I have several parts of symmetry OCD combined with Tourettic OCD, and the "pressure" that I need to feel in certain parts of my body need to be evened out, even if it's pain. Any physical tics, like neck rolling or muscle tightening or eye rolling or foot tapping, can't be single-sided. It's honestly exhausting. I'm 43 and never sought treatment until recently, and feel, to a large degree, that it might be too late to reverse the symptoms of this disorder completely, but I'm going to try.
thank you so much for making this video! i have had ocd my whole life but just noticed a few months ago. i didn't know other people do these things, acted the same way, and has the same problems that i do.
So when I was younger I kept doing this thing where let’s say my pinky touches my index finger. I have to mirror the same exact feeling on my other hand. Or if I step on a crack, I’d match it with the other foot. Does this fall under this sort of ocd? I broke out of the habit eventually by forcing myself not to care. It was oddly difficult, but I did it.
Adish i forget how or when it stopped. i wanna say like... just as 9th grade started? i just remember if i messed up and made the perfect symmetrical sensation-then any mistakes after that were voided or didn’t matter. once i started doing that, it gradually eased off. well, i did start smoking weed and that also boosted the process. i don’t smoke anymore and i rarely get the sensation to make sensation symmetrical. i only do it like once if i’m bored. one time in like the 2nd grade, i felt like i was writing w/ my right hand too much and tried using my left. that was the worst feeling ever. ended up breaking two pencils cuz i couldn’t write w/ my left the same lol. but i really hope you break from it. it’s so exhausting after a while.
@@bravesoulmotivation8124 same thing happened to me but with words. I used to count how many letters I spoke and would count half on one hand and the other half on the other. It carried in for a year and tried to stop it I did. But it still happens sometimes
For years of my life I felt like something was just wrong with me or that I was just being stupid when I would have to do what I didn’t know were compulsions. Thank you so much for this video because I’ve always suspected that it was OCD but I never knew for sure since I didn’t know that there were multiple types of OCD. It gets to the point sometimes where I can’t even go to sleep because my pillows aren’t arranged just right, or if there is something that isn’t right with how my desk is then I have to make it perfect. Not only this but I can’t even touch one part of my body without having to do the same to the other side the exact same way until I get it even. It gets to the point with walking over cracks or thresholds that I spend 5 minutes at the least just walking over it over and over with each foot until I get it to feel like it’s even. When I go on walks if I step over a crack with my left foot I do it to the right the next time and if I step over with the left “too many times” I have to do it to the right foot the same amount of times. Or with touching objects I’ll have to do it the same way in both sides. Once again thank you for this video, because it really made me feel validated :)
This is exactly what I have, I always thought I was alone. I honestly cant stop it and it keep me up at night because I have to touch this and then this and so on.
This made me tear up. I've never heard such an accurate description. This is how I feel, and I want to see a doctor. Edit: It’s been 8 months since I posted this comment, and I’ve been diagnosed with OCD, I am going through ERP, and have prescription meds. Trust yourself!
It’s kinda weird because when I think about it more, my symmetry OCD gets worse? It also effects me when I’m playing games (example: Minecraft), even If I can’t see my feet (because the body is invisible in first person POV), I can “feel” where the legs are and if I step on a certain type of block with one side of my body, I MUST step on it with the other side. :/ it makes playing games difficult
Oh wow, I know that exact feeling. The Minecraft analogy probably works the best for me because all the blocks are so perfectly square so there's a higher chance for things to feel "off".
Yup if I think about it more everything bothers me like right now I can’t STAND that I’m typing on my phone and my right thumb is hitting more keys than my left I have to wave over each side then circle it and go up
I’ve suspected that I have OCD for a while, but I’m too afraid to say anything because I know people will just tell me that I’m worrying to much. I know my mum will brush it off saying “you don’t have OCD, there’s no need to worry” because she thinks I’m just paranoid that I have it. But I often struggle with having to make things feel just right, whether it be the amount of pressure on one leg and having to do the same on the other, or if I’m typing and I feel like I’ve tapped to many times with one finger so I need to tap more on the other, or if I feel the need to rearrange my books sitting on my desk so that they all line up on top of each other. I just don’t want to say anything or go to a doctor because it’s not as severe as others and it doesn’t make me late or affect my life a lot. It’s just small compilations I feel like I need to do because they give my a bit of distress. One of my main ones is tapping once on my thumb and pinky, then twice on my ring and pointer finger, then three times on my middle finger. It’s almost as if I’m making a pyramid-like shape on with my fingers and if it isn’t the right amount of taps or pressure on each finger I’ll have to do it again.
I can’t believe I’m getting this validation. For my whole life I’ve had ocd and it has full control over my life. I don’t care about the way things look I care about how they FEEL. If something or someone touches one side of my body (stepping on a line, etc.) I HAVE to make it feel the same on the other side. A lot of the time I have to overcompensate on the other side and sometimes hit/scratch/scrub myself till I have bruises or lesions. My parents learned 10 years ago that they can never touch me or I’ll hurt myself and it honestly breaks my heart. I’ve googled endlessly and have never seen anyone talk about this especially aside from magical thinking which I don’t have. Thank you for this video. So relieving to see people in the comments have similar problems.
Omg I draw imaginary lines even when I’m laying in bed if my hand moves I have to follow that exact line with my hand five times. The line has to face Northwest. I literally do this all day. I’m so tired of it.
I was sobbing while watching this video. For the longest time(my whole life)I thought I was weird. When watching this(almost)all the missing puzzle pieces came together. Even writing this right now is a struggle in order for my hands to feel equal on both sides. The funny thing is, I have been squirming, touching, and making weird body movements when watching this video, I can't thank you enough. Now the only thing left to do is to tell my counselor :)
I haven’t been diagnosed but after seeing this I feel so sure that I have this. I always have to make things perfectly even, like if I’m walking through a walkway in a video game (or even IRL) and I slightly touch the wall on the right, I half to touch the same amount on the left wall.
this is 100% me. I've been struggling with this my entire life. I'm 37 now, and it seems like it has progressively gotten worse. the worst part is that touching any thing in any way has to feel "even" on mirroring body parts. It affects to the point where it makes it so hard to get anything typed out. would love to know how to get over these urges. When i can be relaxed it helps, but then when i really start thinking about it, it's worse.
Haha! Thanks for sharing. Yes, these things you explained are pretty close to what others feel as well when they struggle with it. I hope you can find some relief soon! 😊
I finally feel understood! Everything you said was so true and so helpful not only for me but also to show others how I really feel. up until this point I thought that it was just a little quirk that I had and I thought that eventually I would get over it, but now that I know what it really is it helps me feel better to know that I am not alone in this. Thank you so much for making this video!
ugh you just reminded me and now here I am shifting my body so it’s perfectly balanced 😂 also it’s good to know I’m not a total weirdo for needing symmetry
even my chewing is even, like when I chew 2 times in this side, I'd do it in the other or if the other cheek has two pieces of smth, the other cheek must have two pieces too.
Thank you for this very helpful video! I remember being a kid and having to even out the steps I took. For example, if I stepped on the crack in the sidewalk with my left foot, I had to step on a crack with my right foot next to feel balanced. If I cracked one part of my body, I had to do the same on the other side. It feels good to hear someone talk about this.
I always do something like this, if I do something in 1 side I have to do it on the other side as well, and I can’t sleep if my pillows are not in a certain order, things have to be straight and identical and it’s really hard to deal with, so Thank you for putting out these videos 😀
i’ve always thought that i has traits of ocd based off a need to keep my fingers apart and blinking, but discovering the idea of symmetry ocd has made so much sense. i’ve always needed to do things in fours, when i would skip stairs going down i would have to do four per set of stairs. if i kick the front of my foot while walking i have to do it on the other foot so the fronts of my shoes are scratched up. when i’m typing or playing video games i’ll mess up a bit because if i use a certain pressure with one finger i have to do it with the other. if i crack my fingers i have to do the other hand. it’s so crazy hearing someone finally talk about it, but also thinking about it has triggered all of them at once haha. i don’t think that it affects my day to day life enough to get treatment, it mostly just is annoying for a bit of the day but i’m so glad i can finally put a name to it!
Your lucky. It’s hard to move sometimes for me and hard to do my homework and even type. I have to do EVERYTHING even and its gotten harder to deal with over the past month. Like 75% of my time I’m just thinking “Okn now do it with my other foot. Wait no it didn’t feel right. Then I either count 1000 times or i keep doing it for 10-30 to even an hour. But that’s just a small symptom. Your lucky. It’s hard to move sometimes for me and hard to do my homework and even type. I have to do EVERYTHING even and its gotten harder to deal with over the past month. Like 75% of my time I’m just thinking “Okn now do it with my other foot. Wait no it didn’t feel right. Then I either count 1000 times or i keep doing it for 10-30 to even an hour. But that’s just a small symptom.
@@jaceisdabest519 okay dude, u know u can share ur own experiences without trying to one-up someone and invalidate their struggles. it’s not the suffering olympics.
@@mimmapierrot All I was just saying is that your lucky because my symptoms are worse and I wish I can get rid of this. I never said nor mentioned it was a competition.
I most certainly have known for years I have symmetry OCD. I've never been diagnosed. I don't tell people what I'm doing but most people can notice a bit of it and they just think I'm antsy or always touching my face. What they don't see is the symmetry touching any and everywhere on my body. When I touch one side of my body somewhere (whether purposely or not) I HAVE to touch the other side EXACTLY in the same spot with the same exact pressure. If I touch it harder then I have to touch the other side again but just as hard then I go to the 2nd side again and touch it with light pressure like the original touch on the first side. If I don't do it right, I have to go back and start again also remembering all previous touches and where I went wrong and correct it. By this time I've touched somewhere else and I have to work that out. This causes major stress for me. I also struggling with depression and anxiety. When I his happens at night while I'm trying to sleep this could on for several minutes until I feel like I'm finished with it and in a comfortable position. This occurs sometimes over several hours. Needless to say I don't get much sleep when that happens. When I was a little girl I remember that I had to spin around before I sit if I had happened to turn one way. I would have to make sure I spun a even amount before I sit. I grew out of this around adulthood but I've picked up the semmetry touching on my body more (I only did this a lil bit when I was young). I'm 49 and it's always getting worse. I organize things but that part is not that bad that it's socially awkward. So now to people I'm just figity. It's embarrassing. I don't date or go really anywhere besides grocery store and things like that. That reminds me, if I hit my leg on a shopping cart, I MUST touch the opposite side of the basket with the opposite leg in the exact same spot. So it gets more complicated when objects are involved. Also this happens sometimes when looking at things. When I get anxious and see something out of my periphial in one eye, I have to position the opposite eye (usually by turning around) to see the exact same thing out of the exact same periphial spot on the other eye. This could go on a lil while until I get it just right. I would be so embarrassed if anyone knew. Am I alone here in this exact issue? I've NEVER met anyone that even seemed like they're have this going on. ANYONE?
