Hi there I feel rather alone with my OCD Iv suffered from contamination OCD for almost 20 years, I have OCD about a unattractive girl who went to the same high school as me, I feel compelled to wash my hands with disinfectant if I come into contact with anything she may have touched I also have a mild dose of intrusive thought OCD and religious OCD I’m just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar in regards to the contamination OCD

Hi. I never post anything online but your situation is exactly like mine and I wanted to show you’re not alone. I’m older now but it began with a girl I thought to be “icky” in middle school. The thoughts have attached to a few different people throughout the years, and each time the previous person will no longer bother me. Just like you, I felt appalled at myself that I would have these issues with people, and just like you, anyone unkempt looking could raise my obsessive thoughts to some degree. I’m not an expert but it seems to me “emotional” OCD is fear you will take on attributes of the person you have an issue with. This doesn’t seem to be the case with me. However there is a difference between disease contamination and disgust contamination where it’s simply the feeling that seems unbearable. I used to call it the “essence” until I realized “disgust” is actually a term used in the field. So maybe that’s the case with you as well. In any case, treatment is the same. I’ve had success with ERP. However it took a while to find someone who specialized in OCD and anxiety disorders that could really help, and medicine can take the edge off to allow you to tackle the exposures. I’ve had setbacks but I blame that on my own carelessness. Again, a person trained for OCD specifically can do wonders.

Welcome 😊 what you're describing reminds me of "emotional contamination". Here's an article about it. https://iocdf.org/expert-opinions/emotional-contamination/#:~:text=Emotional%20contamination%20is%20a%20lesser,somehow%20contaminate%20and%20endanger%20him. What similarities and differences do you notice between what's talked about in the article and what you're experiencing?

Hi there Yes I have actually read this article before and I do notice the similarities for sure, although I know this imaginary contamination will not cause harm to me I can’t stand the thought of contaminating my space / stuff with it , I just don’t manage to see past it and it all seems so real to me , she was just a unattractive kid at my school I don’t understand why I’m so fixated on it

How can I overcome that tho iv tried exposure therapy etc with no luck yet

Hey mate, thankyou very much for reaching out, for years I have felt very alone and the only one with this type of OCD, our ocd does seem very similar and when I was younger my obsession too would jump from person to person, nowadays it’s fixated on the one unattractive girl who went to my school, and I connect a trail of contamination to her with almost everything it drives me nuts and I feel compelled to do decontamination rituals , I too describe it as essence or presence of that person and like you say the thought of been contaminated by her is unbearable, I have just started to see a new ocd specialist and combined with meds im going to give the erp another good crack , I hope all is going well with you and you are able to beat this OCD