Post by alabasterangel on Aug 27, 2014 8:59:09 GMT -5
Oh man. I have legit OCD so the examples are many. One of my biggest things is not having 'garbage' on the table when we eat out at restaurants. I like them to take the straw papers away and things like that. I'm always rearranging everyone's plates and glasses so they look 'right'.
I can't stand if the cord to my work phone gets tangled and will spend way too much time untangling it.
I'm the same way with this one. In my old office, students used the phone after hours for a fundraiser and every morning I came in, I was irate because my cord was all twisted up! I don't understand how people get their cords twisted like that!
I am hyper-organized. Everything must have a system, including stupid things like eating Skittles in color order. I follow the exact same progression for getting ready for bed, showering, etc. every day. If something disturbs the order, I feel "off".
I am hyper-organized. Everything must have a system, including stupid things like eating Skittles in color order. I follow the exact same progression for getting ready for bed, showering, etc. every day. If something disturbs the order, I feel "off".
I wasn't sure if this was an OCD tendency or not. My nightly routine is how I settle down for the night. Unless I'm dog-tired, I have to go through those motions to sleep well.
Oh man. I have legit OCD so the examples are many. One of my biggest things is not having 'garbage' on the table when we eat out at restaurants. I like them to take the straw papers away and things like that. I'm always rearranging everyone's plates and glasses so they look 'right'.
I have anxiety and am very type A, so my old therapist floated the idea of OCD but didn't seem to think it was anything more than my anxiety.
Anyway, I get very upset if things are placed onto my kitchen counters that I did not put there. For instance, I can put some mail on the counter (in a specific spot) but my husband can't or I'll immediately have to move it. The counters have to be just so.
Post by jennynumbers on Aug 27, 2014 9:55:35 GMT -5
I am list-obsessive. I have a list for everything. I need to control certain events because I want everything to go smoothly. Why risk forgetting something when you can just as easily write it down?
Oh man. I have legit OCD so the examples are many. One of my biggest things is not having 'garbage' on the table when we eat out at restaurants. I like them to take the straw papers away and things like that. I'm always rearranging everyone's plates and glasses so they look 'right'.
I tend to stack up plates when we are out to eat and put all the silverware on the top plate to make things easier for the server, but I am not sure if that is related to OCD or because I was a waiter for so long that I almost do it as a courtesy to speed up their job when it's time to clear the finished plates from the table.
I am a bit OCD with how the dishwasher is organized and will rearrange things constantly when the H puts things in the "wrong" spot, and similarly the clean plates in the cabinet have to be stacked a certain way. He is always messing that up and I go behind him and reorganize it all. (for example he'll put bigger bowls sitting on top of smaller bowls instead of stacking them like this):
(I am the man in this comic, btw. Apparently the only thing that G is organized/methodical about is loading the dishwasher. His offices look like bombs went off in them. It gives me hives.)
(I am the man in this comic, btw. Apparently the only thing that G is organized/methodical about is loading the dishwasher. His offices look like bombs went off in them. It gives me hives.)
If something has a cap, it must be replaced and used. Like, say, a hair product. I always have to put the cap back on when I am done and I go manic if I lose it.
I always eat my hot foods first because I figure that they will taste gross if I wait until the end. I am slow eater.
The sheets/covers on my bed have to be perfectly straight in order for me to sleep.
If I have a sleeve on my coffee or a cozy on my beer, it all has to line up with the label on the bottle or cup.
I have a system for everything, and I will explain exactly why I'm doing things a certain way. I have to find the most efficient way to do anything. People usually look at me like I'm crazy after my explanations...even though they ALL make complete sense.
I am hyper-organized. Everything must have a system, including stupid things like eating Skittles in color order. I follow the exact same progression for getting ready for bed, showering, etc. every day. If something disturbs the order, I feel "off".
I wasn't sure if this was an OCD tendency or not. My nightly routine is how I settle down for the night. Unless I'm dog-tired, I have to go through those motions to sleep well.
I'm the same way with my morning routine. If something throws it off I feel frazzled and out of it all day.
Post by lexxasaurus on Aug 27, 2014 13:02:25 GMT -5
I have diagnosed OCD as well. Volumes must be set on odd numbers, things done in 3's. I organize items by type, color or alphabetically depending which is applicable. I organize tables, rearrange sugar packets and jelly just so everything is "right". I have a lot of... quirks.
Post by lizardesque on Aug 27, 2014 13:39:05 GMT -5
I'm pretty sure that living with me would drive most of you nuts.
I consider myself reasonably neat and organized, but most of the stuff described above does not faze me at all. Sure, I have morning and bedtime routines, but I'm not totally thrown off if I'm interrupted. My desk, pantry, etc, are organized in a such a way that I can find things, but anyone else may be confused. I also have a habit of not completely closing cabinets and drawers (this is not anything conscious, but I know I do it a lot--as if things distract me midway through shutting a drawer).