OMG THAT'S THE SAME THUNG THAT HAPPENS TO ME IT'S SOO ANNOYING SOMETIMES I ALMOST START HAVING A PANIC ATTACK BECAUSE MOST OF THE TIME I CAN'T FIX IT I ALSO HATE TEXTING BECAUSE I SOMEHOW END UP USING MY RIGHT THUMB MORE THEN MY LEFT ANF IT'S SETS EVERYTHING OFF SAME WITH SCROLLING
Yeah, you're not alone. Mine is highly based on temperature too. Example: the right side of my laptop gets warm, the left does not. My right hand is resting on the warm spot while typing so every once in a while I have to cross my hands and touch the warm and cold spot with my other hand. Or I'll accidentally exhale on my hand and feel the cool air hit it.... so I have to blow gently on my other hand to even it out. I'm 37... I know I've had this since I was a child. And as a child I knew it was wrong, even though I didn't have the word to describe it. I've only told one person about it and hidden it from everyone else. Mine is at a 3 out of 10 most of the time so I can usually cope but if I really think about it it can ramp up to a 7 or 8 really fast where every part of me is hyper aware of where the uneveness is. I have complete and total sympathy for those who have to live at a 9+ all the time. It must be exhausting.
I've always had a strong "preference" for literal symmetry in body sensations, but not in an intrusive thought way, only that it feels very uncomfortable if it's not. I tend to avoid doing things that make asymmetrical sensations such as wearing clothing that touch me asymetrically or waring backpacks on only one shoulder, or if I do I have to swap shoulder so the other gets equally tired. The worst is when I've injured myself on one side, because the unavailable asymmetry almost annoys me more than the pain. So while I don't try to hurt my good side to even out the pain, I do sometimes wish it hurt just as much on both sides.
The handwriting thing... that one and the thing out the body parts I think resonated with me so much. I can never tell if what I’m doing is something everyone does until someone is like “ iT DOesNt HAve to be PerFecT” or “why did you change so many times??” And the thing with the backpack straps they always have to be EVENLY balanced. I guess I should start paying more attention and discover how much I’m actually having compulsions or just being weird?
I’ve had symmetry OCD since childhood (I’m 34 now.) I was a really anxious kid and my symptoms were much more intense when I was young. In my adult life, symptoms seem to wax and wane. There are small compulsions that are just second nature - I don’t even notice doing them anymore. I do have a hard time letting go of daily compulsions because I associate skipping them with laziness and not caring about what happens (impending doom!) - tricky to deal with. Thanks for this video! It was really interesting.
Really related to what you mentioned about the backpack straps, I also use to take forever to put on Rollerblades trying to get the exact same tightness.
I have experienced other ocd type traits but the reasoning for all of them is this. Symmetry, order, the right way. So its not any fear that something bad will actually happen, unless i have something repressed or something.
Same it’s hard to walk and move for me. I can’t even write. But luckily it’s gone rn probably only for 10 minutes tho. I gotta hurry so I won’t be retyping for 5 hours.
Omg! Thank you so much, I've been looking for this information for soo long and didn't find the perfect word to described this strange behavior that I've been doing for soo many years since i was a kid. Now i know and am an adult :(
I always see this lines between objects or and when I walked or swing my arms or do certain things that happen to be precisely on that line, i have to do it again in the next line from the next objects along the way. And if or when i stepped on the line with my left foot, i have to do it again with the right foot on the next line. And the distance from the line too. If the left one is close to the line and the other is a bit far, then i have to do the far one in the other side to and then do the close one in the other side and so on :(
Symmetry isn't the piece of my OCD that I struggle with, per se, but I do have it with a couple things. The main one is eating: I have to eat in even numbers so that both sides of my mouth get equal play chewing. I prefer to eat in multiples of 4, but if that doesn't make sense, then it at least needs to be multiples of 2. I wouldn't say this interferes with my life, but it absolutely is a compulsion.
Jury is still out on my OCD but here's my $0.02 When I was very young, if I left clicked then I had to right click. If the mouse touched the left side of the monitor, I had to touch the right. If I played pinball, I had to flip both flippers at the same time. If my left hand was touched, my right hand would feel weird. I wore two socks because I couldn't stand the feeling of the floor being different beneath the other. I think that with time, the necessity or advantages of doing things asymmetrically forced me to overcome the urge. Being able to play piano or use the keyboard and mouse simultaneously wouldn't be possible if I had to balance every action and feeling still. I have maintained a sensitivity to visual symmetry, I love creating mirrored patterns and color coordination for instance. If I had symmetry OCD, I overcome the discomfort through exposure (mainly gaming) and maintained the satisfaction of orderliness.
There was a poster in my doctor’s office that drove me crazy. There were three people. The two on the left had there mouths closed, but the one on the right was smiling with teeth. I would try to avoid looking at it. I would turn my head to see it the opposite way if I accidentally looked at it. But then, I would have to turn my head the other way, and… I think you get it by now.
i have a feeling my symmetry ocd isn't as strong as other's symmetry ocd? I don't recognize myself in a lot of examples but i do feel the need of making things symmetric, especially the feeling in my body. Does that mean i have a stronger mind or something
Some of the things I did to cope up with writing OCD. I write a page listening to music, this helps me to move on to the next letter and word rather than clinging to the last word. I ask someone to read the content I wrote once and only once. Once they do it, I felt ppl will be able to read and there is no point overthinking about it then.
Whenever I try to declutter and organize, I torture myself trying to categorize and organize perfectly. I'm going through that right now. I have a cleaning business and I find myself stuck when I finishing up, I feel like I'm missing something. Part of it is having my dad's voice inside my head following me telling me I missed something, what he used to do when I was a kid
I used to live in a house with different floor material in different rooms (new hardwood, old hardwood, tile, and carpet) walking around the house I would make sure that my right foot always stepped on to the new material first. The number of stairs was uneven so I had to count the top of the staircase before it went down as a step so that it would be even. When stepping on tiles in the kitchen I always made sure to not step on any grout or incomplete tiles. I also have Sharpie highlighters in the colors of the rainbow. I have to arrange them in order with the caps properly placed at the end of the day. I'm not sure if I have OCD but I'm hoping that I get a diagnosis at some point :)
thank you for this. i dealt with this a majority of my life not knowing what it was. every time i tried explaining it to someone to see if they also do the same, they think im being weird. im barely realizing that this is what i have. i remember in kindergarten, my dad got mad at me bc my hand writing wasn’t neat and straight. it gave me a lot of anxiety so i believe that’s when it first started happening. my dad isn’t big on mental health but i do believe he has ocd. im almost an adult now and still deal with it. everything has to be even or else i feel extremely uncomfortable.
one of the scariest moments i had with symmetry OCD was a few weeks ago. i was at my part time job and accidentally touched my palm against a hot stove. it hurt so badly, but regardless i couldn’t shake the urge to go palm down with the other hand on the stove. thankfully i just walked as far away as i could from the stove and tried to focus on giving my hand sometime different to touch, but i was dangerously close to hurting myself even more for realistically no reason
almost failed chemistry sophomore year of high school because I couldn’t keep up with all the notes and having my handwriting perfect. I hold my pencil messed up and have a lump on my middle finger from it. I also used to have to take my tests starting from the last question so I would be able to finish the whole test, thinking this made me quicker and had time to get tripped up on OCD behaviors. It’s really wild looking back at how bad it was when I was younger and how I managed it. Everything you’ve mentioned in this video is exactly how I feel. For a long time this portion of my OCD felt like my personality. It’s hard to differentiate even now honestly. I’m a particular person and I know it stems from my horrible OCD as a child. Holy shit I’m typing this and you just started on the typing and school related things, and yes I had so much of it related to school. I’m much better now and your videos are going to help me explain to my family about this. (and the “just right” video) Thank you.
When someone is talking, I have to count the syllables, and if it doesnt end on right, then I have to say it over and add another word, and if that word is two syllables, I have to add another word, and then I will add a period, which is three syllables throwing the whole thing off, so I have to redo it, or if I flex one arm, I have to flex the other no matter what, and EVERYTHING HAS TO END ON RIGHT, if anything ends on left then it is just... idk I just cant yknow what I mean?
I used to do this, I dont know if I still do it but I can remember, if I were to describe, it was satisfyingly annoying. I would tap my left hand on my left thigh on 1st syllable, then right hand on right thigh on 2nd syllable, so on so forth...
I'm an architect and i use a software called autocad (it's a software to make blue prints and lines .....etc) So i have to make sure that is every line is connected with the other even if i zoomed like billion times and it even affects my due dates
I'm 15 and I think I've had symmetry OCD since I was about 6 or 7. I think it was a bit worse back then but I'm not sure. I always used to walk in certain blocks/tiles/planks when I was walking (any sort of clear visual demarcation or pattern on the floor). I do that at a much lesser frequency now so it doesn't really bother me anymore. I've also always made certain movements or voluntary jerks since I was a kid, and I still do that quite a lot. I think it was worse when I was a kid because I remember quite a lot of sleepless nights just trying to lie down in a comfortable position, but it always feeling off or like something's missing. I recently just figured out that it was symmetry OCD and felt so relieved that I'd finally found something perfectly describing my behaviours. The problem really is just that I'm uncomfortable in telling my parents about it, specifically my dad. He started noticing the jerks and twitches more and more during Covid- 19, and now just resorts to scolding me to make it stop. I think he wants to associate the twitching or jerking movements I make with a negative emotion, but all it really does is make me feel more anxious about it. I don't know what to do, and I feel kind of silly writing this because it doesn't really interfere with my life as much as I've seen OCD affecting people, but it sure is really annoying.
