• nogooduser@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    149
    ·
    1 day ago

    I believe that ignorance leads people to think / claim that they have OCD. I used to think that I had OCD but after watching a documentary on it I realise that I’m just a little particular about how things should be.

      • CosmicTurtle0 [he/him]@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        73
        ·
        1 day ago

        I think people like rationalizing their behaviors so that they don’t seem weird. When really they are just being themselves.

        Behaviors become mental illnesses when they start to affect other parts of your life. Organizing your books by color is unusual and quirky, but not a mental illness.

        If you can’t leave a library because you have to organize their books by color, then it’s a mental illness.

        • atrielienz@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          39
          ·
          1 day ago

          My kid has autism. He once had a complete panic attack because we wouldn’t let him stay to organize the bottles at total win and more. He has never been diagnosed with OCD and my understanding after talking to his neurologist about it is that this was a stim for him, and not necessarily OCD behavior. There have been other instances all through his childhood like this one, and I can’t help but think that having a completely different disorder or Neurodivergence also adds to people self diagnosing because there’s way too many people who don’t know they’re neurodivergent.

          • idiomaddict@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            23
            ·
            1 day ago

            I was straight up diagnosed with OCD as a child because they really didn’t want to believe a girl had autism. Throughout my life I’ve struggled with compulsions when I’m mentally struggling and had zero issues when things are otherwise calm (sometimes I’ll go years without any symptoms). I’d never thought of it as a stim, but it absolutely is a thing for me to focus on to release mental pressure/sort through inputs. That’s totally a stim.

            Sorry to do the thing that this thread is about in the thread.

            • atrielienz@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              10
              ·
              edit-2
              1 day ago

              Don’t apologize. It’s okay to express yourself and there’s nothing wrong with relating your story.

              I was diagnosed with ADD (now called ADHD inattentive type) when I was a kid and got basically no support for it because my younger brother was diagnosed with Autism at or around the same time. It turns out my sister also has ADHD (and was diagnosed as an adult), and got no support and stims are fairly common. There’s a lot of behaviors in my own life that I didn’t recognize as stims until years later. It seems a lot of us feel fell through the cracks so to speak.

        • Wren@lemmy.today
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          6
          ·
          edit-2
          1 day ago

          It’s a lack of mental health care and education.

          I don’t have a formal ADHD diagnosis beyond a questionnaire given by a psychiatrist, and even that was a six month wait to start getting proper meds — a process that continues to be a fucking nightmare. Hospital visits give me near anxiety attacks because I don’t know if I’m going to see a decent doctor or someone who reams me out because I don’t have a “real” diagnoses.

          I’m on waitlists for a formal diagnosis and specialized care, have been for years. During that time one of the ADHD institutions shut down over lack of funding. I could have skipped the line by going private and paying thousands, but I don’t have that.

          • Fiona@lemmy.blahaj.zone
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            8 hours ago

            Also in some cases simple ableism:

            I am highly certain that I have autism, for many reasons, up to and including the screener results when I got my gender-dysphoria diagnosis, but I have made an active decision against getting an official diagnosis, because it would not as of now bring me any advantages, but would for example rid me of the possibility to ever move to certain countries. So what would be the point?

            The main struggles I have are in interactions with other people and that is getting a bit better these days and having a friend group that almost exclusively consists of neurodiverse folks who have learned to deal with some of my quirks and a girlfriend who has a diagnosis of both autism and ADHD helps a lot as well. Why would I then put effort in to get a confirmation for something where I kinda already know the result? It would be like taking an IQ-test (A comparison that my psych found quite fitting in fact).

            • Wren@lemmy.today
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              edit-2
              7 hours ago

              Every doctor and psyche I spoke to told me an official diagnosis will make it easier to get my medication and care.

              ADHD is a disorder, meaning it significantly reduces my quality of life to the point where I require therapy and medication to function. Since ADHD meds are super fun for non ADHD folk, without an official diagnosis I get accused of drug seeking by shitty doctors. I’ve gone months hitting brick walls trying to get meds I’d already been prescribed because of it. I could even get partial disability payments for periods of time I’m unable to work, or unable to find work that fit my needs.

              I dropped out of university twice because of ADHD symptoms I didn’t know were part of a disorder at the time, with a diagnosis I could get a modified program.

