could i get some advice if you're kind enough to help me?

[davep]

i've recently (maybe in the past 3 months) developed an intense phobia of aids/syphilus/anything the immune system can handle. what is rediculous is that im not sexually active, have never shared, or used for that matter, needles. ive convinced myself that blood and other body fluids are on everything in public places. i wash my hands constantly. showering takes forever. ive devised elaborate rituals of eating and sleeping, and both have been effected negatively. i handle my laundry only after prepping like a surgeon. i see no improvement in my condition. its getting worse. i dont sit in certain chairs because they've had shoes on them, and shoes could have some fluid on them that could get in through my groin. i think ive taken a quirk and slowly developed it to the point of insanity. i know that people arent catching aids like a cold. health teachers arent lecturing on the dangers of handling food after touching a doorknob. but i cant convince myself im safe. its as if im covered in scorpians and im the only one who can see them. is there anything i can do myself to stop this unhealthy obsession, short of medicating myself? oh, and maybe this is relavant: i tend to focus on number of washes and number of steps to contamination from the original contaigant.

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[ckent]

You should see your doctor or a therapist. Talk therapy with a psychologist is quite effective for some, but there are some benign medicines (few side effects) out there that you can take that might help too.

 

[Kluver Bucy]

Your language is sprinkled with text book terms such as "phobia" and "elaborate rituals" and your description is unusually stereotypical. Assuming you are telling the truth, you've obviously done your research and know what to do next.

Originally posted by davep
i've recently (maybe in the past 3 months) developed an intense phobia of aids/syphilus/anything the immune system can handle. what is rediculous is that im not sexually active, have never shared, or used for that matter, needles. ive convinced myself that blood and other body fluids are on everything in public places. i wash my hands constantly. showering takes forever. ive devised elaborate rituals of eating and sleeping, and both have been effected negatively. i handle my laundry only after prepping like a surgeon. i see no improvement in my condition. its getting worse. i dont sit in certain chairs because they've had shoes on them, and shoes could have some fluid on them that could get in through my groin. i think ive taken a quirk and slowly developed it to the point of insanity. i know that people arent catching aids like a cold. health teachers arent lecturing on the dangers of handling food after touching a doorknob. but i cant convince myself im safe. its as if im covered in scorpians and im the only one who can see them. is there anything i can do myself to stop this unhealthy obsession, short of medicating myself? oh, and maybe this is relavant: i tend to focus on number of washes and number of steps to contamination from the original contaigant.

 

[jimdo]

Many forms of therapies are available to those with obsessive compulsive disorder... Treatment begins with a therapy and medications such as Zoloft may prove beneficial. Begin therapy to engage this subject in a professional setting. Otherwise, it will get worse.

On another note, I find it very disappointing that those who profess to want to help others as physicians are so judgemental on this board. It may be true that the person is not telling the truth. However, if he is and is genuinely concerned, your lack of sympathy will do nothing more than prevent him from seeking help down the line. Isnt this supposed to be a psychiatry forum? I hope your psychiatry practice is not as judgemental as youve been here. Give people the benefit of the doubt until they prove you wrong.