Obsessing over hole ripped into box of food from market

[laurenmk]

I got home from the store tonight and was unpacking my groceries. As I did, I noticed that a box of granola bars had about a one inch by two inch hole in it on the side. My mind started spinning. . .a mouse chewed that hole and it's in the box! (No, it wasn't) A mouse chewed that hole and it's in your grocery bag! (No, it wasn't) A mouse chewed that hole and now everything else you purchased is infected! Anything you touch after touching that box is infected! etc., etc.

I told myself that there are a number of reasons that hole could have been created, none of which have to do with a mouse. Someone stocking the shelves could have done it. Another shopper could have done it. I made myself eat something else that I had purchased and had shared a bag with the box of granola bars. My own little exposure therapy, if you will. I was proud of myself for a bit, but then the worry started creeping back in and quickly.

I tried recreating the hole with another box of the same granola bars by applying pressure, but no luck. That only made me more nervous. I have stared and stared and examined the box with the hole, my rational mind telling me that the edges are too defined to have been from an animal. It lines back up with itself and a hole from an animal would be just that - a hole and not one with a 'flap' that you could line back up. Still I sit here and worry.

I've googled images of boxes that mice have eaten to try and ease my mind. I've literally looked at hundreds of images of wires/bags/food gnawed on by mice. Didn't work. I went back and examined each granola bar that I threw in the trash to make sure there were no holes. My thinking was that if a mouse had gone through the trouble of getting into the box, it would have gnawed through the plastic to the bars themselves. That didn't help.

Every time I start to believe just a bit that it wasn't a mouse, I get another rush of panic thinking, "Well if it wasn't a mouse, then what was it? Why would someone do that? What nefarious scheme is happening here?

OCD is so hard. Thanks for listening.

[Phuzella]

I know just how you feel. I'm sure they're absolutely fine :)

[MyNameIsTerry]

You've done quite a bit of challenging in there. Well done!

You are very right. A mouse wouldn't have gone to all that effort to be put off it's tasty treat by a thinner layer if cellophane. A mouse would have chewed so it wouldn't be uniformed and it would be serrated.

Supermarkets are supposed to check products on the shelves for things like this and then they mark them down in their reduced to clear sections because they can't sell them as brand new anymore. I buy loads of stuff like this from Tesco and it saves me a fortune every year! They can't sell anything that would contravene any food safety standards though e.g. they can't mark down a pack of raw meat with a hole in the packaging that exposes the meat to the environment.

Your granola bars were protected by their own wrappers. Manufacturers do this because of scenarios just like this so that the product can still be sold. This sealing ensures freshness so even if the main box is exposed, the products are still fine.

The likely reason for the hole? Something logistical. Either damaged in the warehouse, on the lorry or by the staff stocking the shelves. I see loads of dented boxes, ripped boxes, etc and they just have to mark them down.

Can you try to use this reasoning to rationalise your fear and reduce it?

[laurenmk]

Thanks, Terry. It's like this fear is a beast with an insatiable appetite. When you say, "Ok, I threw away the bars and the box and I'm going to be fine," it starts to worry about what else could have caused the tear, be happening, etc. It's exhausting. It's 7 am here in London and I haven't been to bed :scared15:

[MyNameIsTerry]

Yes, I have OCD too so I know what you mean.

Throwing them away is an avoidance. Going by OCD's basic rules, getting rid of a contaminated object should reduce fear (although it will strengthen the OCD in the long term the more you do this) but it doesn't always provide that relief. I found with mine I often got frustrated with my compulsions, my lack of control over my own mind & body, and so the anxiety just stayed.

It could even be that if the contaminated object is in your house bin, you are still worrying. It could just be that because you have interacted with the contaminated object, there is worry about what the contamination was. It could be just that the anxiety has been triggered by the scenario and is remaining until something is done to allow it to reduce but not a compulsion (which hasn't worked) but something over time until you calm down again. It depends how your OCD manifests.

Can you try to distract yourself out of it with a healthy behaviour? Something you perhaps enjoy?

[laurenmk]

You're totally right that time helps a lot. . .it just can take a long time to pass! ;)

I know that throwing away (I do that a lot. Food, clothes, etc.) is not a good long term solution. In the past though, I would have thrown out everything that had been in the bag. The fact that I didn't do that and actually ate something was a pretty big deal for me. Baby steps, I guess.

I called my Dad and my sister earlier on right after it happened because it's a good distraction. Now I'm watching some clips of The Ellen Show which makes me happy :)

[Phuzella]

Well done for eating something out of the bag :). The amount of food I've chucked away because "it looked at me funny" makes me shudder lol.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Yeah, well done for facing the fear. Doing that was hard but you did it and that shows you can beat this the more you work on it.

It's also really important that you did this from your own thinking, not after coming on here for advice because it shows you are taking control over your anxiety and not allowing it to win. It is baby steps, it works. But many people would have been on here asking for reassurance before they tried anything or wouldn't have worked out what to try before seeking advice. You didn't do either and made those efforts. To me, that is a big step forward! :yesyes::yahoo:

[Fishmanpa]

I'm funny about stuff like that. I check containers in the grocery store to make sure they've not been opened or damaged and have taken an item back to exchange if it was damaged. I also check expiration/use/sell by dates and will dig to the back to get fresher items (especially in the meat department).

That being said, your box issue. For me it would depend on the nature of the hole. Rodents leave rather distinct chew marks so that would be easy to identify. Also, if they were wrapped bars in a box and the box had a hole. I would be checking the wrapped bars to be sure they were in tact. If they were?... no worries.

Positive thoughts