I think I have this, I’ve had it since I was a kid because I always had to chew left right left right. Left always had to get the last and the best bite because I’m left handed so it just made sense to me. I told my mom about this and she says she just chews normal. I would also feel uneven a lot so I would imagine a knife cutting one side of the car for example if that’s what I was sitting in. I ignored these as normal behaviors but I’m 13 and because puberty hit OCD struck hard and it’s really painful to live with, specifically my pure o. It’s so hard to make it through a day now, this just makes it worse.
When im walking with my family sometimes if i walk on one leg more i have to stay in one leg with my other leg and my family is just like "hey, u comin?" and i told my parents about this and they just say everyone has it...but does everyone have to make everything equal!?
May be uncommon but for me it's constantly adjusting my laptop a certain way to make it symmetric to me, and the more I stare at it's position the more anxious I get and keep shifting it left and right, and the cycle repeats. It just never feels completely symmetric and makes me really frustrated
My friends used to tease me bc I try to step on a line in the pavement with my foot when I've stepped on a line with the other one. They'd also deliberately put their foot on a line to get a rise out of me. I have actually yelled at many a person for doing that. It's stressful.
After a looong time spent in ocd, I forget even after being aware of the disorder lately, that the way I think I should do things or things should be done isn’t a “universal standard” but rather a deception created by my own mind: for example, I only have to look over there whilst talking or eating, I cannot look towards right in ANY CASE or something bad will happen, or it will be considered extremely rude to others etc. and I realised that it was NOT considered rude by anybody and it doesn’t matter to anyone where I look… I live by all these rules and I don’t know how to break free this illusion and even notice it as I’m doing it so much.
Lol😂 I draw imaginary lines on celling,while laying on bed. Even in classroom,I imagine straight and parallel lines on wall ,on board. I keep book in table and I make sure if it has a parallel distance.. I check my handwriting again and again.
I have symmetry OCD and other types as well. I have been struggling with organizing and cleaning my home. I get baffled and befuddled so much because I can't do things "perfectly" that I just abandon whatever I am trying to accomplish. It is very time consuming and at times paralyzing when I attempt to try again. Oddly enough I've been called very organized by others by my ability to do things outside the home. Thank you for posting this video. Very helpful.
It's hard to explain to people how serious that can be for someone, especially if it's mostly touch related. I've literally broken skin from scratching so much to even out a sensation, I've broken down crying from slapping/hitting/scratching both sides of my arms/legs/head because nothing is making "that feeling" go away. All it takes is a hand on the shoulder, finger tap on the arm, light brush of the leg from sitting next to someone, scratching an itch, getting water on your hand, hitting your elbow on the wall, hip against the table, shin on a buggy, stubbed toe on a chair, nasty scrape from falling down, bump on the head from the car door... No matter how bad, you have to make the exact same sensation with the exact amount of pressure/force on the exact spot on the other side. If doing that back and forth doesn't work, I start gently hitting to over power the sensation with something new. If that doesn't work, I start scratching. My brother thinks I'm a hypochondriac and my mom looked at me like I was crazy and ignored that it ever came up until she forgot again. I don't talk about it anymore.
I posted the following comment before I saw your comment: I most certainly have known for years I have symmetry OCD. I've never been diagnosed. I don't tell people what I'm doing but most people can notice a bit of it and they just think I'm antsy or always touching my face. What they don't see is the symmetry touching any and everywhere on my body. When I touch one side of my body somewhere (whether purposely or not) I HAVE to touch the other side EXACTLY in the same spot with the same exact pressure. If I touch it harder then I have to touch the other side again but just as hard then I go to the 2nd side again and touch it with light pressure like the original touch on the first side. If I don't do it right, I have to go back and start again also remembering all previous touches and where I went wrong and correct it. By this time I've touched somewhere else and I have to work that out. This causes major stress for me. I also struggling with depression and anxiety. When I his happens at night while I'm trying to sleep this could on for several minutes until I feel like I'm finished with it and in a comfortable position. This occurs sometimes over several hours. Needless to say I don't get much sleep when that happens. When I was a little girl I remember that I had to spin around before I sit if I had happened to turn one way. I would have to make sure I spun a even amount before I sit. I grew out of this around adulthood but I've picked up the semmetry touching on my body more (I only did this a lil bit when I was young). I'm 49 and it's always getting worse. I organize things but that part is not that bad that it's socially awkward. So now to people I'm just figity. It's embarrassing. I don't date or go really anywhere besides grocery store and things like that. That reminds me, if I hit my leg on a shopping cart, I MUST touch the opposite side of the basket with the opposite leg in the exact same spot. So it gets more complicated when objects are involved. Also this happens sometimes when looking at things. When I get anxious and see something out of my periphial in one eye, I have to position the opposite eye (usually by turning around) to see the exact same thing out of the exact same periphial spot on the other eye. This could go on a lil while until I get it just right. I would be so embarrassed if anyone knew. Am I alone here in this exact issue? I've NEVER met anyone that even seemed like they're have this going on.
About 2 yrs ago I was diagnosed with it and the doctor s said it was one of the most severe cases they've ever encountered my teacher s know about it and I'm placed in the middle of the classroom so all the noise goes into both ears. Also ALL the thing ppl r saying in the comments happen to me. Even stepping on the line separating tiles i have to do it again. My friends used to tease me about it but now they just respect it Landon I feel u
4:13 you see that arm movement you did right there? If you knew your audience, you should have also done the same movement but reversed starting with your left arm and then right to balance out that movement. Like, when I watch someone spin 360 degrees to clockwise, they MUST turn 360 degrees anti-clockwise twice and then 360 degrees clockwise once to balance that out. I also usually tap with my fingers, and need to balance them out, for example. 123456 is frustrating, and 654321 must be done twice and then the original sequence once again to balance it out (I’m only using numbers as analogy to the actual thing; order of finger-tapping). My closest friend is convinced that I suffer from OCD, but I’m not. Because these things tend to bother me for no more than a minute and then I just forget about them, however if I’m reminded then yes it does become very frustrating and I’d have to tense my muscles and cringe a lot to resist the urge. It can be especially frustrating in social situations where I get very weird looks for exiting through the same door I entered from. But again, I don’t suffer from OCD because it doesn’t keep bothering me, it only lasts a bit... however when I was younger, about 10 years old, I used to wash my hands over 50 times a day, hated touching people or even my legs, stopped using non-disposable cutlery, started taking 60-minute+ showers, etc... I definitely had (a different type of) OCD back then... Don’t know why I just shared all this, just started typing out my thoughts lol.
I'm hypermobile, so my body is essentially never even, and I'm always in some degree of pain. I've been obsessed with straightening out my body, and trying to move it "right", for quite a while, and I didn't think it was OCD because it's not the "same" obsession day to day, and it absolutely never feels "complete." I still don't know if it's OCD exactly, but it's close enough that looking into it has really opened my eyes, and a new route in my therapy.
I have OCD. I have symmetry OCD. Can OCD be characterized as an extreme form of perfectionism where anything can lead to anxiety, fear, and distress? Could you be my friend? 🤗😘❤️Your charm is irresistible!!😁 You look energetic.💪 Now, the world can be a nasty crazy place out there, We cannot control what happens but we can use what happens. We have so much reserves of love and support inside us, if we can just remember that in our mind and move on.
I think I have symmetry OCD, even as a kid, if I stepped on the crack with my left foor I would have to do it with my right with the exact am out of pressure. Now if I hurt myself on my left leg, I'll do it on my right. Its really hard
I have Symmetry OCD. Everything I touch I have to touch with not one but both of my hands and I always start off with my left foot and walk in counts of four. Let’s say there’s 2 lines 6 feet apart. I have to walk there in 4 or 8 steps. I absolutely hate this and I wish I wasn’t so OCD. I can’t step on a crack and I can’t step over a crack unless I’ve gone an even number of steps. I hate odd numbers or starting off with my right foot. OCD comes if various different forms and everybody is different. OCD isn’t just about having everything perfect, I hate having it but it’s so hard to stop and Idk if I ever will.
I suffered through many types of OCD since I was 6. I was never actual told by a doctor that I had OCD. But I know I have OCD. OCD is really hard for me, i have to make sure my house door is closed 3 times because I worry that my dog will get stolen. I have to wash my hands 2 times, and if my color pencils aren’t in rainbow order, I will freak. Everything that I do for my ocd, helps me with my anxiety, when I leave my house, I still worry about my dog getting stolen even though I checked 3 times if the door is closed. It’s a very stressful time with OCD, i don’t like stepping on sidewalk cracks, if I step on a crack, I will have to go back to the last square to make sure I don’t step on the crack again. I repeat doing things just to keep my family safe, I worry when my mom goes out for a long time and I think that she got in a car crash. Ty for telling me this, I definitely do have much OCD!
I don’t need everything to be symmetrical. It’s certain things. For example if I’m on the computer and my mouse has been on the right side for too long I have to move it to the left, then right, then circle three time and go up. It’s anything like that. My foot has to be exactly in the middle. If my toes hang off more than my foot FORGET IT I have to shake my hand in the air if I notice something unsymmetrical. But I also have adhd so I’m constantly living in a chaotic pigsty that is so hard to live with.
There was this one time I was running in a line with my friends and I accidentally touched my friends back and I know obviously I can't touch her again with my other hand. So I pinched my other hand to make it even. I'm trying to convince my mom to let me go to the doctors and see if I have it but I don't think she will rn. I could, list a lot more things I do but it would be too long
Yeah this is driving m e crazy. It can take me hours just to finish one homework cuz I just keep erasing everything. And taking a timed test is a struggle, trust me.
This gave me a rush of relief knowing I’m not alone. I searched up this video after buying a wooden bicycle fender in which the handmade design wasn’t symmetrical (it’s an item that is very special to me), I felt the need to sand it down or change it in some way. I knew that if I did that than I’d ruin it, and I’d never forgive myself. It’s like an itch that can’t be scratched and it’s driving me ludicrous. It keeps me up at night and I ponder about it throughout the day. What do I do? I need help.
