OCD Awareness Week day 5

Rush rush rush rush

I feel like the bloomin' white rabbit

"My whiskers and paws, I'm late"

I wonder if he really was late or whether he was just like me, so anxious to never be late, he always felt he was running late?

"I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date, I know I am I'm sure I am, I'm late I'm late I'm late"

But does it really matter being late? What are the real consequences?

Well surely that all depends on the circumstances. If your late meeting a friend the consequences are far different than being late to court, or a funeral. It's all perspective

And that's what's missing with OCD, perspective!!!!!

Sure we've got 20:20 vision in hindsight, but perspective? Nope, not a jot! Not one tiny little mini iddy bit. Nada. Zero. Zip. Zilch!

You see, here is the difference between you and me.

You get ready at a reasonable time, maybe push it right to the wire.

I get ready about a 3 hours too early and spend the rest of the time fretting.

You turn up early/on time/late oops, oh well make your apologies, move on, enjoy your evening

I turn up incredibly early and lie telling people "oh no, I've not been waiting long, no really I just got here myself" when really I got there at least 30 mins before and spent that time worrying I had got the wrong time/date/place!!!!!

It's tiring, it's exhausting. There are times I've cancelled going out because the thought of being late was overwhelming, did I mention I cancelled 5 hours before the time!!!!
It's stressful, and it's absurd, but what did I say? No perspective!

I have unreasonable expectations of myself and of how I should shape the world around me! I have delusional ideas of perfection, I don't have perspective.

So here's the thing, when/if you find yourself dealing with someone in the throws of an OCD episode, don't use the term "can't you see what your doing" because, no we can't, we are blind! We have no perspective!!

In that time our actions are a result of an (almost always) unrealistic threat. We cannot see past that.

So no, we cannot see
No, we cannot "just get over it"
No, we cannot move on

We need help, we need understand, we need perspective!!!!