Yes, you can shorten my name. I just use that name so that posters will know that I am the mother of an OCDer.
I'm so glad that I've been able to help you some. It is indeed true that just knowing what OCD is and how it works will make one feel so much better. Knowledge is power.
When you do decide to choose a psychiatrist(for medicine) and/or a therapist(for OCD behavior therapy), please be sure to make a good choice. As we mentioned before, you can get the name of a doctor in your area by going on the website, www.ocfoundation.org. If you are unable to find one through this site, be very proactive when making your selection on your own. Call the doctor's office, talk to the nurse or the doctor, and ask point blank if he/she has experience in the treatment of OCD. If you don't get some sort of positive response to that question, don't use them. Most psychiatrists have studied OCD in their medical training and should know how to medicate for it. It's the therapist about which you have to be more selective.
OCD requires behavior therapy which teaches you not to be fearful by using gradual exposure to the fear that you have. You have to learn how to let the fearful thoughts flow, get a spike of anxiety, do not perform a compulsion, and then the anxiety will lessen. Therapists who know how to do this type of therapy are not very plentiful. A regular therapist will just want you to talk about your problems, feelings, and whether or not you are going through some sort of identity crisis. None of this talk therapy is effective for OCD. You will be wasting your time and money. Then you will end up feeling even worse. So make sure that you choose knowledgeable doctors. We had to go through three therapists before we found one who knew how to treat OCD. The first two kept trying to assign John's gay fears to him having a sexual identity crisis. It didn't make sense because he was too anxious, too fearful, too 24/7 worried about it. That's OCD, not an identity crisis. It's a shame that there are not more good OCD therapists available and that we have to do a lot of research to find a good one. But that's the way it is, and I just wanted to advise you of it ahead of time.
This was supposed to be a short note! Oh well, I didn't mind at all. Take care and keep in touch.
John's Mom