Thursday, March 20, 2008

Are you obsessive compulsive?






 I've often wondered while sifting through the plethora of issues I have enamoring my life, if Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is one that I could add to the list? It really is a remarkable prognosis! Think about it, OCD causes some of the most peculiar behavior. I remember as a child sitting in my classroom during school being at my wits end because the teacher didn't erase all the chalk off of the blackboard. Somehow, that little forgotten chalk marking that rested in the lower right corner of the board seemed to unnerve me. It wasn't just unnerving, but it caused me to lose all ability to pay attention to what was going on at the head of the class. It was like that little chalk marking was screaming at me or something, saying "HELLO OUT THERE, LOOK AT ME ON THE BOARD!" AHHHHH!!! It drove me nuts. I figured after a while that maybe it was just a childhood problem that I had to deal with, but would eventually grow out of; not so much folks. To this very day, the entire board needs to be erased. In fact, I have a dry erase board in my office that I can thoroughly erase any time I like. 
 Which brings me to my question. Do I have OCD? Is that one small problem of mine even enough to constitute or justify a diagnosis of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder? Unfortunately, I have more symptoms that just the chalk issue. I find my self straightening up anything thats in a stack. I don't mind for anything to be in a pile, it just has to be in a straight pile. For example, if a stack of papers in stacked at the corner of a desk or at a 90 degree angle, the stack MUST line up with that 90 degree angle. Is that OCD?
Well, just in case its not, let me tell you what is. I had a friend who worked in a psychiatric facility and he knew this man who seemed absolutely normal until you got him in a room with tiles. He had to count every single tile before he could go anywhere else. If you tried to move him, he went crazy. Well, I guess if he was already crazy he couldn't really go crazy. Allow me to rephrase. His craziness surfaced. I've also heard of a man who couldn't use the bathroom directly into the toilet. Rather, he had to go tinkle-town into a cup or jar and then pure it out into toilet. Is that OCD? I've heard of people who had a certain amount of times they had to lock the door before they could leave it alone. Is that OCD? Now, here's where you come in. Please write and submit to me any symptoms you might have that could possibly be characteristic of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. I would be interested in hearing them.  Do you have OCD?

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

alan, you hate wrinkles, you hate that small scratch on the handlebars of your motorcycle, your hair must be done, all of your hiking gear has to be the same brand, you care what you look like in the woods, you constantly make acrostics, and you want symetrica abs.......need i say more.....jacob

Alan Burchfield said...

Thats accurate my friend...However, the point in my blog was to see if you were OCD, not me. Now, please submit your post according to what was asked.

Your OCD friend...
Alan

Jim Collier said...

In most cases, its been my observation that Jake is the least OCD person in the world. ADD, defintitely; OCD, not so much. He's obsessed by whatever his "thing" is at the moment. Then its off to something else.

Basketball, weight-lifting, golf, frisbee golf, air-sof guns, motorcycle, body-cast...

Perhaps, Alan, you're alone in your quiet world of disorder.

Anonymous said...

Since we're talking about Alan...if you go to his house and do laundry, make sure you turn the water on first, add the detergent second, and insert the items to be washed third. Then close the lid for best results!

Anonymous said...

I am told by many that I am OCD. My first OCD is that every time that I do something at the sink and water gets outside the sink, I have to dry it off. It cannot stay there even if I am about to use the sink again. Also, I cannot stand for spots to be on my glass table. We are sitting to eat at the table, and I can't eat for wiping the spots off. Also, I always have to put both of my socks on, then my shoes, and I must put my left sock on before my right sock and my left shoe before my right shoe. Also, if you have a hair or piece of fuzz on you or something on your face, I must get it off. Otherwise, I am totally distracted and cannot listen to what you are saying. If I do something with my right hand or right foot, then I have to do the same thing with my other hand or foot. I, too, have to straighten things constantly. They must be in a neat stack, whether it be clothes or papers or magazines, etc. When I am warming up for a softball game, I always must catch the last pitch in the air behind my back. In basketball, I will not leave the floor until I have made my last shot. OCD? Don't know - but I think there may be a great possibility. Warner says ABSOLUTELY!!! I drive her nuts.

Tina

Anonymous said...

I must reply to Jim.......I agree that I am not obsessively cumpulsive i am intermittently, sporadically, or erratically compulsive but never continuously compulsive....motorcycle today, new $10,000 dollar hobby tomorrow....

jacob

Anonymous said...

I know I'm a late entry into this OCD discussion/confessional, but here goes...I compulsively add digits...for example, as I type this the digital clock on my desk reads 10:31 ~ 1+3+1=5. Anytime I glance at a digital clock readout, I must add the individual digits in my head. Other things that compel me to add numbers are license plates, serial numbers, etc. And for some reason, it's much better when the calculation ends in a round number like 10 or 20. Second best is numbers that end in 5, like 15, or 25. It doesn't sit well with me when the result is an odd number like 18 or 23. Crazy? Obsessive? Compulsive? Qualifying as a disorder? Maybe...but not any more than the rest of you freaks! (jokingly said in love)...Mitch

Anonymous said...

mitch, is 18 an odd number?
austin

Jim Collier said...

Mitch,

Can you say...

"Wapner. Yeah, Wapner. 4 o'clock. 376." (16 for you. Hate it don't you?)

Goodnight, Rainman.

Anonymous said...

Austin, your comment is well taken. 18 is definitely an even number in the academic world. But in what I like to call the world of "the-numbers-won't-stop-talking-to-me", 18 is just odd. All numbers should end in a 0 or 5. I think we can all agree that this would make the world a much better place.

Thanks a lot Jim, you obviously know that 16 is one of THE worst violators of the 0 - 5 rule. I hope you can live with yourself.

Sincerely...Mitch
(0, 5, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35...100...120...2200...aaaggghhh!!!)

Anonymous said...

mitch, that last list of numbers on your last comment- none of them add up to a good number. They're all "odd"
austin

Alan Burchfield said...

Mitch,
Thanks for the entry. Yes, in my most humble but accurate opinion, you are having a slight bout with OCD. I would like to add one to mine that i forgot. When I'm riding as a passenger in a car I have to lift my toes when passing any street or drive way and press my feet to the floor when passing a road sign of any sort. OCD..possibly. Disturbed...without question.

Alan

Anonymous said...

Where does OCD stem from? Insecurity, a need to control, what? I know folks who can't go to sleep or leave their house unless they count their dishes or who wash their hands til their skin comes off. It definetly robs the person and those around them of peace and joy.

Anonymous said...

Mitch... I don't think your problem is OCD... I think yours is linked to mental illness... you might want someone to check that out... "The-world-of-numbers-that-won't-stop-talking-to-me" just isn't something that healthy thinking people encounter... I've never heard of, much less been to, this world... who knows? Maybe it is normal and I'm the weird one...
(Just Joking, Mitch!)

Alan... by what Jacob said... you're on the OCD train my friend... Woo Woo!

I guess I can be OC... My locker just HAS to be in a certain order! I can't focus until it is! I know that I'm not the only person like that, but by the way some of the lockers look at Lee, it wouldn't hurt to AT LEAST clean out the paper! My gosh! It drives me nuts when I have to dig to find something in someone's locker!

Your somewhat OC friend,
Jessica

Unknown said...

I have the EXACT SAME PROBLEM AS MITCH!!!!! i count license plate & digital clock displays. except for me, multiples of three are the best. a # ending in 3 or containing 3 is no good unless it's a multiple of 3.

whew i thought i was the only one -_-

Anonymous said...

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