Just been diagnosed with OCD - does it ever get better?

[Oddnerd]

After putting it off for far too long I finally went to see a Doctor and she said I was pretty much the poster child for OCD or if not that, some very similar anxiety disorder.  I am taking cipralex (escitalopram) now, but she has strongly urged me to consider counseling.

I was wondering if anyone else in my situation has gone to counselling and had it produce a genuine improvement.  Can you can make the severity of the urges and the anxiety that results from ignoring them go away?  I know the medication helps, but I would like to try and get better and reduce my medication-dependency.  I am sure it sounds stupid, but I am someone who likes to feel in control of his life, and the idea of forever being dependent on medicine to function and avoid acting on my urges somehow feels like a blow to my dignity.

If anyone else could share their experiences dealing with this, and any experiences with counseling or medication I would love to read them.

[marc]

A good friend of mine has OCD and medication and counseling has helped her
quite a bit.

[Cilantro]

Yep, it definitely gets better. I was diagnosed with OCD as a child and saw a therapist for a year, but eventually went home to deal with it on my own and with my parents. It started bothering me again in my teens with a lot of weird, intrusive thoughts and compulsions, but at this point I've gotten past the worst of it on my own again. It's never gone away entirely, but being able to keep calm while I'm experiencing it, look at it objectively as a bug in my thought processes, and look back on previous experiences where the world didn't end because I didn't obey the compulsions helps.

[Birch531]

For sure it gets better! I have had OCD since I was 3 or 4 years old, and was officially diagnosed as a teenager. Medication can help, but a combo of medication and counseling is the most effective. Make sure you find a therapist with experience in OCD and who uses a cognitive-behavioral approach (including exposure and response prevention). A GREAT resource is the OCD Foundation website: www.ocfoundation.org.

I also strongly suggest going to an OCD support group in your area where you can meet others with it. I went to a support group for quite a while and it was so helpful.

I've had pretty much all the OCD symptoms out there: washing, checking, intrusive thoughts, mental rituals, health anxiety, etc. After years of experience with it (I'm 33 now), I can recognize when OCD is trying to get me and I try to "nip it in the bud" early so I don't go into a huge flare up. It's true there is no CURE for OCD, but it can become very, very manageable and not impact your life anymore, or very little. Feel free to message me if you have questions or just need support from someone who has been through it!!

[Oddnerd]

Thank you guys for your replies - I think I will take the advice about the support group.  I know it won't ever go away, but if I could just learn to manage it and convince myself that I am not going to burn my house down if I don't check the stove 5 times, that would be a great improvement.