Hello! This is my first post. Since my teen years, I know I've had some repetitive movements of my fingers, ticks/twitches of my eyebrows and face, and counting even and odd numbers, often imagining doing so on my front teeth (sounds a bit odd, but that's what it is!) It was manageable and possibly annoying, but recently, it has been quite overwhelming.
For background: I am in my 60s, and I am a neurologist, and I've treated patients with OCD and tic disorders! During the pandemic, I was unfortunately diagnosed with leukemia. I've had a very tough few years, with initially a year of chemotherapy and months of hospitalization. After a relapse following a year of chemotherapy, three years ago this month, I had a bone marrow transplant. I have a tremendous amount of PTSD related to medical trauma and terrible relapse anxiety, which is very difficult for me, considering I've spent my life in the hospital and with sick patients. I can no longer practice medicine, but I am doing many other interesting things, including getting a Master's in bioethics and extensive volunteer work/patient advocacy in oncology, and assisting many others with navigating the medical system and getting care.
I have a wonderful therapist at the cancer center. I have also started CBT with a psychologist, working on the medical trauma, as well as some aspects of what has been diagnosed as OCD. with ERP. However, I am thankful that I found this website and will start reading posts from others experiencing similar symptoms.
I would love any advice on how to deal with the continuous counting that goes on in my head. For example, when watching TV, often with the captions in place, I subconsciously count the letters in words to the point of often missing the content of the international TV movie or series I'm watching. Sometimes, even when people are talking, I calculate whether what they are saying has even or odd letters. In addition, I have a continuous twitch/flick of two fingers on my right hand, which has resulted in chronic pain in my right forearm and tendonitis, so these symptoms are not benign and just annoying anymore but interfering with things.
Lastly, I fully understand that relapse anxiety is very common in cancer patients, and I have worked with many of my patients with neurological disorders who are fearful of recurrence or exacerbation of the disease. The fact that I can rationally understand that not every bruise I have suggests I have active leukemia again, or on days when I'm particularly tired, doesn't mean I've relapsed is great. Still, it doesn't help the constant ruminations, flashbacks, and fears of leukemia returning. I am a very good patient and work well with my therapists, and I am also on medication that hopefully will help more as the therapy progresses.
Thanks so much for any of your suggestions, and good luck on your journeys!