I do not know if I even have this, but sometimes when I’m on a computer with a touchpad, like a chromebook, I have to put one nail/finger around the square of the little outline, I feel a weird feeling and then do it again until the feeling goes away. Then I keep doing it but it keeps going a little more, and then I stop trying not to do it then going onto a thought then to another thought. Then it’ll soon go away. Sometimes I wanna touch something on the TV when watching a movie or show and put my fingers around it and outline it. - Writing this comment on the white section with the words I keep putting my finger to one end to the other. Even if I have a name tag on my desk or something I will write it but need to rewrite it and my friend next to me watches me do it and they’re looking at me weirdly. No one noticed it when I was doing it, but I sometimes will miss at least just a minute or two of class.
Most of the time when I see or feel something that feels off its symmetry I flex my ears and tilt my head till it feels right. Or if it's a small pressure on one side of my body I'll do it to the other side.
I'm suffering with everything you said here.😢 Plus and additional thing that I'm doing my entire life is i look at the top right corner of my phone's screen then i want to look at the bottom left corner and to balance that like i need to do it vice versa. I'm done with this shit and i think i was born with this. I remember walking through tile floor by keeping the symmetry in each steps as a kid. When i look left i look right too. When i scratch my left arm i scratch my right arm as well. I'm trying to avoid it whenever i remember but still it doesn't go away from me.
I’m relabeling storage totes.. I’ve gone through no less than 25 30 different labels writing rewriting changing color and then stopping come back later do it again. I still haven’t labeled a tote. My wife bought fancy blinds that are big and flip both directions and you can flip the top or bottom half….the time and stress I spend straightening them is maddening. I’d rather have no blinds now 😂🤦♂️
I draw imaginary lines with my feet, hands, and steps. For example if I’m watching tik tok and my hand happens to move I picture an imaginary line and I keep drawing it, or if my foot moves and draws an imaginary line. But if I do it twice that cancels out the first one so I do it again, and cancel that one to cancel it out. Then I don’t it a third time because I have to do it three times and cancel it out. If I do it a fourth time, I have to do it again subtract one and make it three again. And it’s ongoing, and I can’t concentrate on the video or thing. I want to know I’m not alone because it makes me feel panicky 😱.
I have returned brand new clothing because the stitching doesnt line up, I just bought a reall nice shirt expensive shirt, wore it for the day, loved it and cut the tags off, only to later realize the two chest pockets dont line up correctly, part of me never wants to wear it again, and the other part of me wants to wear it all the time to force myself to stop caring about it, seems like i always eventually do get over it, but its always something it seems.
I do always feel responsible for doing something wrong that will affect someone else and I never knew when I would get in trouble for something I didn't know I was doing wrong.
Not diagnosed but whenever i play a game with the wasd keys, I always feel the need to touch a key I didn't touch while moving to make it equal, and whenever I accidentaly touch something like a table with my right hand, I gotta do the same thing but with my left hand. Soooooo
Wow your lucky. It’s hard for me to move sometimes. I even have a routine to breathe half the time and blink 4 times before breathing. It’s even hard to type. Wow your lucky. It’s hard for me to move sometimes. I even have a routine to breathe half the time and blink 4 times before breathing. It’s even hard to type.
my family and friends make fun of me bc i have this issue with my parking and i refuse to be closer to one line more than the other and it will cause me to to keep pulling in to fix my parking until it’s completely even space on both sides. even thought i’m perfectly fine within the lines but it bothers me if it’s not in even on both sides. it’s becoming a pain. and i haven’t met anyone with this same problem.
I have OCD as I’ve gotten older it’s manifested into lots of types of OCD when anyone touches my lego and Disney figures I get so stressed that my hands start shaking and I always have to rearrange the figures and lego.
I thought I found something about me but unfortunately did not. Is there a name for being obsessed with word association and parallels to what people are saying? An easy example is music, it someone says to me "it's been.." I basically cut them off and say ONE WEEK SINCE YOU LOOKED AT ME or today I was told to get meet 5 guys at work and I'm to the point where I feel like saying something about cheese burgers is obligatory... Or I will be talking to my wife and I'll stop to think by just naturally saying "and iiiii..." But I always lose my train of thought and hold the "iiiiiiiiiiiiii will alwaaays love youuuuu" Why am I like this? It's literally my identity
I’ll admit if I don’t like the way I started off writing I will throw the paper in the trash but it depends on what I’m writing. I try to type things cuz it’s more perfect and I can concentrate better reading things that’s typed. And I know a guy who couldn’t leave the house because if he walked incorrectly he had to go back several steps to make it right and he always messed up so he had to take 2 steps back. So essentially he could never make it anywhere and he said it’s from sexual abuse trauma. Also I struggled with cleaning because certain things I was unable to touch. I’ve been touching things now because I got tired of things not getting done. But I can’t use the guest bathroom anymore as the toilet overflowed with poop so it’s all cleaned up but I know what happened in there so I can’t walk near there anymore I will eventually get over it but it’s too stressful for me to deal with right now. There’s kind of a lot of other irrational things I do that prevent me from functioning so wow. I also have a roach phobia and constantly call the exterminator if I see one. And I constantly think what if I see one? Like it’s kind of stressful but I’m training myself to stop that.
I absolutely hate going to the kitchen, as I feel compelled to arrange and align certain things such as the items in the cupboard, and ugh... the kitchen tap, the handle HAS to be aligned before I can leave the kitchen or I get anxious. I spend multiple minutes just staring at the tap everytime to make sure it's aligned.
I thought that I just had sensory processing disorder but I always felt like it had to also be paired with something else b/c half of my behaviors and thoughts didn't fall in that category. Before watching this I wasn't aware there were types of OCD and I thought OCD was just having an obsessive behavior for one thing only, like hand-washing or flicking on/off light switches x amount of times...etc. I didn't realize that my tendencies weren't normal until I started dating my partner and they would see me do things/I'd share thoughts and they'd just go "why???" and that whole making it feel "right" or "even" thing--that's the phrase I've always used because it describes the feeling perfectly. I went to an interview recently and caught myself realigning a stack of papers by a printer that didn't belong to me, right in front of the interviewer! lol
Sometimes I’ll just have complete breakdowns because of how my teeth feel in my mouth, because I focus on that fact that they are not perfectly straight in my mouth, and my teeth aren’t even that bad
So, I watch this video bcs I've been wondering. It all started when my coworkers noticed that I have some weird habits. This afternoon, I even found myself unable to use my computer for a couple of minutes bcs the usability of my fingers felt unequal. And then I rubbed and tapped my fingers to the table until it feels just right and take sometimes to tell myself that I can touch the keyboard and mouse again to turn the computer off (thankfully this happened right after I finished my task). But the thing is, it doesn't always get that bad and I don't get compulsive for everything like how I don't have the tidiest room, I only get compulsive for some certain things. So I assume I just have some compulsive habits for personal preferences
Mine is more physical- like ME- I don’t know if I have OCD, and I’m not trying to self diagnose, but I sometimes get random twinges to, for example, squeeze my left arm, but then if I squeeze my left arm, I have to squeeze my right arm exactly the same. If I go over on pressure or it’s not exactly the same position, I have to go back to my left arm and make it match what I did to my right. It’s just back and forth. Or if I tap my thumb on the edge of my phone case, I have to tap my other thumb in the same place on my phone case. It’s so irritating because I’ve told my mom and she just doesnt care lol. It really just messes with my sometimes and I get bad anxiety and all I can think about it evening it out (like if I pop my right index finger but my left won’t pop, I can’t stop trying to pop my left). Idk what to do about it though lol! It’s just kinda became part of my everyday life. And oh my gosh! The keyboard thing!!! It bothers me SO. MUCH. !! Like I said- I don’t know how to fix it, but yeah! That’s my little rant lol
Do you struggle with Symmetry OCD? How long did it take to speak out about it?
I suffer from a different type, but it took me just a few months to open up.
@@StormyXV Thank you for sharing! It takes power away from the OCD to talk about it and share your experiences.
I have several parts of symmetry OCD combined with Tourettic OCD, and the "pressure" that I need to feel in certain parts of my body need to be evened out, even if it's pain. Any physical tics, like neck rolling or muscle tightening or eye rolling or foot tapping, can't be single-sided. It's honestly exhausting.
I'm 43 and never sought treatment until recently, and feel, to a large degree, that it might be too late to reverse the symptoms of this disorder completely, but I'm going to try.
Ys Iam having....Suggestions pls...Exposure is Working too
thank you so much for making this video! i have had ocd my whole life but just noticed a few months ago. i didn't know other people do these things, acted the same way, and has the same problems that i do.
For so long I thought I didn’t have OCD because I was unaware that there’s actually many types of OCD. Now, everything fits. Thanks for the video.
I'm glad it was able to help you! I wish you the best! 😃
Same I’m actually emotional rn
@@cheerio4000 oh my god same I think I have symmetry OCD and I feel like crying, it’s so overwhelming
@@Eternally_Moon honestly man idk how to deal with it
If I move my fingers or hands a certain way then I have to do it with the other hand with the same amount of pressure
Thanks for sharing your experiences. It's helpful for the community to see others experiences! 😃
lxndon same omg
Same. It bothers me so much. I also have to flex the same amount of times on each time
Same but I’m too scared to tell my parents, because they either won’t believe me or they won’t put any effort to fix it
Me too and it sucks..
I cried so hard to this. This is exactly how i've felt since i was 7 years old. Constantly evening out EVERYTHING, especially what my own body does.
When he swiped his shoulders right to left but doesn’t do it left to right- *triggered-*
Whoopsy! 🤪
OCD and Anxiety Oop
Kokichi Oma lmao
I'ms so glad someone else noticed that, I had to stop looking at the video and just listen.
and then he doesn't do it again but this time starting with left to right and ending with right to left-
So when I was younger I kept doing this thing where let’s say my pinky touches my index finger. I have to mirror the same exact feeling on my other hand. Or if I step on a crack, I’d match it with the other foot.
Does this fall under this sort of ocd? I broke out of the habit eventually by forcing myself not to care. It was oddly difficult, but I did it.
Adish i forget how or when it stopped. i wanna say like... just as 9th grade started? i just remember if i messed up and made the perfect symmetrical sensation-then any mistakes after that were voided or didn’t matter. once i started doing that, it gradually eased off. well, i did start smoking weed and that also boosted the process. i don’t smoke anymore and i rarely get the sensation to make sensation symmetrical. i only do it like once if i’m bored.
one time in like the 2nd grade, i felt like i was writing w/ my right hand too much and tried using my left. that was the worst feeling ever. ended up breaking two pencils cuz i couldn’t write w/ my left the same lol. but i really hope you break from it. it’s so exhausting after a while.
