Living with a spouse who has OCD

United States
November 5, 2007 8:18pm CST
My husband was diagnosed with severe OCD early in our marriage, after our first child was born. Miraculously we have been married for 18 years although there have been time when I have had to leave to get him to get help. It is the lonliest disease for the person who has to live with the OCD person because not alot of people understand the disease. Even my family doesn't really know what it's like. They don't understand why I "put up with his behavior". They don't understand that he just can't "STOP" his rituals. Currently his meds are not working at all and his symptoms are as bad as they hav ever been. It's har to explain to my 2 children also. It would really be nice to hear from some others living with someone affected by this disease. Yes it is a disease as it caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain!
1 person likes this
3 responses
6 Nov 07
I do not live with or have ever met for longer than a brief time anyone with OCD, but i'm sure its extremely hard and you have to be very patient and forgiving. You must have the heart of an angel. Do you ever find you have to leave to get away from things?
1 person likes this
• United States
7 Nov 07
Constantly! sometimes I have had to leave for several days just to get him go see a Dr when his meds weren't working. I have begun to learn not to hold in my anger when he says or does somehthing that hurts me or I will explode. It is a common practice of people with OCD to blame other for anything that goes wrong because they can't control it. Basically as long as everything goes the way he wants he is fine...but that is not how life is. Then throw a 16 year old and a 12 year old into that equation adn it's sure is a bumpy ride. Once I had to leave because he had a meltdown because me teenage daughter wouldn't get out of the bathroom fast enough, (he needed to get into the bathroom @ exactly 7:28 to perform countless rituals there and she was taking too long so he kicked the door in. the ful length mirror fell withing inches of her etting out of the shower and shattered. Then IO had a meltdown. She could of been hurt and he wasn't even thinling of about that. I packed up everything and left for several days until we could see a couselor and discuss me and the kids coming home. He is never violent towards us but is very irritable because he can't stop his rituals. the irony is htat he is a safety freak, again part of the illness, and when he realized what "coul" have happened he when crazy adn threatened to kill himslef. the psychologist helped us figure a way to help him cope with his anger and impatience because let's face it teenagers get on your nerves, but I think we are really lucky with my daughter because we don't have half the troule with her that I know some people have with kids this age. he only problem now is since thia episode, he will not discipline either of the kids, so it is like I am a single parent. He is afraid he will not know when to draw the line and stop from doing seomthing stupid so he says nothing, which is not working to good for me. He has also becaome a recluse lately and rarely goes to work. Luckily his neice is his assistant and she covers for him alot. I worry constantly that he will lose his job. But I try to just take it one day at time. Each day brings a new challenge, but I hang in there. That's what I vowed to do when we got married, and I am to stunbborn to give up yet!..lol
1 person likes this
• India
6 Nov 07
OCD is nothing but severe anxiety. It comes under anxiety-disorders. I do not know how long your husband is taking medicines.But medicines do work and reduce severeness of their disease. This is caused by Chemical Imbalance in the brain. The chemical is called Seritonine. This is the Chemical substance that keep one's mood elevation. Drop in seritonine levels cause this problem. The cause of drop in this chemical is atributed to somany reasons. Even now scientists are fighting to know the exact reason. One major cause is Genetical disorder. But what ever reason, there are now medicines available to increase the level of this substance. But the medicine have to be taken for a long time to see the results. To find out more please visit www.ocdcentre.com.
12 Dec 07
I have some smaller symptoms of OCD, I am told. Luckily, it is not very obvious or big and I don't tell many people, but I have odd "rituals" as you say i must do...