OCD?

[smokingpoetry]

I was curious if someone might be able to help me out a bit. I have had panic attacks for years, and have learned to live with them. However, I noticed something the other day, and was wondering if someone could advise me
. I have over the last 5 years had issues with other people eating. If someone has bad table manners, or makes almost ANY noise when they eat, I become so irritated. I notice this with everyone. There are some people I will not eat around. I can't. Once I notice the noise - I can't focus on anything else. I get really angry about it. This is miserable. I know that it is ridiculous. I mean, who can eat celery without crunching? I even bother myself sometimes! Nobody but my husband knows about this. Bless his heart, he is so good about it-very sweet. So could this be part of OCD?
Please help! Any tips would be great!

[seh1980]

hello there,

I don't suffer from OCD myself but I do think that it sounds like it could be an OCD trait. The best thing to do is to talk to your doctor about it..

Sarah :D

[Meg]

Hi Smoking poetry,

Umm, I'm not sure that it is . By the pure OCD rule of thumb if you have an obsession - you should have a compulsion -an action or something that neutralizes it. The guidelines are interpreted so differently by different teams and schools of thought though.

I think this is just a foible you've developed - I have a similar one about people sniffing instead of blowing their nose.
I've chucked boyfriends for having this habit and moved tents and offices and been quite rude to people on planes by offering them tissues in very gritted teeth. Drives me nuts.






Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

You cannot conquer fear until you have learned what it is you're afraid of. The enemy is ignorance. Vivian Vance

[nomorepanic]

I hate people eating noisily too. Someone sits next to me at work and I have never heard anyone make so much noise when eating. Crisps are the worst! I have to sometimes get up and go away until they have finished eating:(

I don't think it is OCD I think it is just something that annoys you and me too!

It is difficult to tell someone that they are annoying you when they eat as we are all too polite to make a fuss but I know we should say something like "could you please eat a little more quietly" or make a joke and say "you sound like you are really enjoying eating that".

Not sure what other advice I can offer to be honest.



Nicola

[clickaway]

Hi, and welcome to the group.

Could it be that we get more irritated when we have some kind of anxious condition?

Maybe your anxious nature is blowing this out of proprtion. Does this irritate you some days more than others? Or is it constant?

Ray

[FAN]

im not sure on this one as my obsessions/compulsions dont seem to irritate me the way table manners seem to do to you but they just something i feel i have to do to be able to feel safe........im constantly checking and counting things to reassure myself that i have done it yet i still have to do them again i do feel something when im doing this but i think its frustration not irritation

fan x

[smokingpoetry]

Thank you all very much for replying. I don't know much about OCD--only that I am obsessed with other people's bad manners.

Clickaway, I have noticed that it is worse somedays than others. Thank you for pointing that out.

I try to calm myself down about it, but I'm afraid one day I'll just explode and really hurt someone's feelings. Maybe I should invest in a good pair of ear muffs!

Thanks all!

[mg]

Hi i'm new here and I was just reading the post ref ocd I am a sufferer of ocd (contamination fears) I was diagnosed with it in 1998, All I know is ocd doesn't have to have a ritual with it! it becomes ocd apparently when the thoughts interfere with your normal daily life! I am still trying to understand how it works it's so complex! All I know is I wish it would go away! I have trouble eating and drinking because of the fear that food and drink will harm me! If your thoughts are really bothering you it may be a good idea to see your GP just to check it out. Hope this helps.

[bluebottle]

My mother-in-law (god bless her) has no teeth and she sometimes eats a piece of haddock, from the chip shop, in the car when my wife picks her up from town.

LOL, my wife is pulling her hair out by the time she gets home. [:o)]

Regards,

Blue
--
Take little steps

[xlauracx]

This sounds so like me, i never thought anything of it though because ive always been like that, i dont think its abnormal or anything! My mum and dad do though, cos i cant eat with anyone, or be around anyone whos eating because any cruching etc drives me MAD and i either end up shouting or crying. I can't eat anywhere but in my house, although yesterday i did go into a cafe and ate a pancake with my mate which was a step forward! Other things that irritate me are like people coughing lots, or if they do it without convering their mouth, same with sneezing. Its where most arguements in my house come from, but as i said ive never actually associated that with anxiety or anything, just thought it was just me, which it is! must mention that next time i see my psyc. I dont have any tips though, like you asked for!!!!! xxx

~Laulz~

[smokingpoetry]

even if it's not anything, it's nice to know your not alone!

[xlauracx]

Indeed! x

~Laulz~

[JPF]

Hi Smokingpoetry

Sorry for the late reply! To echo everyone else above I don't know if it is OCD but I can tell you (as an Anxiety sufferer) that there are a lot of things (like you mentioned) which get on my nerves too.. They don't make me violent or want to explode but I do notice them - sometimes more than others - one of the things which annoys me (and I hesitate to write this in case other people notice it and get annoyed by it too) is that some newsreaders and announcers make a little noise with their lips before speaking.. Arrgh! :) Sounds silly but once you notice it, it's always there.. a bit like the repetitive 'wet finger on glass' sound in Sting's An Englishman in New York...

So, I think maybe we're all the kind of people for whom some things get on our nerves in a big way.. some days are worse than others and for whatever my opinion's worth, I don't think you do have OCD, you're just sensitive to this issue.

Good luck and good health (and I hope you find some good ear muffs too!) :)

J