Is anyone else a severe germaphobe and worries constantly about what they might have touched/feels the constant need to wash their hands? Since the pandemic hit my ocd has gotten a lot worse and now all I think about is what dirty things I may have touched and if I’m contaminated. It occupies my whole day. Even when I know I haven’t touched anything, I can’t stop thinking that I have and that I need to wash or sanitize my hands again. It takes over my whole life and I’m wondering if anyone else can relate.

Yeah, like I said in my last comment, the pandemic has triggered my germ worse to get worse about everything, not even just covid, which really sucks. Thanks, I definitely feel like I’m not the only one now! I hope you stay well

@LAHsagna Germ fears*

@LAHsagna I totally agree! It started with just covid germs and now I’m scared of all germs. Again, totally common. Doesn’t make sense, but nothing about OCD makes sense. Stay well too💕💕

Thank you. The pandemic has also made all of my germ fears worse, even things that aren’t related to covid. Did that happen to you at all too?

@LAHsagna Yes

It is. Hope you’re hanging in there

@LAHsagna I’m trying. Today was a bad day

@jlk91481 Most of my days have been bad days lately. I’m just trying to hold on to the idea that I will get better

Same here. It doesn’t help that hand washing is strongly enforced now whether or not you have ocd

I hear ya 😞

I have dry skin and ezcema and peeling skin on my hands from my obsessive hand washing.

@hanajade Me 2. And so itchy. Why im up now.

@merix Mine gets itchy as well.

@hanajade How are your hand washing skills? I ask because I feel like I forgot how to do it. It takes me forever and I think I didn’t even do it right every time so must repeat.

@merix My hand washing skills are good. I like to make sure that the whole hand is covered in soap and if my hands accidentally touch the sink or the tap, I will wash my hands more and I have to count in my head when I wash my hands and if I have miscounted then I have to repeat it. Pretty much in worse situations that trigger my ocd I have to wash my hands 15 times. It’s hard to concentrate and do it that many times because my mum says stop washing your hands and it is enough but for me it’s not enough until I have done it 15 times because I still feel contaminated. I have a bad habit of smelling my hands after I washed them to make sure they smell nice and soapy.

@hanajade My hand washing skills are too good for my own good. I’m practically incapable of washing my hands like a “normal” person anymore. I have a very specific, very thorough way of washing my hands that often takes up to half an hour. It’s not good

@LAHsagna That’s what i mean! It would be one thing to wash them more often tham trulu necessary (vs in my brain necessary) but that it takes so long each time is a killer combo. My day just goes and then there is no time for things i have to do.

@LAHsagna And I’ve also had my mom tell me to stop washing my hands many times, which just makes it worse becasue then I’ve been interrupted

@LAHsagna Hahaha, i have that same conversation with my mother. She also loves to throw random things in the sink while I’m washing which forces a do over.

@LAHsagna I’m sorry to hear that. Having contamination ocd is really hard to reduce especially during a pandemic and I can barely touch anything that I could do before covid without washing my hands or using hand sanitiser. I have a specific way of washing my hands too. When I had labs I was dealing with a lot of chemicals and I was thinking that what if the chemicals have gone through to my gloves and i get serious burns and injuries. So I would have to wash my hands a bit and I used to get really embarrassed when people were staring so now I do my compulsions after the lab when everyone has gone. Having eating certain foods, I have to wash my hands a certain number of times, I wash my hands after pretty much everything.

@merix Yes, 100% relate. I’ve made it slightly easier for myself by just applying hand sanitizer most of the time instead of washing cuz then it doesn’t take me half and hour. But I still apply like 100 times a day all day every day, and when I touch something “extra” dirty, I have to wash. Every time I wash it takes me several minutes at least. That’s just me, and yes i don’t even have time for things I actually have to do!

@LAHsagna Same if I get interrupted during a compulsion I have to restart that entire process again which is very tiring and exhausting.

@hanajade How do we stop that contaminated feeling? It can’t be with repetitive hand washing. Ifs just not sustainable and each time still needs more. Longer duration, more soap, more times. When is enough enough? I want to think ine time and a good 10 seconds is enough, and then i wash them again.

@hanajade Yeah, that sounds really stressful. I always get really embarrassed whenever I have to wash my hands in front of other people. Idk how I would deal with that in a lab setting. I try to avoid ever using public bathrooms so I don’t have to be embarrassed

@LAHsagna The one “good” thing about this pandemic is working from home so nonone can see me. You would think at home I wouldn’t need to wash my hands constantly, but yet i do.

@merix I got told that by my psychiatrist that you confront whatever makes you feel contaminated and wash your hands once but I’m not sure if it right because I thought you can’t do any compulsions.

@hanajade Maybe that’s because washing is different becasue people still need to wash sometimes? But I’m not sure

@hanajade Mine says once. But also only after actually touching something dirty. Not my brain dirty. Just good hygiene. Like when you get home, wash hands and be done. Or use the restroom.

@merix Me too. I need to wash or sanitize my hands constantly in my own home. Also this thread is so long lol

@merix When I have greasy foods I have to wash my hands 5 times to make sure that the greasiness is gone and my hands smell nice and a few weeks ago we went to a gender reveal and had kfc which triggered my ocd so I washed my hands 5 times and I looked behind me and there was a long line of my family watching me wash my hands more than what a non ocd person does so I was really embarrassed. When I am at home I still wash my hands constantly especially after touching things that could be contaminated with germs.

@LAHsagna I use hand sanitiser when I go to the shops due to covid fears but before covid I never used to do that, after touching parcels or mails, I have to wash my hands, developed a fear of public toilets, door handles, touching my chickens, feeding my chickens, collecting the eggs, or touching their coop and even touching the laundry door because it could be contaminated.

@hanajade Yeah, I use it in public too a lot. And I am also scared of touching the laundry room door among a lot of other things. Yay ocd!

@LAHsagna Ocd sucks. If the sink looks dirty to touch then I will use hand sanitiser. If there is no bathroom to wash my hands I will use hand sanitiser.