#mental heatlh

[phoenixyfriend]

Guide to Writing OCD Characters

DISCLAIMER: I started writing this post nine years ago, which is also when I started working on it. I do not remember everything I planned to add, nor have I actually reread it because the awkward horror of Reading My Own Stuff From Almost Ten Years Ago is real... but my mental state has not changed that much since, in regards to the hyperawareness of contaminated surfaces and distrust of others, so it’s probably still fine.

Everything under the cut is from back then, and has not been edited. I have not reread it.

Or rather, a guide to writing one type of OCD at moderate severity. But more on that in a minute.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental illness that is defined by the repetition of actions or mental patterns in an attempt to stifle anxiety. These actions and mental patterns are generally sorted into obsessions and compulsions, as the name suggests. Obsessions can take the form of a reliance on a certain number or color, e.g. the computer’s sound/volume must be set to a multiple of ten, I’ll feel more comfortable on a street that is a multiple of twelve, I want these random numbers I have to add up or multiply into a square. Compulsions take the form of a need to perform certain actions, often a certain number of times, e.g. repetitive hand washing, itemized destruction of small objects, etc.

OCD is not the same thing as OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder). OCPD is what most people assume OCD is. OCPD is a mental illness that is defined by a need to control one’s surroundings to a degree beyond what is reasonably expected and feasible; this is the perfectionism disorder, to put it bluntly, and it’s not something I’m at all qualified to talk about beyond explaining the difference between OCD and OCPD.

OCD can generally be separated into the following categories:

Checking

Contamination / Mental Contamination

Hoarding

Ruminations / Intrusive Thoughts

There are also others, but these are the most common. The DSM-V also describes OCD as the point at which obsessions and compulsions:

Consume excessive amounts of time (approximately an hour or more).

Cause significant distress and anguish.

Interfere with daily functioning at home, school, or work; or interfere with social activities/ family life/relationships.

I, personally, have a moderate variant of OCD that is primarily centered around contamination/mental contamination. I’m going to list off a number of my symptoms, mental patterns, and coping methods that can be used as a general guide for writing a character with OCD. If you have OCD, I would not suggest reading this list, because it may cause something to trip in your brain and cause new symptoms (it’s happened to me before).

There is always a logical pattern. It may not make sense to you at first glance, but it makes sense to the person with OCD.

The phone. I mainly use my phone on the subway, so my brain immediately tracks the germs’ journey from subway pole to hand to phone to bag, and unless I clean my phone and bag up at some point with a Clorox wipe or hand sanitizer, I will refuse to touch it unless I have some way to clean myself immediately afterwards or it’s an emergency.

When I come home with groceries, I will wipe down the boxes and bottles with a Clorox wipe as soon as possible (with the exception of feminine hygiene products). I generally get groceries as soon as I get off the subway, so my brain tracks germs from the subway to my hands to my groceries, as well as assuming that there must already be germs on them from other people touching them.

Prior to starting to use the Clorox wipes on my groceries, heating up bread (because I put bread in the freezer because it lasts longer that way, a quirk that actually has nothing to do with my OCD) required me to wash my hands at least twice because my brain focused on how the germs were still on the outside of the package. Once I opened the bag, I had to go wash my hands in order to take the bread out, put it on the plate, and start heating it up. Then I had to close the bag and wash my hands again. If I didn’t finish the entire can of pašteta or tuna or whatever, I had to repeat the process to get more. You can see how this could be irritating, but the brain literally will not shut up about the germs and contamination.

Any part of your pants is considered dirty after the first five minutes. Any part of it. The undersides have touched your shoes and the bus/subway seat and the upper sides have touched the undersides when you crossed your legs. The belt has been dirty since the first time you wore it and the belt loops on your pants have picked that up, but the pockets and zipper and everything in that area is also dirty because that’s the part of your pants that you touched when you pulled them up in the bathroom before washing your hands.

The same goes for the hem of your shirt. You touched it with dirty bathroom hands before you washed them. The hem of your shirt is off limits unless you plan on washing your hands or using copious amounts of hand sanitizer in the near future.

That line about your pants getting dirty because they touched other parts of your clothing that were already dirty? That applies to everything. Especially coats and shoes.

You do not trust anyone that says they just washed their hands. You smile, shake their hand, and then use hand sanitizer as soon as they turn away. Chances are they tripped one of your own contamination lines without realizing it.

Like touching a door handle. Most people consider that an everyday thing. I will do whatever it takes to avoid touching a door handle unless I have immediate access to a sink and soap, especially if it’s a bathroom door handle, because those are nasty and a lot of people don’t wash their hands.

Hand sanitizer is a godsend. It’s a massive coping method that makes it ten times easier to get things done because you aren’t running off to teh bathroom all the time.

Certain parts of your environment are designated as ‘safe’ zones that you don’t touch unless completely clean. The upper half of the bed and the pillow are big ones. Everything else, not so much.

Neatness is helpful but it’s not an immediate necessity. So long as things stay in their own area, even if the garbage needs to be taken out or there’s blood stains on the floor, the brain compartmentalizes that into “not touching my hands or face and as such is okay to ignore for the time being.”