The thing I'm probably most particular about is my e-mail inbox. I start to get twitchy if it has more than about 20 messages in it that have not been sorted to other folders.
I feel like I have a lot of these things but can't seem to think of too many right now.
I do hate when cabinets, drawers, etc are left open. It just seems stupid to me.
I also don't like having unused apps on my phone so I regularly uninstall things. Same goes for my computer. And on my computer I hate having a lot of icons on my desktop. I like to keep it to one column or less.
Post by pantaloons55 on Aug 27, 2014 17:46:02 GMT -5
I have a lot of them, but I can't think of them all either, but I relate to many of you, so you're not alone!
Like glw I have a system, but for for eating in general. Always savoury first, than sweet items. I hate it when its backwards. Skittles, or m&m's whatever, are always in two's and always the same colour and in rainbow (or fav flavour) order (despite the fact that M&Ms are all the same flavour...like for real, who cares? LOL)
And like jennynumbers I am a compulsive list maker. You should have seen the lists for my wedding / wedding day. Pages.
sitnspin I get you on the covers girl, drives me bonkers when H gets into bed and its a disaster and then I have to kick his lazy ass out and make the bed properly before I can possibly sleep there.
I am also very methodical and organized about certain tasks, but strangely messy/scatterbrained in other areas of my life and H can't understand it. LOL, poor H.
Post by pantaloons55 on Aug 28, 2014 7:41:04 GMT -5
Ok, so for those of you have have diagnosed OCD. How did you get diagnosed? Like your regular GP refers you to a psychologist?
I'm sure that H has some issues with perfectionism/OCD. Not really sure, but it seriously interferes in our lives sometimes, over things that DO.NOT.MATTER in the grand scheme of things. (Except the bed, strangely) I've tried to help him, and he's open to it when I call him on certain things, and does try to let go -- a little. With other things, he just can't. He has to feed the OC tendency. No too much with counting, repetition or that sort of thing, but just really gets stressed when some things are not 'perfect' or done a certain way.
Don't even get me started on his sister. She's a 1000x worse. She spent literally an hour arranging white chrysanthemums at my house the day before my wedding.
Post by lexxasaurus on Aug 28, 2014 7:52:10 GMT -5
pantaloons55 - that's exactly how it went for me. My primary doctor referred me to a psychiatrist to get diagnosed. The perfectionism and compulsion and things I need to do are really only part of the OCD. Honestly, it's the obsessions that I needed to learn to deal with, and medicate for. It wasn't as simple as the need to have organization, but that when these things aren't done, they can send me into a spiral of obsessing over something until I was in a full blown panic. That was when I knew I had to do something about it, because I was having panic attacks every day over the fact that nothing could ever be perfect enough.
I also don't like having unused apps on my phone so I regularly uninstall things. Same goes for my computer. And on my computer I hate having a lot of icons on my desktop. I like to keep it to one column or less.
This too.
I have so many, I just can't think of anything! Probably because my desk is a total wreck right now and I'm feeling far from OCD right now.
OH! I just remembered one! Since we moved into our house (almost 2 years ago) I've bought every single color of plastic cups that Hefty makes...and they are all organized one cup at a time in rainbow order. It's beautiful!
I do hate when cabinets, drawers, etc are left open. It just seems stupid to me.
Ah, but if you have ADD tendencies like I do, it's something like this: OK, I've got my cheese grater, so I'm going to close the cabin---oh, look, a robin on the deck!
Fairly regularly, I will be writing something and something (either in my in mind or outside myself) will distract me. When I go back to writing, I see that I stopped mid-word, not even mid-sentence. Mid-word.
So, yeah, considering that, a lot of the stuff in this thread seems completely foreign to me.
Enter husband. Husband opens cabinet, removes plate, leaves cabinet open, puts plate on counter. Husband gets loaf of bread, removes two pieces, leaves open bread bag on counter, carries bread to fridge. Husband observes leftovers container in fridge and removes it. Husband puts two pieces of bread on the counter, next to plate. Exit husband stage right.
Post by lizardesque on Aug 28, 2014 9:56:01 GMT -5
Ah, see, it's not that I don't intend to close cabinets or put things away, just that I don't always complete the task because something derails me. I can't tell you how many times I've ended up wearing only one earring because something distracted me while I was putting my earrings on!
Also, to be fair, my house has quite a lot of old cabinets and drawers that sometimes "bounce back" a bit even when you do shut them all the way.
Enter husband. Husband opens cabinet, removes plate, leaves cabinet open, puts plate on counter. Husband gets loaf of bread, removes two pieces, leaves open bread bag on counter, carries bread to fridge. Husband observes leftovers container in fridge and removes it. Husband puts two pieces of bread on the counter, next to plate. Exit husband stage right.