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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Doug Saving The Team on April 6, 2004, at 15:08:42
Hi,
My OCD exposure therapy was taken to an extreme in my opinion. We ate off the floor of his office, then he instructed me to eat off the floor that night in my college dorm room. I did, but got quite sick. Tell me if this is an irrational OCD fear: I fear that what I track in on my feet from going to parties and stuff got onto the floor such as illicit drugs or something like that, although I never took those, then when I ate off the floor, I was ingesting those things. Just to be clear, ingesting these things is a huge fear of mine, so understandably I am quite upset by this whole experience.
I fear by eating off the floor I may have ingested those bad things.
Your thoughts, please.
Posted by snapper on April 6, 2004, at 18:45:56
In reply to Limits of OCD exposure therapy being breached??, posted by Doug Saving The Team on April 6, 2004, at 15:08:42
Doug, I don't know specifically if your therapy was breached,and if doing what you did on your dorm room floor made you very ill, then I would say that that might be counter productive (just my thoughts)At the same time, being very afraid of drugs on your feet from a party and possibly ingesting them IS NOT just an irrational fear! However I would think that you and your therapist might be able to compromise and find a better way to expose you to your fears! I think the idea of ET is to help make you better, NOT physically sick! I don't see how making you ill could make you feel better! Afterall being stomach sick is in itself an irrational fear in many people with OCD.
snapper
Posted by snapper on April 6, 2004, at 18:54:37
In reply to Limits of OCD exposure therapy being breached??, posted by Doug Saving The Team on April 6, 2004, at 15:08:42
P.s. , Doug, I know that this fear of ingesting drugs from the floor and being carried in on peoples feet is an extreme fear for you, but let me ask you this? Do you know which came first the idea of ingesting drugs from parties on the floor and tracked in by peoples feet, or was it merely a fear that you "might want to eat off of the floor-to show yourself that indeed you are not afraid of the possibility that you might want to ingest drugs, you don't want to ingest" . In otherwards, which fear came first. Or have they both been intertwined from the beginning? Make sense?
let us know
snapper
Posted by Doug Saving The Team on April 6, 2004, at 19:41:34
In reply to Re: Limits of OCD exposure therapy being breached??, posted by snapper on April 6, 2004, at 18:54:37
Snapper,
Yes, that makes sense. The fears have been intertwined to an extent, but really the first fear was that I may have tracked in drugs on my shoes by going to parties. Then with this treatment, being advised to eat off the floor, and I did, I was fearful that as a result of eating off the floor I may have exposed myself to drugs.
So what is the solution here? If my fear is rational that I could track in drugs from a dance club or frat party I went to, then when I touch the bottom of my shoes while tying them, is it ok to then eat something? If that is rational fear, then I suppose I should not eat until I wash my hands?
This is all very frustrating. Let me note that while I cannot see anything in particular on my floor, it is rarely vacuumed, so I certainly could have tracked it in and it could be sitting there.
Also, Snapper, are you an expert in OCD or are you speaking from personal experience?
I am feeling better now, though all today I felt quite strange. What is the probability that I ate illicit drugs as a result of eating off the floor? I go to parties every weekend and my shoes sit there, so I'd guess a chance of 5%, but then again all that anxiety I had may have been just me reacting to realizing how great a fear it is for me and being concerned. If I did ingest something, will this have long term side effects? Will I be back to normal by tomorrow?
I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Doug> P.s. , Doug, I know that this fear of ingesting drugs from the floor and being carried in on peoples feet is an extreme fear for you, but let me ask you this? Do you know which came first the idea of ingesting drugs from parties on the floor and tracked in by peoples feet, or was it merely a fear that you "might want to eat off of the floor-to show yourself that indeed you are not afraid of the possibility that you might want to ingest drugs, you don't want to ingest" . In otherwards, which fear came first. Or have they both been intertwined from the beginning? Make sense?
> let us know
> snapper
Posted by Dr. Bob on April 6, 2004, at 20:01:23
In reply to Limits of OCD exposure therapy being breached??, posted by Doug Saving The Team on April 6, 2004, at 15:08:42
> My OCD exposure therapy was taken to an extreme in my opinion...
I'd like to redirect this thread to Psycho-Babble Psychology. Here's a link:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040402/msgs/333492.html
Thanks,
Bob
Posted by snapper on April 6, 2004, at 20:29:07
In reply to Redirect: OCD exposure therapy, posted by Dr. Bob on April 6, 2004, at 20:01:23
To Doug: Go over to PB Psychological Treatments and I will try and answer some of your ???'s
snapper
This is the end of the thread.
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