              An official diagnosis for ADHD is not at all like getting an IQ test where I live.

        • dil@piefed.zip
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          1 day ago

          Unless your parents did it for you, idk how ppl who think they have adhd even get diagnosed, I needed to get my insurance changed for the county I was living in at the time or some shit, I never went to get checked again. Had been academically disqualified at that point, somehow did 2 years at community college, got reinstated to the school, and graduated with my bachelors, took me an extra 2 years and I had straight Cs but at least I did it. Now idk if I’ll ever get diagnosed, probably should, I abuse weed and nicotine to “self medicate” helps me focus on one thing at a time.

          • WaterSword@discuss.tchncs.de
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            5 hours ago

            I think that is fair. I also think that for ADHD, it’s different than something like OCD, because OCD can have way more traumatic effects, which get trivialised by people like in the comic. Adhd has this less in my opinion.

            • dil@piefed.zip
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 hour ago

              I really need to get diagnosed, have had intrusive thoughts since I was a kid and issues with hyperfocusing on bugs, honestly don’t know what I have prob mild adhd/ocd. Just googling the venn diagram, I’m like yep that’s me. The OCD side is incosistent tho. I seek less reassurance and have gotten less obsessive over time, I hope.

      • Digitalprimate@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        4
        ·
        1 day ago

        I think you’re right in the main. And I also think that some people don’t realize they have a disorder until they see it manifest in others and realize “shit I do that too.” Sometimes they are right, sometimes not.

    • BlameTheAntifa@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      34
      arrow-down
      3
      ·
      1 day ago

      It’s a genuinely dangerous ignorance.

      Things like food allergies aren’t taken seriously because Karen doesn’t like onions or seafood and tells everyone she’s allergic. It’s not just ignorance at that point, it’s selfishness and a complete lack of empathy and reason.

      • Fiona@lemmy.blahaj.zone
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        8 hours ago

        I don’t care if Karen can’t eat them because she is allergic or because they taste like shit to her; if she hates them so much, then you are the problem for trying to make her eat something that she hates so much that she feels her only choice is to tell you it’s an allergy.

      • atrielienz@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        26
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        1 day ago

        As someone who is allergic to some foods and has to carry an epi pen everywhere I want to say that I do not care if Karen says they’re allergic to whatever. The problem is people who do not take food allergies seriously and assume that when someone says they have an allergy they actually have an allergy.

        If you’re one of those people who have to prove someone isn’t allergic, you’re not just an asshole, you’re an attempted murderer (not you, op, just people in general).

        • vithigar@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          8
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          1 day ago

          That Karen telling people she’s allergic is a contributing factor to why people don’t take allergies seriously.

          • infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            8
            ·
            edit-2
            1 day ago

            OK but let’s think why a person might feel like they have to lie about severity to secure compliance with a food request. I reckon the woman with a name that has transformed during her life into a gendered insult and an actual allergic person share a common struggle, a well-founded fear of betrayal by the person preparing their food.

            • vithigar@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              3
              ·
              1 day ago

              I have preferences for things I don’t like on my food and ask for removals or substitutions regularly. Sometimes those requests are forgotten or ignored and I will get it remade, or maybe I just suck it up and deal with it if it’s takeout and I’m a half hour from where I got the food. Not once in my entire life have I considered telling people I have an allergy.

              So yes, I have thought about why a person might feel like they have to lie about severity, and my conclusion is “that person is a self-centered asshole.”

              • infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                4
                ·
                1 day ago

                This kind of distills down to the “I suffer needlessly, so others should too” fallacy. Perhaps your food preferences aren’t as health-critical as other people’s, but I still think you’d be justified in demanding what you actually paid for more often. And you not doing so doesn’t mean that other people are assholes. Really, I think the food preparer who is inclined to take everyone’s food requirements less seriously merely because they get more food requirement requests is truly a real asshole, way before the person who realizes that framing their preference as a requirement more often gets them the respect that everybody’s preferences deserve.

                • vithigar@lemmy.ca
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  ·
                  1 day ago

                  I literally said that I do get it corrected unless doing so is a huge inconvenience for me.

                  I don’t lie about why I need special treatment.

