How to stop checking

[Jenwales]

I never used to have OCD. I've always had anxiety which changed to panic attacks and when I managed them just changed to general anxiety. (Trying to keep my story short and sweet as it's so long). But for a while now, although it was probably a gradual process, I've had OCD. I have to check the door, my striaghtners, the iron, my bathroom tap and the plugs in my kitchen. A few times this has led me to miss my bus for work and to break a door handle. I know checking doesn't help, it increases my anxiety and like I said had led to problems. I have tried a CBT help book but I can't seem to stop, the thougths are in my head and it's hard to distract from them and walk out of the door knowing I will be gone all day these thoughts cause me to keep checking.

I have come back on here wondering if anyone can offer me any tips or advice to stop or ease this. I can't put up with this. I have never had help with my anxiety in the past from any outside source including my useless gp so I can't ask anywhere else. I can't afford to pay for help right now as I'm hoping my house purchase will go through. And my job is so demanding I can't get time off.

But I know I need help. Once I solve the OCD I will feel so much better. I try so hard to keep doing yoga and mindfulness but something will always happen to drag me back into anxiety.
Thanks for reading this, thank you for your time and if you can offer any advice I would be so grateful

[MyNameIsTerry]

ERP is the most common way to address them. This means a gradual, hierarchy based approach to elimination. This can mean reducing the number of times you check before you walk away or adding in longer times between feeling the urge and doing a check. You increase the time or reduce the number of checks to keep momentum going until you can eliminate the check completely.

Once compulsions stop you will feel more in control. It owned me completely at the start. Once I made progress it felt more possible and once many were eliminated I felt more like I could decide whether to stop or start with one.

Something else I found useful with some compulsions I was struggling to eliminate was to try to hijack the process. At the point of the compulsion I changed my thoughts to "I am doing this because I want too and not because I have too" and this did help weaken it's hold.

Another was to do a slow check. For instance, I had to touch a lot of objects and one was light switches. I found that I slow press allowed me to practice something closer to Mindfulness, which I was still learning back then, as opposed to the fast checks which just led to needing to do it again as it had to feel "just right". This combined well with the hijacking I mentioned above.

The hijacking and slow checking is not something I have seen much of when reading about exposure therapy, it may be something some use? But I just found it helped me to reduce the intensity and regain some control over what I felt I had no control over.

[pulisa]

I tend to take a mental picture of things which worry me and which I repeatedly check-ie gas taps, bathroom taps, iron, plugs,doors, any electrical switches etc and try and keep that mental image in my mind for a few seconds and then walk away and keep walking despite the urge to go back and re-check. Just like taking a photo but in your mind and a visual reminder so to speak.
I don't really go by the book and tend to try my own techniques which can be hit or miss!!
I hope you manage to get some relief from this, Jen. It's a miserable business but truly liberating if you manage to achieve some success, no matter how small at first. It all helps.

[Jenwales]

Thank you so much for the help I will try

[5 years now]

What has been working for me lately:
When the urge to check crosses my mind I try and stop in my tracks and reflect on what I was thinking about just prior to the checking thoughts/urges.
In my case, obsessive thoughts are preceded by thoughts, or situations, I don't want to deal with and the checking is a way for me to avoid the real issue.
I believe we all have issues we try and avoid resolving because they are too painful. I think OCD, although very torturous, is a distraction from something deeper within ourselves.
My OCD is primarily centred around health and I constantly check my mouth for lumps, cancer, etc. I will check on average over 150x daily. Secondarily, I will obsess about home issues like leaking appliances, watery and gas pipes, etc.
But when I pause before checking I almost always realize I was thinking about my career situation, childhood issues, etc.. prior to remembering I probably have cancer somewhere or that I'm positive the pipes in the walls are leaking.
Peace and good thoughts to you!