Is it common for OCD diagnoses to be misinterpreted or change over time?

@Nica Good points, but I would add that a diagnosis definitely doesn’t mean the end of it. After all, how many of us have been misdiagnosed for years before finally getting diagnosed with OCD? Hell I was diagnosed with GAD and if it hadn’t been for my own initiative I’d still be receiving incorrect therapy.

@Anonymous And where did I say it was the end of it?

@Nica “If you’ve been diagnosed by a professional, then that’s the end of it.”

@Nica Top of second paragraph, see it now?

@Anonymous You didn’t read my paragraph properly then. If you have been diagnosed by a professional as having OCD, GAD, or whatever it is, then that’s what you have and obsessing over not having it doesn’t do you any good; it just makes things worse in the long run. Please read comprehensively next time.

@Nica I did read comprehensively, you literally were saying “that’s the end of it”, and I responded with not always because we as OCD sufferers are often misdiagnosed. As I shared, I was diagnosed with OCD by a psychologist , and thank my lucky stars I did my own research. After bringing up what I had found my diagnosis was changed, and then I began the correct ERP therapy. You really don’t like someone disagreeing with you, do you? There is no need to be rude, I simply responded to what you literally said in your comment.

@jrocco2022! Sorry I meant wouldn’t mimic OCD in that last sentence there.

@NOCD Therapist - Clint R. So, it looks like in the dsm and I’ve often read that ocd can partly be differentiated from gad by compulsions. But it makes me wonder, how do people with GAD not do compulsions/repetitive behaviors aimed to reduce anxiety?

@NOCD Therapist - Clint R. I was also comparing the dsm-4 to the dsm-5 and see that the clause, “The thoughts, impulses, or images are not simply excessive worries about real-life problems”, was dropped, but couldn’t find out online why. It freaks me out a bit because I don’t fully understand what “real life problems” means and how that doesn’t apply to ocd sometimes 😅

@opossumfan I'm not a therapist, just someone that has both GAD and OCD. I can tell you that I don't really do compulsions in response to my GAD acting up. I usually engage in some kind of good or bad coping mechanism (which I suppose could be considered a repetitive behavior but that's different than a compulsion)compulsions, OR I will have a full blown panic attack followed by exhaustion. When I suffer from OCD, I seem to think that doing a compulsion will make the pain go away. For example, checking locks 3 times. Counting things. Touching my phone 3 times. Unlocking my phone and opening apps. That sort of thing. It's distressing if I don't follow through with it. It's like an itch. GAD is more like...I need to watch TV and play a phone game and distract myself from having a thought because I have a sense of dread. But actually turning on the TV or playing a phone game isn't a compulsions, it's just a habit to distract myself. Does that make sense?

@iheartcacti Oops autocorrect keeps messing up my grammar sorry!

@opossumfan It was dropped correct. So a person can be OCD about anything real or imagined, everyday problems or unusual events.