Adish if there’s any advice or ways i could help just ask! i can try recalling what i did to get rid of it.
If my left hand itches i must itch the other hand too, also if i flex a muscle i need to flex the other one too
@@meepmoopmap That happens to me as well :(
@@bravesoulmotivation8124 same thing happened to me but with words. I used to count how many letters I spoke and would count half on one hand and the other half on the other. It carried in for a year and tried to stop it I did. But it still happens sometimes
For years of my life I felt like something was just wrong with me or that I was just being stupid when I would have to do what I didn’t know were compulsions. Thank you so much for this video because I’ve always suspected that it was OCD but I never knew for sure since I didn’t know that there were multiple types of OCD. It gets to the point sometimes where I can’t even go to sleep because my pillows aren’t arranged just right, or if there is something that isn’t right with how my desk is then I have to make it perfect. Not only this but I can’t even touch one part of my body without having to do the same to the other side the exact same way until I get it even. It gets to the point with walking over cracks or thresholds that I spend 5 minutes at the least just walking over it over and over with each foot until I get it to feel like it’s even. When I go on walks if I step over a crack with my left foot I do it to the right the next time and if I step over with the left “too many times” I have to do it to the right foot the same amount of times. Or with touching objects I’ll have to do it the same way in both sides. Once again thank you for this video, because it really made me feel validated :)
Thanks for explaining this! I'm glad you've found what you're experiencing! I wish you the best!
Hi Amelia, wow you described exactly what I have to a T and I've never met anyone with the same kind of thing.
This is exactly what I have, I always thought I was alone. I honestly cant stop it and it keep me up at night because I have to touch this and then this and so on.
@Michael Carney I dont want to take meds for that ever...
This made me tear up. I've never heard such an accurate description. This is how I feel, and I want to see a doctor.
Edit: It’s been 8 months since I posted this comment, and I’ve been diagnosed with OCD, I am going through ERP, and have prescription meds. Trust yourself!
i teared up too
It’s kinda weird because when I think about it more, my symmetry OCD gets worse? It also effects me when I’m playing games (example: Minecraft), even If I can’t see my feet (because the body is invisible in first person POV), I can “feel” where the legs are and if I step on a certain type of block with one side of my body, I MUST step on it with the other side. :/ it makes playing games difficult
I've heard of this before! We typically mess up how the game character moves on purpose for an exposure. 🤪
Omg finally someone who understands! I thought I was the only one
Oh wow, I know that exact feeling. The Minecraft analogy probably works the best for me because all the blocks are so perfectly square so there's a higher chance for things to feel "off".
Yup if I think about it more everything bothers me like right now I can’t STAND that I’m typing on my phone and my right thumb is hitting more keys than my left I have to wave over each side then circle it and go up
I’ve suspected that I have OCD for a while, but I’m too afraid to say anything because I know people will just tell me that I’m worrying to much. I know my mum will brush it off saying “you don’t have OCD, there’s no need to worry” because she thinks I’m just paranoid that I have it. But I often struggle with having to make things feel just right, whether it be the amount of pressure on one leg and having to do the same on the other, or if I’m typing and I feel like I’ve tapped to many times with one finger so I need to tap more on the other, or if I feel the need to rearrange my books sitting on my desk so that they all line up on top of each other.
I just don’t want to say anything or go to a doctor because it’s not as severe as others and it doesn’t make me late or affect my life a lot. It’s just small compilations I feel like I need to do because they give my a bit of distress. One of my main ones is tapping once on my thumb and pinky, then twice on my ring and pointer finger, then three times on my middle finger. It’s almost as if I’m making a pyramid-like shape on with my fingers and if it isn’t the right amount of taps or pressure on each finger I’ll have to do it again.
I can’t believe I’m getting this validation. For my whole life I’ve had ocd and it has full control over my life. I don’t care about the way things look I care about how they FEEL. If something or someone touches one side of my body (stepping on a line, etc.) I HAVE to make it feel the same on the other side. A lot of the time I have to overcompensate on the other side and sometimes hit/scratch/scrub myself till I have bruises or lesions. My parents learned 10 years ago that they can never touch me or I’ll hurt myself and it honestly breaks my heart. I’ve googled endlessly and have never seen anyone talk about this especially aside from magical thinking which I don’t have. Thank you for this video. So relieving to see people in the comments have similar problems.
Omg I draw imaginary lines even when I’m laying in bed if my hand moves I have to follow that exact line with my hand five times. The line has to face Northwest. I literally do this all day. I’m so tired of it.
I was sobbing while watching this video. For the longest time(my whole life)I thought I was weird. When watching this(almost)all the missing puzzle pieces came together.
Even writing this right now is a struggle in order for my hands to feel equal on both sides. The funny thing is, I have been squirming, touching, and making weird body movements when watching this video, I can't thank you enough.
Now the only thing left to do is to tell my counselor :)
I've never related to a comment section or yt video more its scary.
I haven’t been diagnosed but after seeing this I feel so sure that I have this. I always have to make things perfectly even, like if I’m walking through a walkway in a video game (or even IRL) and I slightly touch the wall on the right, I half to touch the same amount on the left wall.
this is 100% me. I've been struggling with this my entire life. I'm 37 now, and it seems like it has progressively gotten worse. the worst part is that touching any thing in any way has to feel "even" on mirroring body parts. It affects to the point where it makes it so hard to get anything typed out. would love to know how to get over these urges. When i can be relaxed it helps, but then when i really start thinking about it, it's worse.
Even my dishes that need washed, they are arranged perfectly... Why!!? I don't even know. It just feels better when things are perfectly aligned.
Oh wow, never mind. The you just explained it as I commented it lol. Word for word!!! Omg this is crazy.
Haha! Thanks for sharing. Yes, these things you explained are pretty close to what others feel as well when they struggle with it. I hope you can find some relief soon! 😊
I finally feel understood! Everything you said was so true and so helpful not only for me but also to show others how I really feel. up until this point I thought that it was just a little quirk that I had and I thought that eventually I would get over it, but now that I know what it really is it helps me feel better to know that I am not alone in this. Thank you so much for making this video!
ugh you just reminded me and now here I am shifting my body so it’s perfectly balanced 😂 also it’s good to know I’m not a total weirdo for needing symmetry
even my chewing is even, like when I chew 2 times in this side, I'd do it in the other or if the other cheek has two pieces of smth, the other cheek must have two pieces too.
Same
Mine gets so bad to the point where I can’t move :/
Same
THIS MAKES ME FEEL SO SEEN THANK YOU FOR PHRASHING EVERYTHING SO WELL!!!
Thank you for this very helpful video! I remember being a kid and having to even out the steps I took. For example, if I stepped on the crack in the sidewalk with my left foot, I had to step on a crack with my right foot next to feel balanced. If I cracked one part of my body, I had to do the same on the other side. It feels good to hear someone talk about this.
I always do something like this, if I do something in 1 side I have to do it on the other side as well, and I can’t sleep if my pillows are not in a certain order, things have to be straight and identical and it’s really hard to deal with, so Thank you for putting out these videos 😀
i’ve always thought that i has traits of ocd based off a need to keep my fingers apart and blinking, but discovering the idea of symmetry ocd has made so much sense. i’ve always needed to do things in fours, when i would skip stairs going down i would have to do four per set of stairs. if i kick the front of my foot while walking i have to do it on the other foot so the fronts of my shoes are scratched up. when i’m typing or playing video games i’ll mess up a bit because if i use a certain pressure with one finger i have to do it with the other. if i crack my fingers i have to do the other hand. it’s so crazy hearing someone finally talk about it, but also thinking about it has triggered all of them at once haha. i don’t think that it affects my day to day life enough to get treatment, it mostly just is annoying for a bit of the day but i’m so glad i can finally put a name to it!
It made so much sense for me too!
Your lucky. It’s hard to move sometimes for me and hard to do my homework and even type. I have to do EVERYTHING even and its gotten harder to deal with over the past month. Like 75% of my time I’m just thinking “Okn now do it with my other foot. Wait no it didn’t feel right. Then I either count 1000 times or i keep doing it for 10-30 to even an hour. But that’s just a small symptom.
Your lucky. It’s hard to move sometimes for me and hard to do my homework and even type. I have to do EVERYTHING even and its gotten harder to deal with over the past month. Like 75% of my time I’m just thinking “Okn now do it with my other foot. Wait no it didn’t feel right. Then I either count 1000 times or i keep doing it for 10-30 to even an hour. But that’s just a small symptom.
And most of the time my compulsions don’t even work. And most of the time my compulsions don’t even work.
@@jaceisdabest519 okay dude, u know u can share ur own experiences without trying to one-up someone and invalidate their struggles. it’s not the suffering olympics.
@@mimmapierrot All I was just saying is that your lucky because my symptoms are worse and I wish I can get rid of this. I never said nor mentioned it was a competition.
I most certainly have known for years I have symmetry OCD. I've never been diagnosed. I don't tell people what I'm doing but most people can notice a bit of it and they just think I'm antsy or always touching my face. What they don't see is the symmetry touching any and everywhere on my body. When I touch one side of my body somewhere (whether purposely or not) I HAVE to touch the other side EXACTLY in the same spot with the same exact pressure. If I touch it harder then I have to touch the other side again but just as hard then I go to the 2nd side again and touch it with light pressure like the original touch on the first side. If I don't do it right, I have to go back and start again also remembering all previous touches and where I went wrong and correct it. By this time I've touched somewhere else and I have to work that out. This causes major stress for me. I also struggling with depression and anxiety. When I his happens at night while I'm trying to sleep this could on for several minutes until I feel like I'm finished with it and in a comfortable position. This occurs sometimes over several hours. Needless to say I don't get much sleep when that happens. When I was a little girl I remember that I had to spin around before I sit if I had happened to turn one way. I would have to make sure I spun a even amount before I sit. I grew out of this around adulthood but I've picked up the semmetry touching on my body more (I only did this a lil bit when I was young). I'm 49 and it's always getting worse. I organize things but that part is not that bad that it's socially awkward. So now to people I'm just figity. It's embarrassing. I don't date or go really anywhere besides grocery store and things like that. That reminds me, if I hit my leg on a shopping cart, I MUST touch the opposite side of the basket with the opposite leg in the exact same spot. So it gets more complicated when objects are involved. Also this happens sometimes when looking at things. When I get anxious and see something out of my periphial in one eye, I have to position the opposite eye (usually by turning around) to see the exact same thing out of the exact same periphial spot on the other eye. This could go on a lil while until I get it just right. I would be so embarrassed if anyone knew. Am I alone here in this exact issue? I've NEVER met anyone that even seemed like they're have this going on.
