Re: First Time Posting (sorry, this is long!)

[Guest guest]

Hi nna,

Thank you so much for sharing! We all love to hear success stories,

especially anyone who has just recently begun having to deal with

OCD.

I think my mouth about fell open when you mentioned that some school

personnel were familiar with OCD! Very lucky there! And how great

that they were sooo supportive.

I think a lot of us can empathize with that feeling that we (parents)

are going to end up with a breakdown. I know I did!

Seems like you have a tough, determined young lady who will

definitely beat back this OCD bully! Please keep us updated on her

success, we definitely need to be reminded some days that this can be

beat!

, 15, with OCD, dysgraphia and Aspergers

>

> Hi all!

>

> I've been reading your messages on and off for a few weeks, but

never

> posted a message. My daughter's doctor (Dr. Wagner, one of the

> advisors for this list) encouraged me to share my story with others

> to offer hope, and so I shall...

>

> My daghter is 7 and we've known for years she's had OCD. My

> husband also has it, but not to an extreme, he dealt with it fine.

> Same with up until the start of this school year. Over the

[Guest guest]

--What a meaningful and hopeful story..Thank you for sharing it.

Your last paragraph was especially true for us..my husband said the

same thing..we can beat the OCD and keep our beautiful boy. ,

in FL

- In , " mrsfrito " <mdonlon@f...>

wrote:

>

> Hi all!

>

> I've been reading your messages on and off for a few weeks, but

never

> posted a message. My daughter's doctor (Dr. Wagner, one of the

> advisors for this list) encouraged me to share my story with

others

> to offer hope, and so I shall...

>

> My daghter is 7 and we've known for years she's had OCD.

My

> husband also has it, but not to an extreme, he dealt with it

fine.

> Same with up until the start of this school year. Over the

> years, if her rituals increased in number I would work with her on

> them, giving her stickers/rewards if she refrained from doing one,

> then eventually moved on to another one until they were pretty

much

> under control. (I thought of that idea because stickers always

> worked with her for other things like potty training.) Her OCD is

> all about having things " right " and in its place. Another big

issue

> has always been socks and shoes (the seams on the socks feel

> terrible, the shoes always feel " wrong " ).

>

> For some reason, though, this Fall her OCD just exploded - I liken

it

> somewhat to having a nervous breakdown. I think it was the stress

of

> going from the easy-going summer routine (I'm a stay-at-home Mom)

to

> having to get up, get dressed, etc. by a certain time. The first

day

> of school it was the socks and shoes issue; hard to get her out

the

> door because she kept putting them on and off and fidgeting with

> them. The second day her clothes were all wrong, nothing fit

right

> or felt right. By the third day she was a mess. Nothing felt

right

> on her skin, even underwear. She'd go to the bathroom and then

> insist she still felt like she had to go more, wiped excessively

> because it wasn't dry enough.

>

> Then everything spiraled out of control. She couldn't sit and eat

> because any chair she used was always crooked. Just about

everything

> in our house was " wrong " and had to be adjusted and readjusted

> (pillows on the couch, towels in the bathroom, a remote control on

> the table, etc). Doors had to be reclosed or touched - she

thought

> they weren't really closed. She wouldn't take a bath because

> afterwards she could never get " dry enough " . I couldn't get her

to

> school. She wanted to stay naked all the time.

>

> I had to be with her every second to be sure she kept some kind of

> clothes on, that she ate, got off the toilet, etc. I also have a

3

> yr old girl who needed attention so I thought I was going to have

my

> own breakdown. After a few days of this I finally got smart and

> called in reinforcements. I have a neice (20 yrs old) who has OCD

> and completed therapy successfully years ago, so I asked her to

come

> over in the mornings and try to get to go to school. I

soon

> realized did not want her cousin involved so instead I had

my

> neice take care of my younger daughter so I could devote my time

to

> getting ready.

>

> Then I got the school involved. I wasn't 100% sure I wanted them

to

> know about all this, but when missed a couple days in a row

I

> knew I had to let them know. I HAD to get her to school, because

> once she was there, she was fine, no OCD problems. I am so glad I

> told the school, they were wonderful. They immediately put a plan

> into place and involved 3-4 women on their staff who all have

> experience dealing with OCD. I had to physically force in

the

> car in the morning (the bus was not an option at this point),

bring

> her there, and they would wait for us and physically get her out

of

> the car. They warned me this could take a week or so and it would

be

> hard. The first day was terrible, they did have to (gently) pull

her

> out of the car, and she was just sobbing. Once she got inside,

she

> was fine, though. Luckily after that day she came out of the car

on

> her own and by the end of the week she was so much better. They

also

> let her wear flip flops to school to alleviate the shoe and sock

> stress.

