- Username
- AngelaHeart
- Date posted
- 5y ago
hi, this is random but how did the whole diagnosing process go? i haven’t been professionally diagnosed yet so i’m a bit nervous and not sure how it works
Well for me, my therapist simply asked me questions (about 25) and then I got a score. I got 24/40 which is moderate. I would definitely recommend talking to someone about the ocd. I remember I was hesitant to tell my therapist, but when I did I felt an instant relief. I was in a VERY dark time before I told her.
I’ve struggled with trichitillomania off and on since I was 7yrs old. I’m now 38 and struggle with scalp picking. I absolutely feel where I need to pick or pull or scratch. After lots of research, people with trich/dermatillomania DO have an increased sense of interoception. These behaviors are called Body Focused Repetetive behaviors. It’s been lumped under OCD, but it’s treatment is still debatable. It’s anxiety related, sensory processing related, habit related, impulse control related, etc etc. you aren’t alone. More people have it than you may realize. We just gotta work thru it.
I also have a sensation of needing to twirl my hair until it breaks. I don’t know if you would call it trich, because I don’t necessarily pull directly from the scalp, but sometimes when a strand twirls around it pulls out at the root. Gross. Anyways, I also get that feeling in my scalp where I have to do that to feel better. I know it’s gotten bad because my hair is so short now, I guess from the breakage, that people are asking if I got a haircut. I haven’t gotten a haircut in years. This is why I got on this site.
I’ve been diagnosed with OCD but I don’t have these intrusive thoughts like everyone else...so I’m convincing myself I don’t really have OCD I struggle I guess with rOCD (and more)...I guess I always check to see if a person texted me back. I blow up the persons phone until they respond. I use to have it really bad where I had so much anxiety if I didn’t do it and so much anxiety if I did. When guys leave me....I freak out and have damn near a heart attack from panicking so much. And once I get this thought in my head whether it’s “you should’ve said this” or “he probably lied to you when he said this” or whatever there’s this feeling in my body. It’s like an uncomfortable negative vibe and that thought becomes priority. I have to do it. I have to text them and it’s hard to think of anything else. And when I do it doesn’t stop so i shouldn’t give in but sometimes I do. And if I get over that thought later another might replace it and it starts again. Anybody else feel this way...?
Anyone on here struggling with Trichotillomania? For those who don’t know what that long word is, it is a type of OCD that gives you the irresistible urge to pull out your own hair (from the scalp, face, or body). I have been struggling with it since I was in 8th grade. For most people with trich, pulling out hair can be a coping method for stress or anxiety. However, the disorder usually just causes more anxiety and insecurity. It is a tough case of OCD because it does not only affect you psychologically, but it can affect your psychical appearance in more extreme cases. Wow, that felt good to talk about for some reason. But anyways, if anyone who has trich, knows someone with trich, or wants to just have a conversation about it, please let me know! I’ve been dying to find someone to confide in for years- I feel embarrassed by my OCD.
"Excoriation disorder is an obsessive-compulsive spectrum mental disorder that is characterized by the repeated urge or impulse to pick at one's own skin to the extent that either psychological or physical damage is caused." This quote is not my words but it explains my OCD best . Anyone else who is diagnosed with this? And how do you deal with it? Currently I am obsessed with picking my scalp and I can't stop. If I don't do it, I keep thinking about it. A few years back I was so obsessed and driven, I cut off some of my beauty spots with scissors. I pull the skin off my nails and it bleeds. I can't control this. I am in the beginning of therapy but don't have a lot of sessions because my psychologist is very good but very busy. How do I deal with this for now, I can't stop.
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