Pure O (Pure Obsessional) OCD?

[sarahlouisexo]

Hey guys x

I'm new to this forum but I'm pretty certain I'm struggling with 'Pure O' OCD. Does anyone else struggle with this or OCD in general? I would love you hear your stories/experiences.

Thanks for reading.

[BballJ]

Hi sarahlouisexo,

Firstly, welcome to the forums.

I have suffered from OCD for many, many years... only really discovered this year that it may very well be OCD but when I worked out all the little things I do, I was convinced it was OCD.. from having to lock the doors at night in a certain order, to having to drive through the same entrance to a shopping centre every time I go their, having to set my alarms on my phone in a certain way to many other things.

I am not 100% familiar with Pure O OCD - are you able to tell me what it is? I am interested to know more about it.

Every day is a mental battle when you have OCD I find, doing things in order are needed so their is balance in our lives. It's very interesting to be honest.

My best for you,

Jay

[sarahlouisexo]

Hi there 🙂

Thanks!

Oh wow, that's interesting. Thanks for sharing your experience 🙂 I've never had those kinds of physical compulsions, they are more mental.

I think this explains 'Pure O' well:

‘Pure O’ is a form of OCD where people mistakenly believe that it differs from traditional OCD, in that it features no outward compulsive manifestations; instead, the anxiety-inducing obsessions take place only in the mind.
However, a person with ‘Pure O’ will still have compulsions which mainly manifest as unseen mental rituals, and they will usually also engage in compulsive behaviours like seeking reassurance from loved ones, and avoidance of particular objects, places or people. They are compulsions, nonetheless, which is why the term ‘Pure O’ is somewhat imprecise.

[geoff]

hi Sarah, I've had OCD for 57 years and haven't even heard anybody call it 'Pure O OCD' although I have googled it and it says the same as what you have said, and can I quote 'it's one of the most distressing and challenging forms of OCD' and that it 'varies greatly, but the central theme for all sufferers is the emergence of a disturbing intrusive thoughts' and so the article goes on, however what it involves also happens in what we know as OCD, so basically we are talking about the same illness, however it is defined.
I'm certainly not trying to distinguish between the two of these simply because most people say they are struggling with OCD, whether it's washing your hands every 5 minutes, checking door locks or having intrusive thoughts, plus all the other habits/rituals that take over our minds it is such a terrible illness, and those who don't have it can't figure out why we have to do all of this continually.
They believe that it's something that would be easy to stop, unbeknown to them it can't or it's certainly not easy.
There was an online course I once did to help me with my OCD, and it did help, but as soon as the course was over I just went back to how I was before, I couldn't keep doing what the course had told me to do, perhaps this could help some people, but do they then transfer their habits/rituals onto doing something else, maybe, because over all these years I have been able to stop something, but it is then replaced with another habit.
I have a twin and thankfully he doesn't have it which I'm so grateful for.
Come back Sarah and ask anything you want, as you know there's much more to the story. Geoff.

[BballJ]

Hi sarahlouisexo,

Wow, that is a good explanation, after reading it I feel I have that as well, I avoid certain places as well which is interesting, were you diagnosed with that or was that just after reading about it?

My best,

Jay

[Cameron005]

Not sure if anyone is still visiting this link.

I have been struggling for a few years with OCD, but after research i am pretty sure its Pure O. That is, intrusive thoughts followed by hours of...

Oh my God where did that come from?

What if i act on that?

Do i forget about them? Block them out? Think about something else? Remove the triggers or stay away from people that cause the triggers? It can be very tiresome and it obviously leads to depression because you remember what you were like as a person before this came about! I am 44, and these thoughts suddenly appeared 3 years ago I can still remember the exact day), however mainly during holidays or i was less busy and they went away and i was back to my usual happy self. Which made it harder when they came back again during holidays or my mind was less busy. At the time i had no clue what was happening so it was very stressful however at least now i am better prepared (sort of) to try to deal.

I have it in my mind that removing myself and just 'getting through' the times and experiences that trigger these thoughts will see me right, however that leads to wishing my life away, especially with time with my family.

I spoke to a psychologist for the first time last week, but she offered me advice which was ok, mainly that the thoughts are not the real you etc and if you let your mind fight them, then they come back stronger. I long for the days where i am back to my happy self, outgoing, extroverted. I can tell when i wake up what type of day it will be. The thoughts are so outrageous, horrible and effect those i love that it is very tiresome fighting them, trying to prove to yourself that it is not 'you'

I dont wash my hands 10 times, lock doors over and over, i do my compulsions in my head, just to fight them.

It feels good just to write it all down for the first time. I have tried st Johns wort but it was indifferent. The psychologist had not heard of this.

Is there another herbal treatment to increase my mood?

I will keep busy as downtime is not my friend!

Not sure if anyone still active but it is good to share! I will probably look for a psychiatrist who has experience with pure o or ocd.

[geoff]

Hello Cameron005, it doesn't matter if you find an old thread and then post on it again, but please let me welcome you.

I've had OCD for 58 years and know exactly what you are saying, and also know that anyone who doesn't have this illness may find it difficult to understand, but those suffering from it will agree with you.

It's caused by anxiety, but not everyone who has anxiety will it, what happens is we say to ourselves that if ( for some reason ) we check the lock 3, 4, or 6 times then nothing will happen, that's our anxiety telling us to do this, whereas if you don't have OCD then your anxiety will affect you in other ways.

Intrusive thoughts always seem to be a disturbing thought, a worry that we could quite easily hurt someone we love, causing the thoughts to become more frequent and distressing and are known as an obsession.

These thoughts feel as though they have taken over your life, but it doesn't mean you have done anything wrong.

The problem is not in the thought itself, but rather what you do with the thought.

Everyone has intrusive thoughts but it then leaves, whereas an intrusive thought for people with OCD is distressing and it's how you respond to it such as fear, disgust or alarm.

Any of these thoughts for me fortunately never happened, and there is a large thread on 'intrusive thoughts' you may want to read.

I haven't heard that St. Johns Wort works, but everyone is different, but your doctor can prescribe medication which is targeted towards OCD and depression, that's what I take, but unfortunately, names of medication can't be mentioned, but I'd really like to hear back from you.

Geoff.

[80s-Dave]

Hi Cameron, I've struggled with these symptoms for years and only just today put a name to it (via another forum I was reading). Trust me, you're not alone! I find it's exacerbated when I'm highly anxious. Most of the rest of the time I can 'manage' the thoughts, but during times of high anxiety it can be overwhelming. I'm currently struggling a bit as I've just gone back on to medication, but I do find that it helps after some time. I'm also doing lots of mindfulness (meditation etc), eating better and walking, which all helps set you up for a healthy lifestyle. I plan on seeing a counsellor soon to look at some of the therapies they offer as well. I can see this is a very old discussion thread, but hope you have managed to find some help with it.

David