>

> Meanwhile, she started taking Zoloft (20mg) and we got an appt.

with

> Dr. Wagner. Very slowly things started to improve. Today it's a

> month since this all started and is doing so well. We are

> tackling the OCD bit by bit through CBT and ERP and she is with

the

> program completely. She wants to beat this OCD bully! She is now

> going to school with her socks and sneakers on, just started

taking

> the bus again, and the major problems are much improved (can wear

> clothes again, taking baths, getting out of the bathroom

quicker). I

> still have to coach her along quite a bit, we made up a little OCD

> song to sing when she's trying to work through something. I have

to

> distract her often when she starts to get worked up about a

ritual,

> or insists her clothes are " bothering " her again. If she's tired

> things come back full force, so I have to be sure she gets to bed

> early. (luckily she sleeps like a rock!)

>

> A long story, but the moral is: don't give up, I was at my darkest

> hour, not eating or sleeping, crying all the time over the " loss "

of

> my sweet, good-natured little girl. But now we are doing things

> together again as a family and the laughter has come back into our

> house. We are coming out of this stronger and wiser, and I have

> learned to adjust what is " normal " and live with this thing.

There

> will be ups and downs, but overall, this is something that can be

> controlled. I tell myself often that I'll take OCD anyday over

> leukemia or so many other terrible childhood diseases. It's all

in

> the perspective.

>

> I hope my story helps in some way!

>

> nna.

[Guest guest]

--What a meaningful and hopeful story..Thank you for sharing it.

Your last paragraph was especially true for us..my husband said the

same thing..we can beat the OCD and keep our beautiful boy. ,

in FL

- In , " mrsfrito " <mdonlon@f...>

wrote:

>

> Hi all!

>

> I've been reading your messages on and off for a few weeks, but

never

> posted a message. My daughter's doctor (Dr. Wagner, one of the

> advisors for this list) encouraged me to share my story with

others

> to offer hope, and so I shall...

>

> My daghter is 7 and we've known for years she's had OCD.

My

> husband also has it, but not to an extreme, he dealt with it

fine.

> Same with up until the start of this school year. Over the

> years, if her rituals increased in number I would work with her on

> them, giving her stickers/rewards if she refrained from doing one,

> then eventually moved on to another one until they were pretty

much

> under control. (I thought of that idea because stickers always

> worked with her for other things like potty training.) Her OCD is

> all about having things " right " and in its place. Another big

issue

> has always been socks and shoes (the seams on the socks feel

> terrible, the shoes always feel " wrong " ).

>

> For some reason, though, this Fall her OCD just exploded - I liken

it

> somewhat to having a nervous breakdown. I think it was the stress

of

> going from the easy-going summer routine (I'm a stay-at-home Mom)

to

> having to get up, get dressed, etc. by a certain time. The first

day

> of school it was the socks and shoes issue; hard to get her out

the

> door because she kept putting them on and off and fidgeting with

> them. The second day her clothes were all wrong, nothing fit

right

> or felt right. By the third day she was a mess. Nothing felt

right

> on her skin, even underwear. She'd go to the bathroom and then

> insist she still felt like she had to go more, wiped excessively

> because it wasn't dry enough.

>

> Then everything spiraled out of control. She couldn't sit and eat

> because any chair she used was always crooked. Just about

everything

> in our house was " wrong " and had to be adjusted and readjusted

> (pillows on the couch, towels in the bathroom, a remote control on

> the table, etc). Doors had to be reclosed or touched - she

thought

> they weren't really closed. She wouldn't take a bath because

> afterwards she could never get " dry enough " . I couldn't get her

to

> school. She wanted to stay naked all the time.

>

> I had to be with her every second to be sure she kept some kind of

> clothes on, that she ate, got off the toilet, etc. I also have a

3

> yr old girl who needed attention so I thought I was going to have

my

> own breakdown. After a few days of this I finally got smart and

> called in reinforcements. I have a neice (20 yrs old) who has OCD

> and completed therapy successfully years ago, so I asked her to

come

> over in the mornings and try to get to go to school. I

soon

> realized did not want her cousin involved so instead I had

my

> neice take care of my younger daughter so I could devote my time

to

> getting ready.

