]

I think its normal what you do. I mean I know people who don't like doing all that stuff, and I am like "Whaaat?" You don't know the germs that a public bathroom carries. So, I don't think its OCD. OCD is if you shake hands with people and then immediately feel the urge to use a sanitizer.

 

[Petesede]

I think its normal what you do. I mean I know people who don't like doing all that stuff' date=' and I am like "Whaaat?" You don't know the germs that a public bathroom carries. So, I don't think its OCD. OCD is if you shake hands with people and then immediately feel the urge to use a sanitizer.[/quote']
Or if you don´t shake hands at all. There are a lot of famous people who are like that. Donald Trump had it for years where he was afraid to shake hands. There were a lot of people who said he faked it just to create some tabloid stories, but then it magically went away. Howie Mandell has it... and it was funny because he was hypnotized, and after years of not touching other people´s hands, he did it will under. When they unhypnotized him and he found out, he was extremely mad and almost sued the show he was on.

 

[djanx]

I think its normal what you do. I mean I know people who don't like doing all that stuff' date=' and I am like "Whaaat?" You don't know the germs that a public bathroom carries. So, I don't think its OCD. OCD is if you shake hands with people and then immediately feel the urge to use a sanitizer.[/quote']
Or if you don´t shake hands at all. There are a lot of famous people who are like that. Donald Trump had it for years where he was afraid to shake hands. There were a lot of people who said he faked it just to create some tabloid stories, but then it magically went away. Howie Mandell has it... and it was funny because he was hypnotized, and after years of not touching other people´s hands, he did it will under. When they unhypnotized him and he found out, he was extremely mad and almost sued the show he was on.

Actually, Trump used that as a psychological negotiation tactic. So, you'd walkin to his floor and immediately people would tell you, "Mr. Trump doesn't shake hands with anyone." And then they'd make you wait while every other guy comes in and tells you that same thing over and over again. Finally, Trump shows up, shakes your hand, and you are surprised, "But, Mr. Trump, I heard you never shake hands." And he'd reply. "I don't shake hands with just anyone. I only shake hands with people who're important to me." And all of a sudden you feel as if some emperor decided to grace you with his presence.

 

[amy88]

This was my ex boyfriend to a tee. He was afraid of anything that could have come into contact with anyone else's germs. Eating at restaurants was hard because he would worry his food or plates/cutlery had been tampered with, meeting new people was hard (because it doesn't look that polite if you avoid shaking hands or pull out hand sanitizer the minute you're done) but this was when he wasn't taking medication for it. It was a tough time, trying to get him to see reason that not everyone thought the way he did about these things.

 

[kelden]

I can't grasp well enough how this OCD on germs is actually something. It must be misinformation , because you know people, you have something calle immunological system that is a force field keeping you away from the harm of almost all the awful microorganisms. And your entrails have zillions of germs, most of them for the benefit of your health, so think twice before taking antibiotics or something.

 

[sidney]

I am also finicky with using public bathrooms, and I try not to squat on the toilet seat. But as with public seats on the bus and other not so personal items, then I am not so finicky about that. I actually only am wary and disgusted when using public bathrooms or private bathrooms that don't look very clean. So I think that you do have OCD. I hope it doesn't interfere with your quality of living.

 

[Ania]

I think the thing I am most OCD is germ fears. I try to avoid public bathrooms at all costs. If I use one, I must use one of the seat covers and not sit on it. I must flush with toilet paper so I don't touch the flushing part. I must get paper towels ready when I wash my hands. I obsessively wash and then dry and then have some papertowels to ope and close the bathroom door with. If I must sit in a seat in public, I look for the ones that look clean. i might take out my wet wipes and wipe. When I come home from hospitals and places like that, I change immediately and my clothes I had worn must be washed right away.

I had the very same problem some years ago, I still suffer from OCD, but it's mild now.   Mine got worse and worse,  it took me years to look for help... I deeply regret it.  When I could no longer leave the house at all, I knew I needed help.  If you feel things are getting worse, then you should really seek help, believe me, I've been there!  OCD can destroy your life completely if you let it.  Be careful and seek professional help if you feel  this is starting to interfere with your life.