ANYONE?
you describe EXACTLY the same habits that I have, so youre not alone with it ✌🏼
i have this EXACT same thing ur not alone!
OMG THAT'S THE SAME THUNG THAT HAPPENS TO ME IT'S SOO ANNOYING SOMETIMES I ALMOST START HAVING A PANIC ATTACK BECAUSE MOST OF THE TIME I CAN'T FIX IT I ALSO HATE TEXTING BECAUSE I SOMEHOW END UP USING MY RIGHT THUMB MORE THEN MY LEFT ANF IT'S SETS EVERYTHING OFF SAME WITH SCROLLING
Yeah, you're not alone. Mine is highly based on temperature too. Example: the right side of my laptop gets warm, the left does not. My right hand is resting on the warm spot while typing so every once in a while I have to cross my hands and touch the warm and cold spot with my other hand. Or I'll accidentally exhale on my hand and feel the cool air hit it.... so I have to blow gently on my other hand to even it out. I'm 37... I know I've had this since I was a child. And as a child I knew it was wrong, even though I didn't have the word to describe it. I've only told one person about it and hidden it from everyone else. Mine is at a 3 out of 10 most of the time so I can usually cope but if I really think about it it can ramp up to a 7 or 8 really fast where every part of me is hyper aware of where the uneveness is. I have complete and total sympathy for those who have to live at a 9+ all the time. It must be exhausting.
Same
I've always had a strong "preference" for literal symmetry in body sensations, but not in an intrusive thought way, only that it feels very uncomfortable if it's not. I tend to avoid doing things that make asymmetrical sensations such as wearing clothing that touch me asymetrically or waring backpacks on only one shoulder, or if I do I have to swap shoulder so the other gets equally tired. The worst is when I've injured myself on one side, because the unavailable asymmetry almost annoys me more than the pain. So while I don't try to hurt my good side to even out the pain, I do sometimes wish it hurt just as much on both sides.
That sounds exactly like my problem!
The handwriting thing... that one and the thing out the body parts I think resonated with me so much. I can never tell if what I’m doing is something everyone does until someone is like “ iT DOesNt HAve to be PerFecT” or “why did you change so many times??” And the thing with the backpack straps they always have to be EVENLY balanced. I guess I should start paying more attention and discover how much I’m actually having compulsions or just being weird?
I’ve had symmetry OCD since childhood (I’m 34 now.) I was a really anxious kid and my symptoms were much more intense when I was young. In my adult life, symptoms seem to wax and wane. There are small compulsions that are just second nature - I don’t even notice doing them anymore. I do have a hard time letting go of daily compulsions because I associate skipping them with laziness and not caring about what happens (impending doom!) - tricky to deal with. Thanks for this video! It was really interesting.
I'm glad it's not as bad for you now. That's got to be so frustrating!
Really related to what you mentioned about the backpack straps, I also use to take forever to put on Rollerblades trying to get the exact same tightness.
I have experienced other ocd type traits but the reasoning for all of them is this. Symmetry, order, the right way. So its not any fear that something bad will actually happen, unless i have something repressed or something.
Couldn’t go 5 minutes without making sure everything in my room was symmetrical.
Same here
Same it’s hard to walk and move for me. I can’t even write. But luckily it’s gone rn probably only for 10 minutes tho. I gotta hurry so I won’t be retyping for 5 hours.
Omg! Thank you so much, I've been looking for this information for soo long and didn't find the perfect word to described this strange behavior that I've been doing for soo many years since i was a kid. Now i know and am an adult :(
I always see this lines between objects or and when I walked or swing my arms or do certain things that happen to be precisely on that line, i have to do it again in the next line from the next objects along the way.
And if or when i stepped on the line with my left foot, i have to do it again with the right foot on the next line. And the distance from the line too. If the left one is close to the line and the other is a bit far, then i have to do the far one in the other side to and then do the close one in the other side and so on :(
I'm really grateful for this content because I'd like to be able to support a friend of mine who has symmetry OCD
Thank you for these!!
Symmetry isn't the piece of my OCD that I struggle with, per se, but I do have it with a couple things. The main one is eating: I have to eat in even numbers so that both sides of my mouth get equal play chewing. I prefer to eat in multiples of 4, but if that doesn't make sense, then it at least needs to be multiples of 2.
I wouldn't say this interferes with my life, but it absolutely is a compulsion.
Jury is still out on my OCD but here's my $0.02
When I was very young, if I left clicked then I had to right click.
If the mouse touched the left side of the monitor, I had to touch the right.
If I played pinball, I had to flip both flippers at the same time.
If my left hand was touched, my right hand would feel weird.
I wore two socks because I couldn't stand the feeling of the floor being different beneath the other.
I think that with time, the necessity or advantages of doing things asymmetrically forced me to overcome the urge. Being able to play piano or use the keyboard and mouse simultaneously wouldn't be possible if I had to balance every action and feeling still. I have maintained a sensitivity to visual symmetry, I love creating mirrored patterns and color coordination for instance.
If I had symmetry OCD, I overcome the discomfort through exposure (mainly gaming) and maintained the satisfaction of orderliness.
There was a poster in my doctor’s office that drove me crazy. There were three people. The two on the left had there mouths closed, but the one on the right was smiling with teeth. I would try to avoid looking at it. I would turn my head to see it the opposite way if I accidentally looked at it. But then, I would have to turn my head the other way, and… I think you get it by now.
i have a feeling my symmetry ocd isn't as strong as other's symmetry ocd? I don't recognize myself in a lot of examples but i do feel the need of making things symmetric, especially the feeling in my body. Does that mean i have a stronger mind or something
Some of the things I did to cope up with writing OCD.
I write a page listening to music, this helps me to move on to the next letter and word rather than clinging to the last word.
I ask someone to read the content I wrote once and only once. Once they do it, I felt ppl will be able to read and there is no point overthinking about it then.
Whenever I try to declutter and organize, I torture myself trying to categorize and organize perfectly. I'm going through that right now. I have a cleaning business and I find myself stuck when I finishing up, I feel like I'm missing something. Part of it is having my dad's voice inside my head following me telling me I missed something, what he used to do when I was a kid
I used to live in a house with different floor material in different rooms (new hardwood, old hardwood, tile, and carpet) walking around the house I would make sure that my right foot always stepped on to the new material first. The number of stairs was uneven so I had to count the top of the staircase before it went down as a step so that it would be even. When stepping on tiles in the kitchen I always made sure to not step on any grout or incomplete tiles.
I also have Sharpie highlighters in the colors of the rainbow. I have to arrange them in order with the caps properly placed at the end of the day.
I'm not sure if I have OCD but I'm hoping that I get a diagnosis at some point :)
thank you for this. i dealt with this a majority of my life not knowing what it was. every time i tried explaining it to someone to see if they also do the same, they think im being weird. im barely realizing that this is what i have. i remember in kindergarten, my dad got mad at me bc my hand writing wasn’t neat and straight. it gave me a lot of anxiety so i believe that’s when it first started happening. my dad isn’t big on mental health but i do believe he has ocd. im almost an adult now and still deal with it. everything has to be even or else i feel extremely uncomfortable.
one of the scariest moments i had with symmetry OCD was a few weeks ago. i was at my part time job and accidentally touched my palm against a hot stove. it hurt so badly, but regardless i couldn’t shake the urge to go palm down with the other hand on the stove. thankfully i just walked as far away as i could from the stove and tried to focus on giving my hand sometime different to touch, but i was dangerously close to hurting myself even more for realistically no reason
if i spin around, i have to spin back again so it’s equal.
almost failed chemistry sophomore year of high school because I couldn’t keep up with all the notes and having my handwriting perfect. I hold my pencil messed up and have a lump on my middle finger from it. I also used to have to take my tests starting from the last question so I would be able to finish the whole test, thinking this made me quicker and had time to get tripped up on OCD behaviors. It’s really wild looking back at how bad it was when I was younger and how I managed it. Everything you’ve mentioned in this video is exactly how I feel. For a long time this portion of my OCD felt like my personality. It’s hard to differentiate even now honestly. I’m a particular person and I know it stems from my horrible OCD as a child. Holy shit I’m typing this and you just started on the typing and school related things, and yes I had so much of it related to school. I’m much better now and your videos are going to help me explain to my family about this. (and the “just right” video) Thank you.
When someone is talking, I have to count the syllables, and if it doesnt end on right, then I have to say it over and add another word, and if that word is two syllables, I have to add another word, and then I will add a period, which is three syllables throwing the whole thing off, so I have to redo it, or if I flex one arm, I have to flex the other no matter what, and EVERYTHING HAS TO END ON RIGHT, if anything ends on left then it is just... idk I just cant yknow what I mean?
I used to do this, I dont know if I still do it but I can remember, if I were to describe, it was satisfyingly annoying. I would tap my left hand on my left thigh on 1st syllable, then right hand on right thigh on 2nd syllable, so on so forth...
I'm an architect and i use a software called autocad (it's a software to make blue prints and lines .....etc)
So i have to make sure that is every line is connected with the other even if i zoomed like billion times and it even affects my due dates
I'm 15 and I think I've had symmetry OCD since I was about 6 or 7. I think it was a bit worse back then but I'm not sure. I always used to walk in certain blocks/tiles/planks when I was walking (any sort of clear visual demarcation or pattern on the floor). I do that at a much lesser frequency now so it doesn't really bother me anymore.
I've also always made certain movements or voluntary jerks since I was a kid, and I still do that quite a lot. I think it was worse when I was a kid because I remember quite a lot of sleepless nights just trying to lie down in a comfortable position, but it always feeling off or like something's missing.
I recently just figured out that it was symmetry OCD and felt so relieved that I'd finally found something perfectly describing my behaviours.
