Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT

The OCD Soapbox

(1/32) > >>

AntiEntropy:
I've probably just about hit the limit on this subject, so here's my own little thread.  Feel free to a) comment, b) ignore, or c) throw tomatoes.  I will stop after this, I promise.

OCD girl, as far as we know at this time, smokes, has at least eight piercings (in her ears), counts things for a living, washes her hands a lot, and is fairly open about all this.

She has said to Marten that sex is "yucky" ("too many germs and fluids") but keep in mind this is a guy she knows little about and is inviting back to her apartment.  She could be being honest about her aversion to sex or she may be keeping herself safe -- testing him if you will.  "Yes, I'm OCD.  No, we're not having sex.  Do you still want to see me?"  She also has been listening to Marten talk openly so she knows he's at least a descent guy.

People with actual OCD (like me) can manifest it in many ways, but there are always two parts:

* The Obsession: something that bothers you that is difficult to control.  It could be germs; it could be bridges; it could be unwanted thoughts; it could be webcomics; it could be all of these things.

* The Compulsion: this is want the person does to keep them "safe" or to lessen the anxiety of the obsession.  It could hand washing; it could be swearing; it could be locking and unlocking the door three times; it could be writing a long posting about OCD.

One of the fun things about any fictional literature and especially about webcomic forums is talking about the characters as if they were real.  (I would start talking about something that Bruno had done and my wife would say, "Wait, is this one of your cartoon characters?!)

It is perfectly reasonable a consistent that OCD girl smokes, has piercing, drinks, invites people she just met back to her apartment, and (probably because of therapy) is quite open about her problems.  Yes, she's a fictional character, but it's nice that she's consistent with reality.

That's it.  Comment if you want to talk about it.  Otherwise I'll shut up.

honest abe:
I don't expect you to be an expert, just give me an IYHO answer...

OCD Girl said that she had been in therapy since she was 11.  Does OCD manifest itself that early in someone's life?

She is now a young 20something.  What sort of hardships and hurts would she have gone through during her high school years?  How might she fare now in a romantic relationship?

Just interested in your thoughts...

streever:
OCD can manifest at many ages!

and why be in therapy just for ocd? she may have had all types of problems...I was in speech therapy at 6, and it continued till I was 12...

as for OCD, I would like to second anti-entropies words :) I have found, too, that it is something which you as the sufferer REALISE is irrational, but it is NOT open to discussion--you still must answer to it. Though, it is controllable to some degree in public. (but this seems to make it worse later...)

AntiEntropy:

--- Quote from: streever ---OCD can manifest at many ages!
--- End quote ---


Agreed.  I've heard of it showing up as early as 13.  Eleven wouldn't out of the question.  It's early, but I think that's the point: "I've been sick a long time."

And yes, it's something you learn to live with.  You manage it.  It's like being an alcoholic is some ways -- probably more like anorexia, in that you still have to eat but you never have to drink.

SPOILER!

There's a scene in As Good As It Gets where Melvin (Nicholson) steps on a crack accidentally as he's opening the door for Carol (Helen Hunt).  Normally, he'd never do that, but he was distracted.  The fact that is doesn't bother him as much as it used to signify that he's getting better.  He also forgets to lock his door at one point -- another obsession.

These things are pretty accurate.  As you get better you notice you're not doing stuff as much, but you still do it (and you hate it).

I think this has a lot to do with OCD girl's humor about her condition.  It's like, "Let's get this on the table right now.  In fact, let's laugh about it!  I know, it's pretty weird, huh?"  That's a very healthy attitude.

Inlander:
My (mild) O.C.D. started manifesting itself when I was in primary school (i.e., pre-teen): when I was running around playing soccer I had to run out of my way to step on all the dead leaves on the ground.

As for the smoking, etc. - one possibility is that it's a side-effect of any drugs she may be taking.  When I was first medicated the drugs initially gave me cravings and compulsions to buy the weirdest things - such as cigarettes, even though I'd never smoked in my life, and black felt-tip pens, even though I had always used blue ones.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page