                  • infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    1
                    ·
                    1 day ago

                    I suspect that it only takes one or two situations where a near certain mistake which would be a huge inconvenience to correct is averted by lying before the average person begins feeling safer lying from the outset as a general rule.

              • faythofdragons@slrpnk.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                22 hours ago

                Okay, but that’s just a preference. What about stuff like lactose intolerance, where it’s not an allergy, but it still makes somebody feel sick?

                If you knew a food made you sick, I could understand saying it was a milk allergy to make sure people actually knew it made you sick, even though that’s not the truth.

                • vithigar@lemmy.ca
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  1
                  ·
                  22 hours ago

                  Sure, that’s not a problem. Calling a legitimate sensitivity an “allergy” for the sake of expediency isn’t a problem. It’s still a legitimate dietary concern that needs similar handling.

          • atrielienz@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            7
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            1 day ago

            People should respect other people’s body autonomy where food dislikes are concerned just like they should for just about every other form of body autonomy. The fact that they don’t is the reason this problem exists.

            • vithigar@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              8
              ·
              1 day ago

              Yes, a person who asks for no onions shouldn’t get onions, but a dislike doesn’t require workspace and utensil sanitization to the same degree as an allergy.

              Someone saying they’re allergic but then getting food prepared on a surface that was just used for the thing they’re allergic to can still have a reaction to it, but it’s perfectly fine for someone who just didn’t want it on their food.

              Telling someone you’re allergic when you’re not either creates an enormous amount of extra work for the kitchen staff to avoid cross contamination, or reinforces not taking it seriously because they don’t and nothing bad happened. In both of those scenarios the person lying about being allergic is an asshole.

              • Wren@lemmy.today
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                5
                ·
                edit-2
                1 day ago

                I’m a former head chef of two kitchens, one that specialized in vegan/gluten free/specific diets. If someone feels the need to lie about an allergy, I don’t care as long as they understand their food might take another minute or two — if that. It doesn’t actually take that much longer. Food allergies are to be expected, it’s up to the chefs to organize their kitchens and train their staff to handle them.

                Edit: We used to get Jainists, who don’t eat onions or garlic as a religious thing. So I don’t care what people’s reasons are, I’m there to cook food they like that won’t make them sick.

                • vithigar@lemmy.ca
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  3
                  ·
                  1 day ago

                  That’s a fair point. Handling such request is part of the job, and if someone isn’t willing to do that then they aren’t doing their job correctly. I can definitely appreciate that perspective.

                  It’s unfortunate in both cases that someone with a preference and someone with an allergy don’t always get the appropriate response, but I still maintain that someone without an allergy saying that they do is just making things worse.

                  • Wren@lemmy.today
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    3
                    ·
                    1 day ago

                    I respect your stance. I inform folks about food stuff when I can and accept I can’t change everyone, only make the kitchen more efficient.

                    Even with all the bullshit it was a great feeling to be able to make safe, good food for people who had hard time finding places to eat out. Our integrity and no-questions-asked attitude was worth it.

        • brygphilomena@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          6
          arrow-down
          5
          ·
          1 day ago

          But it’s people like Karens that perpetuate the reason people don’t believe it.

          If they didn’t misuse the word, people would take it more seriously when they were told.

          • atrielienz@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            14
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            1 day ago

            I still find the people at fault who deliberately ignore the boundaries of people who say they don’t like a food. I’m unfortunately allergic to things I actually really do like, and wish I could eat.

            If someone doesn’t like something (their age doesn’t matter here), we should be more respectful of their autonomy over what they put in their body. Having to claim an allergy in order to have that taken seriously is the nuclear option after saying you don’t like something doesn’t work/isn’t respected.

            That people like me with allergies receive some of the fallout of that is still on the people trying to force others to eat foods they don’t want to or shouldn’t.

            • SoleInvictus@lemmy.blahaj.zone
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              9
              ·
              1 day ago

              I’m there with you. I’m properly allergic to a few foods I really love, including almonds and (non-celiac) wheat. My wheat allergy is just mild and I can avoid some of the fallout if I pop a Benadryl first. It’s likely an extension of my severe grass allergy, which also doesn’t kill me.