The problem really is just that I'm uncomfortable in telling my parents about it, specifically my dad. He started noticing the jerks and twitches more and more during Covid- 19, and now just resorts to scolding me to make it stop. I think he wants to associate the twitching or jerking movements I make with a negative emotion, but all it really does is make me feel more anxious about it.
I don't know what to do, and I feel kind of silly writing this because it doesn't really interfere with my life as much as I've seen OCD affecting people, but it sure is really annoying.
I think I have this, I’ve had it since I was a kid because I always had to chew left right left right. Left always had to get the last and the best bite because I’m left handed so it just made sense to me. I told my mom about this and she says she just chews normal.
I would also feel uneven a lot so I would imagine a knife cutting one side of the car for example if that’s what I was sitting in.
I ignored these as normal behaviors but I’m 13 and because puberty hit OCD struck hard and it’s really painful to live with, specifically my pure o. It’s so hard to make it through a day now, this just makes it worse.
When im walking with my family sometimes if i walk on one leg more i have to stay in one leg with my other leg and my family is just like "hey, u comin?" and i told my parents about this and they just say everyone has it...but does everyone have to make everything equal!?
That explains why I like odd numbers so much. They have a centre number and equal number of numbers on each side.
Love the new intro! So professional and fun text. Thanks for explaining
Thank you so much! I thought it was pretty neat and fun to do. 🤪
May be uncommon but for me it's constantly adjusting my laptop a certain way to make it symmetric to me, and the more I stare at it's position the more anxious I get and keep shifting it left and right, and the cycle repeats. It just never feels completely symmetric and makes me really frustrated
My friends used to tease me bc I try to step on a line in the pavement with my foot when I've stepped on a line with the other one. They'd also deliberately put their foot on a line to get a rise out of me. I have actually yelled at many a person for doing that. It's stressful.
After a looong time spent in ocd, I forget even after being aware of the disorder lately, that the way I think I should do things or things should be done isn’t a “universal standard” but rather a deception created by my own mind: for example, I only have to look over there whilst talking or eating, I cannot look towards right in ANY CASE or something bad will happen, or it will be considered extremely rude to others etc. and I realised that it was NOT considered rude by anybody and it doesn’t matter to anyone where I look… I live by all these rules and I don’t know how to break free this illusion and even notice it as I’m doing it so much.
Lol😂 I draw imaginary lines on celling,while laying on bed. Even in classroom,I imagine straight and parallel lines on wall ,on board. I keep book in table and I make sure if it has a parallel distance.. I check my handwriting again and again.
I have symmetry OCD and other types as well. I have been struggling with organizing and cleaning my home. I get baffled and befuddled so much because I can't do things "perfectly" that I just abandon whatever I am trying to accomplish. It is very time consuming and at times paralyzing when I attempt to try again. Oddly enough I've been called very organized by others by my ability to do things outside the home. Thank you for posting this video. Very helpful.
I’ve had this for 2 years I never knew thank you for letting me know
It's like you are describing my self,
I'm open for clinical trials
It's hard to explain to people how serious that can be for someone, especially if it's mostly touch related. I've literally broken skin from scratching so much to even out a sensation, I've broken down crying from slapping/hitting/scratching both sides of my arms/legs/head because nothing is making "that feeling" go away. All it takes is a hand on the shoulder, finger tap on the arm, light brush of the leg from sitting next to someone, scratching an itch, getting water on your hand, hitting your elbow on the wall, hip against the table, shin on a buggy, stubbed toe on a chair, nasty scrape from falling down, bump on the head from the car door... No matter how bad, you have to make the exact same sensation with the exact amount of pressure/force on the exact spot on the other side. If doing that back and forth doesn't work, I start gently hitting to over power the sensation with something new. If that doesn't work, I start scratching. My brother thinks I'm a hypochondriac and my mom looked at me like I was crazy and ignored that it ever came up until she forgot again. I don't talk about it anymore.
OMG OMG this is me! I've been wondering if I was alone in this! I haven't drawn blood before though
I posted the following comment before I saw your comment:
I most certainly have known for years I have symmetry OCD. I've never been diagnosed. I don't tell people what I'm doing but most people can notice a bit of it and they just think I'm antsy or always touching my face. What they don't see is the symmetry touching any and everywhere on my body. When I touch one side of my body somewhere (whether purposely or not) I HAVE to touch the other side EXACTLY in the same spot with the same exact pressure. If I touch it harder then I have to touch the other side again but just as hard then I go to the 2nd side again and touch it with light pressure like the original touch on the first side. If I don't do it right, I have to go back and start again also remembering all previous touches and where I went wrong and correct it. By this time I've touched somewhere else and I have to work that out. This causes major stress for me. I also struggling with depression and anxiety. When I his happens at night while I'm trying to sleep this could on for several minutes until I feel like I'm finished with it and in a comfortable position. This occurs sometimes over several hours. Needless to say I don't get much sleep when that happens. When I was a little girl I remember that I had to spin around before I sit if I had happened to turn one way. I would have to make sure I spun a even amount before I sit. I grew out of this around adulthood but I've picked up the semmetry touching on my body more (I only did this a lil bit when I was young). I'm 49 and it's always getting worse. I organize things but that part is not that bad that it's socially awkward. So now to people I'm just figity. It's embarrassing. I don't date or go really anywhere besides grocery store and things like that. That reminds me, if I hit my leg on a shopping cart, I MUST touch the opposite side of the basket with the opposite leg in the exact same spot. So it gets more complicated when objects are involved. Also this happens sometimes when looking at things. When I get anxious and see something out of my periphial in one eye, I have to position the opposite eye (usually by turning around) to see the exact same thing out of the exact same periphial spot on the other eye. This could go on a lil while until I get it just right. I would be so embarrassed if anyone knew. Am I alone here in this exact issue? I've NEVER met anyone that even seemed like they're have this going on.
this is me too! idek why i do it ig i think smth bad will happen i’m not rly sure? why do u do it?
@@karenemoug me too! why do u do these things? i’m still trying to figure out why i do them it jus makes me anxious if i don’t ig
@@georgianaden87 not sure it's just a compulsion
About 2 yrs ago I was diagnosed with it and the doctor s said it was one of the most severe cases they've ever encountered my teacher s know about it and I'm placed in the middle of the classroom so all the noise goes into both ears. Also ALL the thing ppl r saying in the comments happen to me. Even stepping on the line separating tiles i have to do it again.
My friends used to tease me about it but now they just respect it Landon I feel u
4:13 you see that arm movement you did right there? If you knew your audience, you should have also done the same movement but reversed starting with your left arm and then right to balance out that movement. Like, when I watch someone spin 360 degrees to clockwise, they MUST turn 360 degrees anti-clockwise twice and then 360 degrees clockwise once to balance that out. I also usually tap with my fingers, and need to balance them out, for example. 123456 is frustrating, and 654321 must be done twice and then the original sequence once again to balance it out (I’m only using numbers as analogy to the actual thing; order of finger-tapping).
My closest friend is convinced that I suffer from OCD, but I’m not. Because these things tend to bother me for no more than a minute and then I just forget about them, however if I’m reminded then yes it does become very frustrating and I’d have to tense my muscles and cringe a lot to resist the urge. It can be especially frustrating in social situations where I get very weird looks for exiting through the same door I entered from. But again, I don’t suffer from OCD because it doesn’t keep bothering me, it only lasts a bit... however when I was younger, about 10 years old, I used to wash my hands over 50 times a day, hated touching people or even my legs, stopped using non-disposable cutlery, started taking 60-minute+ showers, etc... I definitely had (a different type of) OCD back then...
Don’t know why I just shared all this, just started typing out my thoughts lol.
u have ocd trust me.
I'm hypermobile, so my body is essentially never even, and I'm always in some degree of pain. I've been obsessed with straightening out my body, and trying to move it "right", for quite a while, and I didn't think it was OCD because it's not the "same" obsession day to day, and it absolutely never feels "complete." I still don't know if it's OCD exactly, but it's close enough that looking into it has really opened my eyes, and a new route in my therapy.
I have OCD. I have symmetry OCD.
Can OCD be characterized as an extreme form of perfectionism where anything can lead to anxiety, fear, and distress? Could you be my friend? 🤗😘❤️Your charm is irresistible!!😁 You look energetic.💪 Now, the world can be a nasty crazy place out there, We cannot control what happens but we can use what happens. We have so much reserves of love and support inside us, if we can just remember that in our mind and move on.
Haha. Thanks for the kind words! I hope you can find some relief from what you're going through my friend!
@@ocdandanxiety Thank you for your reply. Take care❤️
I think I have symmetry OCD, even as a kid, if I stepped on the crack with my left foor I would have to do it with my right with the exact am out of pressure. Now if I hurt myself on my left leg, I'll do it on my right. Its really hard
I have Symmetry OCD. Everything I touch I have to touch with not one but both of my hands and I always start off with my left foot and walk in counts of four. Let’s say there’s 2 lines 6 feet apart. I have to walk there in 4 or 8 steps. I absolutely hate this and I wish I wasn’t so OCD. I can’t step on a crack and I can’t step over a crack unless I’ve gone an even number of steps. I hate odd numbers or starting off with my right foot. OCD comes if various different forms and everybody is different. OCD isn’t just about having everything perfect, I hate having it but it’s so hard to stop and Idk if I ever will.
I suffered through many types of OCD since I was 6. I was never actual told by a doctor that I had OCD. But I know I have OCD. OCD is really hard for me, i have to make sure my house door is closed 3 times because I worry that my dog will get stolen. I have to wash my hands 2 times, and if my color pencils aren’t in rainbow order, I will freak. Everything that I do for my ocd, helps me with my anxiety, when I leave my house, I still worry about my dog getting stolen even though I checked 3 times if the door is closed. It’s a very stressful time with OCD, i don’t like stepping on sidewalk cracks, if I step on a crack, I will have to go back to the last square to make sure I don’t step on the crack again. I repeat doing things just to keep my family safe, I worry when my mom goes out for a long time and I think that she got in a car crash. Ty for telling me this, I definitely do have much OCD!
I don’t need everything to be symmetrical. It’s certain things. For example if I’m on the computer and my mouse has been on the right side for too long I have to move it to the left, then right, then circle three time and go up. It’s anything like that. My foot has to be exactly in the middle. If my toes hang off more than my foot FORGET IT I have to shake my hand in the air if I notice something unsymmetrical. But I also have adhd so I’m constantly living in a chaotic pigsty that is so hard to live with.
