Do I have OCD?

Thing is, this goes beyond symmetry or finding numbers pleasing in and of themselves. You really can't explain it to someone who doesn't suffer from it. When it gets really bad, it's almost like the numbers are *controlling* you - like they're messages sent to guide you or warn you. It can be quite scary.

My 22 thing isn't as bad as it used to be. I've kind of recconciled myself to the 22's. I decided that they weren't a good omen - *or* a bad omen, just a sign that I was "supposed" to be there. Like a little "hello" from the cosmos. Once I managed to strip them of their ominousness, I stopped noticing them so much.

Are you able to reassign meanings to threatening numbers? To associate 22 (say) with something which always makes you happy whenever you see it, in a sort of cognitive therapy way? Or do you have no control over the numbers whatsoever?

It's not the threatening vs. happy aspect of the numbers that is terrible, it's the *control* they seem to have over you.

I don't know that 22 was ever "threatening" (unless of course I got it in a flight number or something) - but it really felt like I was being controlled by something. It felt terribly significant.

Thanks for explaining that, Kate. Did the feeling that particular numbers were so significant ever actually stop you getting on a plane because they appeared in the ticket number or the flight number, fr'instance? Or do you just have a heightened awareness that particular numbers 'exist'?

Sorry if I'm boring you with all these questions, but I do find this stuff genuinely very interesting :)

I just wanted to reassure the original poster that this "numerical mania" is a fairly common symptom of our disease.

i have some er 'knowledge' of this sort of OCD thing and also agree with the above; my email works if anyone would like to talk about anything they don't want to be googleable or archived on ILX forever

Yeah, given that my mania is really crazy when I'm off my meds and centers on referential stuff, it makes sense that this is just a lesser version of that.

Best,

C.C.

I say, "Satan, what is the square root of Jehovah, motherfucker?!?!"

I am never let down.

heyy! soooooo OCD

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRjH9xI8JyuLMN4ACl9qoUmwLZ8dX15oGzN599SjYEDvcEUEDbwOOeSsQ8kSg

is this the thread?

what do you know about obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)?

You might be looking for this one?