              Many people don’t understand food allergies, thinking food allergy means instant anaphylaxis. That’s when you see these “purity test” bullshit posts where the waiter refuses to serve the person “faking” an allergy for their own safety (and I’m sure everyone claps). I can eat about a pancake’s worth of wheat once every week or two and just be a bit uncomfortable for awhile. If I ate like a whole pancake breakfast? It gets ugly and uncomfortable, sometimes for a few days.

              So if I snag a bite of my partner’s pancake, I’m not faking an allergy. My self-control just sucks sometimes.

              • Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                7
                ·
                1 day ago

                This reminds me of people who get upset when somebody in a wheelchair stands up or walks. Some people have disabilities where they can physically stand and walk, but only for brief periods. So if they need to reach a can high on the shelf and nobody’s there to help them, yeah, some wheelchair users will stand up and get it themselves. It doesn’t mean they’re faking, or looking for attention, or whatever other bullshit such judgemental asswipes come up with.

                Likewise, people with allergies can have reactions that differ from person-to-person and that range in severity. It appears so obvious, which makes it wild how some folks can’t seem to comprehend that people can be different from each other.

          • infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            8
            ·
            edit-2
            1 day ago

            Conversely if people just honored dietary requests without question we probably wouldn’t have nearly so many people who feel like they have to lie about severity to secure dietary request compliance. In all cases the buck stops with the person making the food.

    • moondoggie@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      17
      ·
      1 day ago

      The biggest issue with most of these issues is that everyone has something a little bit like them. Everyone gets distracted or washes their hands or is sad. The difference is how much that thing interferes with your life. My ADHD causes all kinds of major problems just from the executive dysfunction side alone, let alone some of the other joys that come with having it. People want to feel special in any way they can and sometimes cosplaying their mental health is the way.

    • captainlezbian@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      1 day ago

      People also tend to point towards the most extreme versions of ocd in response. I have diagnosed ocd and it’s just the way my anxiety disorder manifests. I get fixated on a point of anxiety and spiral around it and before treatment would develop rituals to prevent those points. Locking the car door three times meant I was sure the door was locked for example.

      I still have low key anxiety every time I go on vacation that I left the door unlocked

    • frostedtrailblazer@lemmy.zip
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      edit-2
      1 day ago

      I feel people should instead say they’re neat/organizational freaks. The idea actually comes across accurately that way rather than making people actually believe you have a neurological condition.

    • falseWhite@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      8
      ·
      1 day ago

      For me it’s the opposite. Simply because I like to stay organized and prepared, everyone keeps telling me I have OCD. I don’t think I do. Maybe?

      • brygphilomena@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        1 day ago

        One of the major diagnostic criteria is that it gets in the way of you living your life or your happiness.

        Fastidiousness is not a personality disorder.

        • nogooduser@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          1 day ago

          I think that my Mum might have had undiagnosed OCD.

          She used to get up at 5am to tidy and clean the house before we got up for school and she’d clean it again when she got home from work, she’d clean everything as she went along and tidy up again before bed. It definitely negatively affected her life on a day to day basis by three or four hours a day.

      • Holytimes@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        edit-2
        1 day ago

        Even if you have a minor form of OCD. OCD right and proper gets actively in the way of living. Indirect unintentional self harm either in mental or physical is not uncommon.

        Unmanageable OCD is scary. Had a good friend in high school with serious OCD issues, which lead to hoarding issues and them passing away a few years back due to none of their family helping them and the mental health support in the USA being awful.

        OCD is a spectrum disorder like autism. If you think you have it ask a mental health care professional. Most of the time its very manageable and has no impact on your quality of life. But it’s better to seek help earlier then later.

        That all said, there’s a good chance the book girl in the comic is autistic or has OCD. But not in a major form of them.

      • Iunnrais@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        1 day ago

        If you like everything to be organized, you don’t have OCD. If you like everything to be organized and fly off the handle and become extremely upset to the point of life problems when things aren’t organized… you STILL don’t have OCD (but you might have OCPD or autism or BPD or something else).

        If you don’t really like organization all that much, but are irrationally terrified that your loved ones will die if the cleaning supplies aren’t put away properly, and then you forget if they weren’t away properly, so you go back to check and oh good they were, but then you aren’t sure you checked so you have to go back and check again, and you can’t leave the house because you have to check again because your family will DIE if this isn’t done right… then you have OCD.

        OCD is not a like of organization. OCD is an anxiety disorder, an irrational phobia disorder.