>

> Then I got the school involved. I wasn't 100% sure I wanted them

to

> know about all this, but when missed a couple days in a row

I

> knew I had to let them know. I HAD to get her to school, because

> once she was there, she was fine, no OCD problems. I am so glad I

> told the school, they were wonderful. They immediately put a plan

> into place and involved 3-4 women on their staff who all have

> experience dealing with OCD. I had to physically force in

the

> car in the morning (the bus was not an option at this point),

bring

> her there, and they would wait for us and physically get her out

of

> the car. They warned me this could take a week or so and it would

be

> hard. The first day was terrible, they did have to (gently) pull

her

> out of the car, and she was just sobbing. Once she got inside,

she

> was fine, though. Luckily after that day she came out of the car

on

> her own and by the end of the week she was so much better. They

also

> let her wear flip flops to school to alleviate the shoe and sock

> stress.

>

> Meanwhile, she started taking Zoloft (20mg) and we got an appt.

with

> Dr. Wagner. Very slowly things started to improve. Today it's a

> month since this all started and is doing so well. We are

> tackling the OCD bit by bit through CBT and ERP and she is with

the

> program completely. She wants to beat this OCD bully! She is now

> going to school with her socks and sneakers on, just started

taking

> the bus again, and the major problems are much improved (can wear

> clothes again, taking baths, getting out of the bathroom

quicker). I

> still have to coach her along quite a bit, we made up a little OCD

> song to sing when she's trying to work through something. I have

to

> distract her often when she starts to get worked up about a

ritual,

> or insists her clothes are " bothering " her again. If she's tired

> things come back full force, so I have to be sure she gets to bed

> early. (luckily she sleeps like a rock!)

>

> A long story, but the moral is: don't give up, I was at my darkest

> hour, not eating or sleeping, crying all the time over the " loss "

of

> my sweet, good-natured little girl. But now we are doing things

> together again as a family and the laughter has come back into our

> house. We are coming out of this stronger and wiser, and I have

> learned to adjust what is " normal " and live with this thing.

There

> will be ups and downs, but overall, this is something that can be

> controlled. I tell myself often that I'll take OCD anyday over

> leukemia or so many other terrible childhood diseases. It's all

in

> the perspective.

>

> I hope my story helps in some way!

>

> nna.

[Guest guest]

Carolyn,

It is comforting to know so many others are going through similar

things. I really feel the sensitivity to clothes is more about OCD

with my daughter than SID. Her Dr. seems to think so, too, because

she has had my add it to our list of things that we will be working

on through CBT/ERP.

I really think my daughter's toilet issues were reduced when she

started her SSRI medication. She also had started refusing to go,

which turned out to be an avoidance tactic - if she didn't go, then

she wouldn't have to sit there thinking she had to go more. I can

relate to what you're saying about how to know what's psychological

and what's real. My mom was asking me if I had my daughter checked

for a urinary infection, but I just knew it wasn't that. Of course,

I had the " advantage " that so many OCD things came about at the same

time so it had to be related. Also, she slept through the night

fine, and from my experience when I had a UTI, you couldn't sleep

either.

I, too, did NOT want my child on meds, but we were desperate, and her

pediatrician said that if you find the right medication, you will see

a 90-95% improvement with the OCD symptoms. I know nothing about

tics, that seems to be a separate medication. Right now it's hard to

say what part of her improvement is the medication or the therapy,

which is also hard - I do not want her on medication her whole life.

Good luck to you and try not feel badly about starting medication.

As you can read in other posts, it is not giving in, it's realizing

in your particular case medications are just necessary.

nna.

> >

> > Hi all!

> >

> > I've been reading your messages on and off for a few weeks, but

> never

> > posted a message. My daughter's doctor (Dr. Wagner, one of the

> > advisors for this list) encouraged me to share my story with

others

> > to offer hope, and so I shall...

> >

> > My daghter is 7 and we've known for years she's had OCD.

My

> > husband also has it, but not to an extreme, he dealt with it

fine.

> > Same with up until the start of this school year. Over

the

> > years, if her rituals increased in number I would work with her

on

> > them, giving her stickers/rewards if she refrained from doing

one,

> > then eventually moved on to another one until they were pretty

much

> > under control. (I thought of that idea because stickers always

> > worked with her for other things like potty training.) Her OCD

is

> > all about having things " right " and in its place. Another big

> issue

> > has always been socks and shoes (the seams on the socks feel

> > terrible, the shoes always feel " wrong " ).