There was this one time I was running in a line with my friends and I accidentally touched my friends back and I know obviously I can't touch her again with my other hand. So I pinched my other hand to make it even. I'm trying to convince my mom to let me go to the doctors and see if I have it but I don't think she will rn. I could, list a lot more things I do but it would be too long
I don’t think my parents wld take me either but jus know ur not alone
@@marcoferrucci1358 Thanks. I can’t even write anymore
Lol food symmetry OCD.... This gallon of ice cream looks uneven......
Omg this is me to a T! I didn’t know this was a thing! Thank you 😊
You're so welcome! I hope you're doing well!
Yeah this is driving m e crazy. It can take me hours just to finish one homework cuz I just keep erasing everything. And taking a timed test is a struggle, trust me.
I think that’s moderate ocd. Sorry if I am late tho.
Wait or severe
This gave me a rush of relief knowing I’m not alone. I searched up this video after buying a wooden bicycle fender in which the handmade design wasn’t symmetrical (it’s an item that is very special to me), I felt the need to sand it down or change it in some way. I knew that if I did that than I’d ruin it, and I’d never forgive myself. It’s like an itch that can’t be scratched and it’s driving me ludicrous. It keeps me up at night and I ponder about it throughout the day. What do I do? I need help.
I do not know if I even have this, but sometimes when I’m on a computer with a touchpad, like a chromebook, I have to put one nail/finger around the square of the little outline, I feel a weird feeling and then do it again until the feeling goes away. Then I keep doing it but it keeps going a little more, and then I stop trying not to do it then going onto a thought then to another thought. Then it’ll soon go away. Sometimes I wanna touch something on the TV when watching a movie or show and put my fingers around it and outline it. - Writing this comment on the white section with the words I keep putting my finger to one end to the other. Even if I have a name tag on my desk or something I will write it but need to rewrite it and my friend next to me watches me do it and they’re looking at me weirdly. No one noticed it when I was doing it, but I sometimes will miss at least just a minute or two of class.
Most of the time when I see or feel something that feels off its symmetry I flex my ears and tilt my head till it feels right. Or if it's a small pressure on one side of my body I'll do it to the other side.
Having multiple kinds of ocd mixing with adhd is.. Interesting, to say the least
The second you said “exposure therapy!” I had instant anxiety haha noooo thanks
Hahaha. If you do it right. It’s not too bad. 🥳
Haha same, I’ve been trying to start ERP for my other themes and it’s so scary and anxiety inducing.
I'm suffering with everything you said here.😢 Plus and additional thing that I'm doing my entire life is i look at the top right corner of my phone's screen then i want to look at the bottom left corner and to balance that like i need to do it vice versa. I'm done with this shit and i think i was born with this. I remember walking through tile floor by keeping the symmetry in each steps as a kid. When i look left i look right too. When i scratch my left arm i scratch my right arm as well. I'm trying to avoid it whenever i remember but still it doesn't go away from me.
I’m relabeling storage totes.. I’ve gone through no less than 25 30 different labels writing rewriting changing color and then stopping come back later do it again. I still haven’t labeled a tote. My wife bought fancy blinds that are big and flip both directions and you can flip the top or bottom half….the time and stress I spend straightening them is maddening. I’d rather have no blinds now 😂🤦♂️
It's incredible how even the most represented in the media kind of OCD isn't what it's shown to be.
I draw imaginary lines with my feet, hands, and steps. For example if I’m watching tik tok and my hand happens to move I picture an imaginary line and I keep drawing it, or if my foot moves and draws an imaginary line. But if I do it twice that cancels out the first one so I do it again, and cancel that one to cancel it out. Then I don’t it a third time because I have to do it three times and cancel it out. If I do it a fourth time, I have to do it again subtract one and make it three again. And it’s ongoing, and I can’t concentrate on the video or thing. I want to know I’m not alone because it makes me feel panicky 😱.
I draw imaginary lines and shapes a lott
I have returned brand new clothing because the stitching doesnt line up, I just bought a reall nice shirt expensive shirt, wore it for the day, loved it and cut the tags off, only to later realize the two chest pockets dont line up correctly, part of me never wants to wear it again, and the other part of me wants to wear it all the time to force myself to stop caring about it, seems like i always eventually do get over it, but its always something it seems.
I used to organize my colored pencils in alphabetical order over and over again as a kid. I hated odd numbers. It makes sense now as an adult
I do always feel responsible for doing something wrong that will affect someone else and I never knew when I would get in trouble for something I didn't know I was doing wrong.
Not diagnosed but whenever i play a game with the wasd keys, I always feel the need to touch a key I didn't touch while moving to make it equal, and whenever I accidentaly touch something like a table with my right hand, I gotta do the same thing but with my left hand. Soooooo
Wow your lucky. It’s hard for me to move sometimes. I even have a routine to breathe half the time and blink 4 times before breathing. It’s even hard to type.
Wow your lucky. It’s hard for me to move sometimes. I even have a routine to breathe half the time and blink 4 times before breathing. It’s even hard to type.
my family and friends make fun of me bc i have this issue with my parking and i refuse to be closer to one line more than the other and it will cause me to to keep pulling in to fix my parking until it’s completely even space on both sides. even thought i’m perfectly fine within the lines but it bothers me if it’s not in even on both sides. it’s becoming a pain. and i haven’t met anyone with this same problem.
I have OCD as I’ve gotten older it’s manifested into lots of types of OCD when anyone touches my lego and Disney figures I get so stressed that my hands start shaking and I always have to rearrange the figures and lego.
I thought I was just a maniac perfectionist, turns out I have this too like bruh.
When one side of your bag is heavier than the other.
Or when my desk isn’t straight with the wall or my screen I wonky or sideways
When I put my hair into a ponytail, and one bit is pulling a bit harder I have to make it pull harder on the other side... It drives me insane
I thought I found something about me but unfortunately did not. Is there a name for being obsessed with word association and parallels to what people are saying?
An easy example is music, it someone says to me "it's been.." I basically cut them off and say ONE WEEK SINCE YOU LOOKED AT ME
or today I was told to get meet 5 guys at work and I'm to the point where I feel like saying something about cheese burgers is obligatory...
Or I will be talking to my wife and I'll stop to think by just naturally saying "and iiiii..." But I always lose my train of thought and hold the "iiiiiiiiiiiiii will alwaaays love youuuuu"
Why am I like this? It's literally my identity
I’ll admit if I don’t like the way I started off writing I will throw the paper in the trash but it depends on what I’m writing. I try to type things cuz it’s more perfect and I can concentrate better reading things that’s typed. And I know a guy who couldn’t leave the house because if he walked incorrectly he had to go back several steps to make it right and he always messed up so he had to take 2 steps back. So essentially he could never make it anywhere and he said it’s from sexual abuse trauma. Also I struggled with cleaning because certain things I was unable to touch. I’ve been touching things now because I got tired of things not getting done. But I can’t use the guest bathroom anymore as the toilet overflowed with poop so it’s all cleaned up but I know what happened in there so I can’t walk near there anymore I will eventually get over it but it’s too stressful for me to deal with right now. There’s kind of a lot of other irrational things I do that prevent me from functioning so wow. I also have a roach phobia and constantly call the exterminator if I see one. And I constantly think what if I see one? Like it’s kind of stressful but I’m training myself to stop that.
I absolutely hate going to the kitchen, as I feel compelled to arrange and align certain things such as the items in the cupboard, and ugh... the kitchen tap, the handle HAS to be aligned before I can leave the kitchen or I get anxious. I spend multiple minutes just staring at the tap everytime to make sure it's aligned.
When I blink with my other eye, I just have to blink twice more with the other, then blink once with my left eye.
And have to do this twice, to make the amount of blinkings even. It's quite annoying, but it's like I just have to
I have this but never realized I felt so embarrassed about it but now accept it more
I thought that I just had sensory processing disorder but I always felt like it had to also be paired with something else b/c half of my behaviors and thoughts didn't fall in that category. Before watching this I wasn't aware there were types of OCD and I thought OCD was just having an obsessive behavior for one thing only, like hand-washing or flicking on/off light switches x amount of times...etc.
I didn't realize that my tendencies weren't normal until I started dating my partner and they would see me do things/I'd share thoughts and they'd just go "why???" and that whole making it feel "right" or "even" thing--that's the phrase I've always used because it describes the feeling perfectly.
I went to an interview recently and caught myself realigning a stack of papers by a printer that didn't belong to me, right in front of the interviewer! lol
Sometimes I’ll just have complete breakdowns because of how my teeth feel in my mouth, because I focus on that fact that they are not perfectly straight in my mouth, and my teeth aren’t even that bad
So, I watch this video bcs I've been wondering. It all started when my coworkers noticed that I have some weird habits. This afternoon, I even found myself unable to use my computer for a couple of minutes bcs the usability of my fingers felt unequal. And then I rubbed and tapped my fingers to the table until it feels just right and take sometimes to tell myself that I can touch the keyboard and mouse again to turn the computer off (thankfully this happened right after I finished my task). But the thing is, it doesn't always get that bad and I don't get compulsive for everything like how I don't have the tidiest room, I only get compulsive for some certain things. So I assume I just have some compulsive habits for personal preferences
I don’t like playing games or watching TH-cam that much anymore because of this, I’m too tired because of it
Mine is more physical- like ME- I don’t know if I have OCD, and I’m not trying to self diagnose, but I sometimes get random twinges to, for example, squeeze my left arm, but then if I squeeze my left arm, I have to squeeze my right arm exactly the same. If I go over on pressure or it’s not exactly the same position, I have to go back to my left arm and make it match what I did to my right. It’s just back and forth. Or if I tap my thumb on the edge of my phone case, I have to tap my other thumb in the same place on my phone case. It’s so irritating because I’ve told my mom and she just doesnt care lol. It really just messes with my sometimes and I get bad anxiety and all I can think about it evening it out (like if I pop my right index finger but my left won’t pop, I can’t stop trying to pop my left). Idk what to do about it though lol! It’s just kinda became part of my everyday life. And oh my gosh! The keyboard thing!!! It bothers me SO. MUCH. !! Like I said- I don’t know how to fix it, but yeah! That’s my little rant lol