Anxiety or OCD?

[AnxiousForever]

Hi,

My anxiety manifests itself by being consumed by a specific fear at any one time. I don't walk around with a sense of anxiety about everything but instead fixate on one fear and, when that goes away, something will quickly replaced it. As an example over the last few months I thought I had: throat cancer, follow by bowel cancer, then asbestos exposure, then a fear I might have accidentally shop-lifted from a self-service machine (thankfully the payment cleared today to confirm it did go though!) and as soon as that resolved today I switched back to bowel cancer for a brief few hours until I controlled it today.

My question is if that counts as GAD or is it OCD? I wondered if it's the later because I only ever really have the bandwidth to focus on one thing at a time but that becomes all-consuming.

Also just wanted to rant.

[MyNameIsTerry]

It's more likely OCD in my opinion however there is also the possibility of a disorder that is the diagnosis but has elements of others.

I think the question you need to ask is whether you can see an obsessive-compulsive cycle and go from there. What compulsions do you have?

Theme jumping is very common in OCD but you've actually mentioned several that would fit under the same theme anyway so it's just more that the focus, as you said, has switched to a new worry.

[Scottyboy]

Hi,

My anxiety manifests itself by being consumed by a specific fear at any one time. I don't walk around with a sense of anxiety about everything but instead fixate on one fear and, when that goes away, something will quickly replaced it. As an example over the last few months I thought I had: throat cancer, follow by bowel cancer, then asbestos exposure, then a fear I might have accidentally shop-lifted from a self-service machine (thankfully the payment cleared today to confirm it did go though!) and as soon as that resolved today I switched back to bowel cancer for a brief few hours until I controlled it today.

My question is if that counts as GAD or is it OCD? I wondered if it's the later because I only ever really have the bandwidth to focus on one thing at a time but that becomes all-consuming.

Also just wanted to rant.

This is exactly me at the moment as well. Appreciate your post!