I believe that OCD is nothing more than a control mechanism. All it means is that our brains are moving so fast and wildly, that some part of the brain needs to control it, through some mechanism. When all the parts of our brain are shooting so rapidly in thousands of places, without us being prepared for such movement, the brain starts to develop 'what-if' statements to place such activity in a cage. I have come to learn that, despite conventional belief, that OCD is there to PROTECT us. I have a major feeling that if the OCD was just taken away from us, we'd probably be diagnosed with schizophrenia.
There were several articles I read a while back that stated that: OCD and schizophrenia have very similar brain activity. If you want you can Google "Similarities between OCD and Schizophrenia", and you'll find so many websites pointing to the same fact. Now, I know it's hard to believe this at first, but it makes so much sense to me. OCD is just the brain's way of protecting us from having no control of our brains, leading to schizophrenic/psychotic episodes. Think about it. Whenever we give in to the compulsion, we get this feeling of relaxation within our brains. It's this sudden feeling of relief. Why is that though? Why? Is it because initially our brains were swaying around in a schizo-like manner, and then it needed some sort of control mechanism to calm it down? Who knows?! Maybe OCD was there to protect us! But even though there is that possibility, that doesn't change the fact that OCD still SUCKS, BIG TIME!
It is true that Psychiatrists and Psychologists are men and women of good hearts, and are willing to do what it takes to help you. But at the end of the day, they don't have first hand experience. One needs to go into the mind of an OCD sufferer to truly understand what it means. It seems that OCD almost takes away one's free will! There are so many things we wish to do in life, but it always takes such things away from us. And from such misery, we drown further and further down into a completely voided life. I know it's hard, and that it drains all the life in you. However, there are ways to deal with it. There is no such thing as a cure or 'full remedy'. But there are ways to deal with it. All over the planet, everyone seems to be dealing with this one little thing, or one big thing, that they just can't get rid of. To you, it's OCD, but to them, it's something else. Everyone has their personal curse. Yet we were made not only to survive, but to learn how to cope.
Since OCD is a control mechanism, how do we deal with it? WE GO OUT OF CONTROL! And when I say that, I don't mean that we literally go crazy and start breaking the first thing we see. No. What I mean is that we do things in an extravagant manner. When in the car, listen to very loud music. When you walk around, keep your eyes alert, scanning everything and maintaining wild eyes. When we jog, instead of running at a low pace, run as fast as hell. When you go out with friends, go to places you've never been before. Expand you experiences. If you have a punching bag at home, punch it and punch it until you feel your knuckles go numb. If OCD is there to control our brains from not going crazy, then go crazy one bout at a time. OCD is your friend. It's telling you, "John Doe, I know that I suck. But if you measure the lesser of two evils, I am there to protect you." So if you'd ever want to relieve yourself from OCD, you have to exceed the limits of the things you do. It's not about going crazy and wild all the time. It's only about letting your mind free, by doing new things everyday, and exceeding the limits in the things you do, even though you do so only in certain hours of the day.
So basically the solution is this: Find HEALTHY ways to go out of control. You can't go out of control by causing emotional harm to those you love. If you paint: Go into a room, get a large poster, and go wild by throwing random colors on the poster. A long time ago, in the days of barbarity, people used to use this excess energy in the mind to run away from and hunt animals. Who knows? Maybe if we were back in those times, we would've been pretty decent hunters! But that doesn't change the fact that we live in an era with excess technology and relaxation from the dangers of beasts. Thus, we have to find channels, or methods, with which to allow this wild side within us to be expressed.
At the end of the day, we can't put all our hopes on the traditional methods to treat OCD. We need to find our own ways, because everyone is different. What works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. Every single day, we learn new ways to cope. It's not easy at all. Sometimes with OCD, you begin to feel as though everything is a dream of some sort, because when the suffering gets so immense, our grip on reality somewhat lessens. Finding new ways to cope is a personal thing. Each OCD sufferer has to find his own techniques that would give him that grip on OCD. I wish I could say I found a cure, but I haven't. I believe OCD is far too complex to be dealt with by a certain antidote. Who knows, maybe you can use OCD to your advantage. Since we are SO persistent in fulfilling those compulsions, we can use that quality of persistence on something else productive. Although, it doesn't change the fact that it totally sucks. The way I dealt with it, is by trying to push the limits of everything. I don't mean breaking the law or harming others. I mean doing NORMAL things extravagantly, because the more you allow life experiences to be embraced, the more neural connections we would form. And when that happens, our brains reprogram themselves.
The method I gave of 'going crazy one small bout at a time' is merely a philosophy. And I believe that philosophies define the core root of our psyching. If we are able to change our philosophy on life, then we can also change the working of our mind. Who knows? Maybe the 'philosophy' I mentioned above may not work for you. Maybe you'd need to find another one. The one that works for you may be hard to find (which means that nothing is certain. Although, you must learn to deal with uncertainty!). Sometimes you can find the right philosophy in a great book, or from a life experience. We have to keep seeking for that peace we crave. It takes a lot of hard work, but in the end, if you stick to your plan, it'll work out.
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