#92: Cleaning the garage
Sometimes wins are big and elaborate. And others are significant in their smallness. This week was one of the latter.
Magically divine gas
From the Babylon Bee: Man Taken Up Into Heaven After Stopping Gas Pump Exactly On The ‘.00’:
A local man has been taken up directly to heaven after managing to miraculously stop a gas pump exactly on the “.00” while filling up his car, sources say.
Cue rueful chuckle with a tinge of sorrow.
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When I saw this, I was struck by how perfectly it illustrates OCD for me. Granted, it’s intended as a joke, but it is so close to the truth that plays in my mind, and of many I know.
Scrupulosity is a form of OCD that I describe as perfectionism with the constant threat of eternal damnation. This is my flavor.
In many ways, it is the other end of the stick of this joke. In almost every endeavor, there is a “right” way, a “pure” way to do it. Failing to find and perform that means you are fast-tracked for hell.
This also illustrates OCD because we know these thoughts are ridiculous. Rationally, we can’t swallow what our brain claims and demands. But sometimes, its grip is too strong, and we find ourselves bowing down to serve the compulsions, all the time hating ourselves for our weakness.
So, yes, we will join with you in laughing at a hyperbolic joke. But we’ll hurt a little on the inside too.
#91: Shiny thoughts
#90: Weighted jacket
This week I share a painful therapy experience when I came to recognize the compulsions in my mind.
#89: Buying windows
This week, I share the surprising story of how I found a new client, and learned (again!) to sit with my emotions.
#88: Disallowed emotions
This week’s update shares acknowledging disallowed emotions, a small win in the kitchen, and my reaction to making goals.
#87: The right buttermints
The story of an unexpected gift, and the intense emotions it stirred up.
#86: Mental toll
In this update, I share the exhausting role of single parenting for a few days, success with timeblocking, and publicly announcing my professional transition to being independent.
#85: I’m a sailor
After a week off, I share about loss of insight in a therapy session, a delightful sailing trip, and working to restrain crippling perfectionism.
#84: The wrong name
This week, I share the struggles I had at our annual homeschool conference, the joys of teaching a class, and processing it all with my therapist.