Help, Please!

Q.) Help, PLEASE! I don\\\'t know if I have OCD! {Yes, I know you get this a lot.} I\\\'m pretty sure I do; I\\\'ve always had strange rituals that I still have for some reason, like having to... um... say certain chant things, almost like a prayer of some sort, but not religious, if I ever think of someone dying or harm. Throughout my life, what I think is OCD has come in many forms; obsessing over being scared to go to bed and staying up until 2:00 AM for nothing, reciting chants, and even having to use the restroom every two seconds {not literally} because I\\\'m afraid I won\\\'t make it. I\\\'m nearly 13, so it\\\'s really, REALLY pathetic. I was raised normally, but when my sleeping problems developed, I saw a therapist. I told her about everything but the chants; maybe this is why I wasn\\\'t diagnosed with OCD. Last night, my mom said she thought I had OCD. I had no idea what that was, so I looked it up and took a couple of those \\\"Do You have OCD?\\\" quizzes. They all say I have OCD. PLEASE help me! ~Anonymous

A.) Yes, you are struggling with Obsessive thoughts. I want to let you know right now that you are ok. There is nothing wrong with you. Your brain would look normal in an mri scan. I used to be where you were and I was totally freaking out! Seriously I thought I was the only one in the world! I thought I was going crazy and that they would lock me up in the state hospital! I can assure you, this won't happen to you! The fact that you fear this shows that you ARE NORMAL! So take a deep breath and relax, I've been there, and this is what I've found.

We create our fears. We don't know how or why so don't worry about that. It just happens. There is nothing wrong with fear, it's necessary in this world. So is anxiety. Fear and anxiety keep us safe.

Sometimes we react to things out of fear when others wouldn't. That's ok. The biggest secret, is to realize that all we are doing is reacting to a thought with fear. You have TOTAL control over this. This might sound strange, but don't worry about controlling your thoughts. The more control you let go, the more you will have.

Just realize that no one in this world can control what thoughts pop into their head, NO ONE! We CAN control how we react to these thoughts.

Think about someone you know that does not have OCD. How would they react to a thought of one of their family members dying? They would probably in their minds, say, that would be horrible, but they're alive, it's ok, then they would move on.

So how can you get to this? Be comforted knowing you have everything you need to think normally, you don't have to go to the store or go to a counselor or take medication to achieve this, although, they can be beneficial. I always say to use all the tools that are available to us.

The next time you fear something, ask yourself, how would someone without OCD react to this thought. If you don't know, ask someone you know that doesn't have OCD how they would react, then copy what they would do. If you want to be free of OCD, just realize that millions and millions have felt the way you do now and much worse!

Know that you are completely normal and that you WILL BECOME OCD FREE! Decide that is what you will do, and tackle each one of your obsessions one by one, refuse to do them and get a buddy or parent to help you through the anxiety. Take a break for an hour or two, then try again. You can do it! I believe in you! If I could do it, then you DEFINITELY CAN!

"Decide to be mentally free today!"