The OCD Personality and the Projects He, or She Takes On

Thirteen years ago I was diagnosed with having Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - OCD.

The word, obsessive, in the name of the disorder speaks for itself.

We are all familiar with obsessive thoughts. We keep hearing them over and over in our minds. They don't disappear until we take care of the issue in our mind. There is a limit to obsessive thinking and an Obsessive Compulsive person's thinking usually exceeds those limits.

An Obsessive Compulsive person, such as myself, may have learned in therapy to try and distract themselves from those thoughts, but sometimes it just doesn't work. In therapy it's called ruminating. When it takes over too much of your time it's unhealthy and can be life inhibiting.

The obsessive thinking that is done by a person who has OCD - Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, plays a role in the projects we undertake. No matter how small, or how large the project is, if it isn't done right, it isn't done at all. If we feel we won't be able to finish it, we don't start it.

It doesn't mean we don't take on any projects. Of course we do.

An obsessive compulsive person overly consumes themselves with the project(s) he, or she takes on.

We do it very thoroughly and in detail and we can't let go of. We think of it every minute of every day that we work on the project. If it's something that needs to be finished and has an ending, the Obsessive Compulsive person works on it, takes small breaks if any and isn't content until it is finished.

We just can't rest.

I actually stay up through the night to work on what I am doing and of course by the time it is light out in the morning, I am too over-tired to be able to fall asleep easily. Hence my nights and days are mixed up, which makes being woken up by solicitor's phone calls and hang-ups during the day a huge imposition and detrimental to my health during each day - and it affects the next day.

I know I sleep with anxiety. Sometimes I will actually catch my breath as I am sleeping, which wakes me up.

When I do finally wake up, I wake up with anxiety. I immediately start thinking about what I have to do and what I can do to make it better, as I get closer to completing the project. It can't wait. I jump up out of bed to get started once again.

I usually don't start to eat until 4:00 P.M. because I am so busy working on the project I have taken on at the time. As a matter of fact, I had to stop writing this just 10 minutes ago to go get something to eat because I felt sick to my stomach. I only took a 10 minute eating break and I'm back to writing this article - my current project.

An Obsessive Compulsive person is a very dedicated person. We put our whole heart into everything we do.

Do you know anyone who can start and finish a whole family tree with information and pictures covering approximately 123 years, in just 2 days? I can. I just did on my Facebook page.

A person with OCD is very reliable.

A person with OCD is a great person to ask for help. Ask us, "Can you see if you can find...?" "Can you look up...?" "I can't find my.... Can you help me?" We get on it right away and don't quit until we have found what you needed. We take on your project as well as we take on our own.

Ask a person with OCD to see a picture they have. He, or she will get it for you right away.

The goal of a person with OCD is always perfection.

A major word in a person who has OCD's vocabulary and thoughts is the word, "perfect." Everything has to be done perfectly. Having to finish what we have started is part of the perfection. Having success in what we take on is part of the perfection too.

When I'm not successful during, or at the end of the project I have started, it makes me depressed.

We usually don't take on more than one project at a time. It would be just too much for a person with OCD to handle and we can't face failure.

And so this is my day. I usually have a project to do each and every day.

Yes, we become obsessed with what we are doing.

It is very time-consuming and mind-absorbing.

It is exhausting. What encouraged me to choose this topic for an article is because of the exhaustion I have been feeling for the past 2 days - because of my dedication to doing and completing my family tree.

I also have heart disease and my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder affects my health. I am already often tired from the heart disease and it's not good for something else to contribute to it.

If you suffer from OCD - Obsessive Compulsive Disorder as I do and all, or some of the above sounds familiar to you, try and manage your OCD symptoms when you take on a project so they don't add to the stress OCD is already causing you.

How can you limit yourself as you take on a project?

1. Each day, start yourself off with a good breakfast before you begin, or go back to your project. Food is energy anyway so it will also help with your thinking.

2. Limit yourself to how much time you will devote to your project each day. Allow other things in your life to be a part of your day - especially fun things. Allow each thing a healthy percentage of time to take up during the day.

3. Take breaks. Take lunch, snack and dinner breaks. Put some music on and dance, or do a little exercise.

4. At the end of the day before you go to sleep, relax. Watch television or a movie, or read.

5. Always allow yourself some 'me' time during each day.

6. As you do all of the above, don't allow yourself to think of the project you are doing. If you find that you start to do so, talk to yourself and say, "I have to stop thinking about it" and then try and distract yourself. It might work for you. If you find it hard to stop thinking about it, my therapist used to suggest that you clap your hands and say, "Stop it." Try it. It truly might help. Just thinking can be extremely exhausting too and we all need a break sometimes.

I'll practice what I preach because I really do need a break. I'm going to relax now.