[fullofcake]

Recently decided that I deserve to be happy and will be doing things that make me happy and if that makes anybody I know uncomfortable I will simply stop interacting with them

[yoursincerelyloto]

Lately, my mental health hasn’t been great. And that’s something I normally wouldn’t talk about. ‘Cause it’s obviously not something to be proud of. But I wanted to say something about it.

Over the years I’ve always heard that if you’re not feeling good or if you’re having a burn out, or anything like that. You should stop doing what you’re doing and take some time for yourself. And honestly, that could work for some people.

But there are also people like me, who just don’t want to overthink anymore. And for those people, taking a pause isn’t the best option.

In the past months, I learned that I’m much happier when I’m doing the little usual things. Like going to school (not the learning part), walking on the street, going grocery shopping. I feel like you just need to surround yourself by the normal stuff, but also do the things you love.

I have a few days of now, and I feel like I should spend them by doing thinks like playing music, writing my fic, crocheting, journaling, colouring (even if it feel childish), baking, watching stupid 1d videos, and all of the other things that make me me.

I think you can only be happy, if you can appreciate the little things in life. The beautiful sunrises in the morning, the leaves falling down during fall, the smell of candles, laughing with your friends, listening to a vinyl from your favourite artist, and so much more beautiful things that happen. We just don’t pay attention to them because they happen almost everyday. But that doesn’t make them less beautiful.

[madmansmisc]

I was born in a pool of amniotic fluid and a tangle of wires. 

I was born a mystery.

I was born a machine. 

A machine never forgets. 

I remember the wires and cords coming from my half metal head getting tangled in my newborn hair and the medical machines like siblings from a factory womb.

I had a USB port on my right temple, my right ear a microphone. So I heard it all, to replay it again and again. 

My Dad joked that Mother must’ve had an affair with the laptop.

She just cried, 

More tears than my LCD eyes could see through her blood and vaginal fluid 

I didn’t feel her touch then 

And for many years I rarely did. 

No one hugs a computer

But she did when I was sick, 

A computer crash or the common cold 

I can’t feel her touch again 

But I’m sick today 

And torn 

I don’t know how to feel better 

I asked at tech support 

IT didn’t have it. 

The hospital turned me down 

Medicine won’t fix me. 

[youngadulthacks]

Exercise is not only good for both your mental and physical health but also your sleep quality.

[cetsuo]

To anyone out there who needs to hear this tonight:

You matter. The world wouldn't be the same without you.

My tightest hug for surviving so far and I hope that everything gets better soon.

I believe in you and I'm proud. Your pain is valid, you are as human as anyone else.

I love you.

[asplashofhappiness]

"Fan Mail"

Dolfy is slowly revealing the secrets of his Lore.

For more cute and wholesome comics,

go check me out on Webtoon!

[jerzwriter]

[backfromtwitterforw]

I project too much on a Minecraft cubito, it's becoming unhealthy 😭

[toastedstars]

I'm trying to avoid the 'being wide awake in the middle of the night' situation by forcing myself to stay awake even though this headache is just getting worse and it's not worth it.

I just feel super useless because I did not manage to do even one thing I meant to do today and going to bed feels like admitting defeat.

I surrender!

Sleep better happen soon or I am going to cry riot!

[diaryofadissembler]

249:  At least, I’m not alone. Image description: a three panel comic with polaroid frames. The panel shows grey rock, with a very bright greenish beetle in the last panel. the text on the panel reads: “Some nights I spend in front of a mirror. Yelling ‘Please, love yourself more’, Over and over again, till silver and voice breaks.” Text underneath reads: “J. krupitza / inspired by asofterworld.com” end Image description

[fullofcake]

Insane what getting dressed up and going outside in nature and talking with a friend can do for your mental health

[pattytacuri]

5 things

Me doing r &r …reading and relaxing List five things you do for fun. 1. Write 2. Listen to music 3. Spend time with kids and friends 4. Read 5. Go to open mic

[strongmindstrongbody]

Health, Wellness, and Mindfulness represents more than just healthy eating, exercise, and relaxation. A big part of caring for ourselves is what we say, how we feel, and what we think of ourselves. I found this comic and wanted to share:

A grandson is looking at his Grandma’s face.

“What are you looking at?” she asks.

“I like your wrinkles Grandma”.

“Thank you, Buddy. Wrinkles tell a story, you know”.

“They do?”

“Yes, as you get older, you wear what you are on your face. Every line, every wrinkle, every sag says something about you. When you look at an older person’s face, you can more or less tell what kind of life she’s lived.

“What can you tell when you look at a young person’s face?”

“What he had for dinner”. :)

While the punch line is really about a child being messy, I loved the idea that changes in your appearance are telling a story. I read once that “getting older is a privilege that is denied to many”, and I took that to heart. Its all about perspective.

Have a wonderful day!

[youngadulthacks]

To stop feeling lonely, you need to first accept that you are lonely.

[system-processing-12]

Bad life hack: if you're semi verbal and brain decides to confiscate words, just pretend your mouth is full f o r e v e r.