> >

> > For some reason, though, this Fall her OCD just exploded - I

liken

> it

> > somewhat to having a nervous breakdown. I think it was the

stress

> of

> > going from the easy-going summer routine (I'm a stay-at-home Mom)

> to

> > having to get up, get dressed, etc. by a certain time. The first

> day

> > of school it was the socks and shoes issue; hard to get her out

the

> > door because she kept putting them on and off and fidgeting with

> > them. The second day her clothes were all wrong, nothing fit

right

> > or felt right. By the third day she was a mess. Nothing felt

> right

> > on her skin, even underwear. She'd go to the bathroom and then

> > insist she still felt like she had to go more, wiped excessively

> > because it wasn't dry enough.

> >

> > Then everything spiraled out of control. She couldn't sit and

eat

> > because any chair she used was always crooked. Just about

> everything

> > in our house was " wrong " and had to be adjusted and readjusted

> > (pillows on the couch, towels in the bathroom, a remote control

on

> > the table, etc). Doors had to be reclosed or touched - she

thought

> > they weren't really closed. She wouldn't take a bath because

> > afterwards she could never get " dry enough " . I couldn't get her

to

> > school. She wanted to stay naked all the time.

> >

> > I had to be with her every second to be sure she kept some kind

of

> > clothes on, that she ate, got off the toilet, etc. I also have a

3

> > yr old girl who needed attention so I thought I was going to have

> my

> > own breakdown. After a few days of this I finally got smart and

> > called in reinforcements. I have a neice (20 yrs old) who has

OCD

> > and completed therapy successfully years ago, so I asked her to

> come

> > over in the mornings and try to get to go to school. I

soon

> > realized did not want her cousin involved so instead I had

> my

> > neice take care of my younger daughter so I could devote my time

to

> > getting ready.

> >

> > Then I got the school involved. I wasn't 100% sure I wanted them

> to

> > know about all this, but when missed a couple days in a

row

> I

> > knew I had to let them know. I HAD to get her to school, because

> > once she was there, she was fine, no OCD problems. I am so glad

I

> > told the school, they were wonderful. They immediately put a

plan

> > into place and involved 3-4 women on their staff who all have

> > experience dealing with OCD. I had to physically force in

> the

> > car in the morning (the bus was not an option at this point),

bring

> > her there, and they would wait for us and physically get her out

of

> > the car. They warned me this could take a week or so and it

would

> be

> > hard. The first day was terrible, they did have to (gently) pull

> her

> > out of the car, and she was just sobbing. Once she got inside,

she

> > was fine, though. Luckily after that day she came out of the car

> on

> > her own and by the end of the week she was so much better. They

> also

> > let her wear flip flops to school to alleviate the shoe and sock

> > stress.

> >

> > Meanwhile, she started taking Zoloft (20mg) and we got an appt.

> with

> > Dr. Wagner. Very slowly things started to improve. Today it's a

> > month since this all started and is doing so well. We are

> > tackling the OCD bit by bit through CBT and ERP and she is with

the

> > program completely. She wants to beat this OCD bully! She is

now

> > going to school with her socks and sneakers on, just started

taking

> > the bus again, and the major problems are much improved (can wear

> > clothes again, taking baths, getting out of the bathroom

quicker).

> I

> > still have to coach her along quite a bit, we made up a little

OCD

> > song to sing when she's trying to work through something. I have

> to

> > distract her often when she starts to get worked up about a

ritual,

> > or insists her clothes are " bothering " her again. If she's tired

> > things come back full force, so I have to be sure she gets to bed

> > early. (luckily she sleeps like a rock!)

> >

> > A long story, but the moral is: don't give up, I was at my

darkest

> > hour, not eating or sleeping, crying all the time over the " loss "

> of

> > my sweet, good-natured little girl. But now we are doing things

> > together again as a family and the laughter has come back into

our

> > house. We are coming out of this stronger and wiser, and I have

> > learned to adjust what is " normal " and live with this thing.

There

> > will be ups and downs, but overall, this is something that can be

> > controlled. I tell myself often that I'll take OCD anyday over

> > leukemia or so many other terrible childhood diseases. It's all

in

> > the perspective.

> >

> > I hope my story helps in some way!

> >

> > nna.