Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Support Group
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disorder, more specifically, an anxiety disorder. OCD is manifested in a variety of forms, but is most commonly characterized by a subject's obsessive (repetitive, distressing, intrusive) thoughts and related compulsions (tasks or rituals) which attempt to neutralize the obsessions.
I am not sure if this is part of my 11 year old son's OCD, which he has not been formally diagnosed with, but I am sure he has it. He has been diagnosed with Tourette's and PDD NOS. I am in the process of trying to get him a really good therapist, but there is a waiting list, so I am not sure how long it will take.
Anyway, I need a little advice on how to help him with a specific problem. He tends to get really sad and upset about things that he may have missed out on or something he wants to do, but did not do it. It ranges from something really minor to bigger things.
The latest issue he has is that he was not able to complete a snow tunnel when we had our last snow storm (which amounted to 38 inches). It was hard because the snow was just too deep. We tried and only succeeded in digging 1/2 way.
Mind you, he had a lot of fun in the snow for days and did not go back to school for over a week, so there was a lot of positive things that happened over the last week, but he cannot stop talking about how he missed out on building a snow tunnel, and that now he will have to wait until next year because the snow is melting. To most people, this seems minor, but to him it is major.
I tried to tell him to focus on all the fun he had, and that we tried to build the tunnel but it was too hard to finish.
I am just not sure what else to do to get him over this latest obsession.
I am hoping someone can give me some advice.
Thanks
Anyway, I need a little advice on how to help him with a specific problem. He tends to get really sad and upset about things that he may have missed out on or something he wants to do, but did not do it. It ranges from something really minor to bigger things.
The latest issue he has is that he was not able to complete a snow tunnel when we had our last snow storm (which amounted to 38 inches). It was hard because the snow was just too deep. We tried and only succeeded in digging 1/2 way.
Mind you, he had a lot of fun in the snow for days and did not go back to school for over a week, so there was a lot of positive things that happened over the last week, but he cannot stop talking about how he missed out on building a snow tunnel, and that now he will have to wait until next year because the snow is melting. To most people, this seems minor, but to him it is major.
I tried to tell him to focus on all the fun he had, and that we tried to build the tunnel but it was too hard to finish.
I am just not sure what else to do to get him over this latest obsession.
I am hoping someone can give me some advice.
Thanks
I've recently started giving my son Inositol (a B vitamin) and I'm beginning to see some improvement. I don't know what treatment your son is receiving, but it might be something for you to consider and research. It doesn't have the dangerous side effects of the pharmaceuticals and has been shown to be tremendously helpful (at least as helpful as Prozac, if not more so) for numerous people with OCD and anxiety disorders. I wish I could tell you
how best to handle the obsessive thoughts of your ocd child, but my own experience tells me its best to just show compassion toward it, but at the same time avoid more discussion about the issue than what is absolutely necessary, as you don't want to unintentionally aid him in keeping this obsessive thought at the forefront of his mind.