I have ocd but my house is always messy I can’t seem to clean it and when I try it’s like I can’t do it right and I can’t get things organized the way they need to be and I obsess over it constantly thinking it can be better so I give up and then I stress and get depressed over it but I don’t know what to do
I’ve been collecting stuff for over 30 years. I made it a point that I would begin (in small steps) to throw out some of the crap. And if the thought “what if I need this in the future?” crossed my mind, out it goes!!! So far I’m making progress. You can too!!!
I feel the same way. Sometimes my room gets cluttered with stuff I don’t need, but hold on to. I also learned that being ‘extremely neat and clean’ is a common misconception with OCD, which is part of the reason I didn’t know I suffered with it. Sometimes cleaning little by little can help with this, as well as forming some sort of plan on where to start. 🤍
Oof that sounds frustrating. Try just a room and set a realistic goal example maybe I'll clean the kitchen today and that means the floors, counter, and dishes. Then sit with any discomfort and listen to what ocd is saying... then shrug (without having a conversation with it) and walk away. Come back later and see how you feel? It's your exposure how do you think can approach it in smaller pieces?
This is a long term consequence of OCD. To begin with we may be obsessed with order and symmetry. In the long run, the thought of having to achieve the order and symmetry “just right” creates so much anxiety and thoughts that “you may not be able to do it right, so why try at all?” make it overwhelming to do our compulsions. Then we go into a state of avoidance, which is a back door compulsion, which only makes us more depressed. I had the exact same thing you described and still have it but starting therapy and treatment has made it better. Part of being better is accepting the uncertainty that whatever you do may not be/need not be perfect. The overwhelming desire to act and the lack of energy when you decide to act are just compulsions you need to be aware and tell your OCD that you’re not buying it. I still give in to these compulsions but that’s the way it is. Getting better by the day
I struggle with like knowing what’s ocd and what isn’t. Like I think I’m fighting my ocd and I’m doing a good job not giving in, but there are some things where I’m like is this ocd or is this just me not being ocd. Also it’s hard for me when I mess up bc I want to be perfect & everytime I mess up on my ocd, I feel like I’m backtracking & stuck like this. But I’m still doing a lot better it’s just hard bc I know it never fully goes away I just want to get rid of it. But I’m better managing it it’s just tough.
Here I am having a bad day with ocd . Meanwhile , my mom is giving Ton of crap for ridiculous things like ; having my hair messy, being late to work, not being able to do things on my own like drive a car and/ or transport myself to own places on my own. This is so exhausting she has no idea what I am going through and everyday is a fucking battle for me . The other day she was very upset I hadn’t cleaned up my room but that is all due to my ocd :( I can’t even do that . Not to mention, if I ever do clean my room I have to always do it in such precise way . I can’t have any interruptions and I always have to have everything done the way I feel is right . Aside from the anxiety I get from that, I’m also feeling overwhelmed with my daily ocd thoughts . Somebody help me !
Has anyone found any success in developing a new habit. Like a new cleaning routine or something like that? While it is true that for some OCD causes them to excessively clean, mine does the exact opposite. It makes it nearly impossible for me to get started bc my anxiety is so bad. I have low energy and even the smallest tasks cause me to feel overwhelmed. And then when I think of the sheer magnitude of all that needs to be done in my house I feel hopeless and paralyzed, which causes me to feel even more tired. It feels impossible
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