It struck me today that while I've been getting to know all of you, you haven't had the chance to get to know me as much. It's important to me that relationships go both directions. So here's your opportunity. Any questions about me, my OCD, my recovery, etc. are all welcome.

I started having symptoms in the middle of elementary school. One of my first obsessions was having to sit perfectly straight because "if I slouch, I'm a slob". I ended up doing a number on my back. As time progressed, my symptoms increased. Religious scrupulosity, moral scrupulosity, perfectionism with schoolwork, superstitions, and although I would not admit it for another eight years, sexual intrusive thoughts. I had horrible social anxiety as well. I went to a ton of effort to hide my symptoms. Right after tenth grade I went to a community counseling center on my own to get help for self harm. They called my parents, and treatment began. I initially was treated in partial hospitalization at the local hospital, and then over the next six months I was admitted to an adolescent inpatient unit twice. There were no local OCD programs. My parents sent me to Rogers Hospital in Wisconsin to do their adolescent residential proram. That's where I first learned to do exposures. My therapist at home had talked about them, but I absolutely refused until I saw it working for other teens. Residential jump started my recovery. I continued seeing a ERP therapist through highschool and the first two years of college. Since then I lived in Boston on my own with a full time job for two years and then moved to Cleveland for graduate school. Grad school has been really rocky, with a lot of symptoms returning. I withdrew from a few classes to make space for a bigger focus on therapy. Right now I'm focusing my energy on reducing compulsions around schoolwork and on sexual intrusive thoughts. Grocery shopping was on the target symptoms list, but these days it all so odd that I let it go for now. Luckily, my social anxiety is gone. That's my biggest recover win

@NOCD Advocate - Katie Sorry for the book lol

@NOCD Advocate - Katie How did you overcome your social anxiety ?

@JS0406 Some cognitive therapy and lots of exposure. When I returned from residential, I decided to take a public speaking course in highschool to force me to do exposure on a regular basis

@s? I get guilt with scrupulosity thoughts, but not the sexual ones. Mine are a bit unusual in the respect that I'm not afraid of me having thoughts about sex, I'm afraid of the idea that people around me could be having thoughts about having sex with me. Mostly I feel disgust when they happen

Acceptance and response prevention. Don't just cope with the guilt, change it

@NOCD Advocate - Katie What are some of the ways I can do this?

@MJocd What are the compulsions you're doing?

@NOCD Advocate - Katie Looking online for reassurance that I'm not a bad person for watching porn by reading other peoples stories. Reading/watching videos of people who stopped watching porn so I dont feel alone. Asking people for reassurance (mainly online). Basically reassurance seeking :(

@MJocd Then you stop doing those things. In recovery, we change our behaviors to influence our beliefs. It doesn't work to wait for our beliefs to change first

Chocolate with fudge

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That I want to live independently and be able to have a family

@NOCD Advocate - Katie Reading this comment “wanting to be able to have a family” what were some things about ocd that stood in the way of beginning that journey?

@ruminating_redhead Independent living skills really. Being able to grocery shop and cook. Being able to drive. To organize and clean up

No-ish. I'm asexual and I have obsessions about people perceiving me as sexual though. So that's still sexual orientation obsessions, but not homosexuality

No, I don't have romantic or sexual attraction to anyone, and I m totally content with that

@NOCD Advocate - Katie Honestly with my hocd i wish i had that