OCD and Anxiety. How are they linked?

OCD and anxiety. How are they linked?

I was reminded of the connection this week.

My story.

I recently started a part-time job consisting of working two 10-hour shifts, and part of my role involves looking up doors.

Not one door.

But lots of doors.

This would not be a big issue for most people.

But for me, who has OCD issues around repeatedly checking things, it's proving to be a biggie.

Up until this week, I have just about managed to keep it under control.

Granted, I have checked a set number of times that the doors are locked, but after the locking is completed, I have generally succeeded in freeing intrusive thoughts about locking up.

Until Friday, that is.

Friday was a very busy and challenging day.

This resulted in me feeling a lot more anxious than normal and overthinking things... a lot.

To the extent that a colleague noticed and kept asking if I was okay.

Then came locking up time.

And my anxiety entered a whole new level.

??I checked the door handles more.

?? I walked back and checked the handles AGAIN (after quickly checking, nobody was watching).

?? I then had a bad night trying to sleep due to overthinking whether I had locked up properly.

This made me realise three important things.

? Anxiety definitely plays a role in people developing OCD behaviours.

? My OCD is more of an issue than I thought.

? I need to practise what I preach to others by finding ways to manage my anxiety and by starting to stand up to OCD...before it takes more of a hold!

I share tips on how to manage anxiety and start speaking up to OCD in my Parenting OCD in Teens and Tweens Digital Handbook.

I created my handbook to offer advice to parents on how to start managing OCD and anxiety in children while waiting for professional therapy.

Because the longer OCD goes untreated, the more debilitating it can become (as I found out to my detriment.)

If you would like to check out my handbook, I have popped the link below for you.

Parenting OCD in Teens and Tweens Digital Handbook.

#ocdawareness #childrensmentalhealth #parentingstruggles