Hello, I am here for my 10 year old daughter who I am convinced has OCD. She has been showing signs for 3 years. We are on a waiting list with CAMHS to get an assessment and help. My daughter has lots of intrusive thoughts and compulsions which mainly involve odd movements and sounds. Sometimes she gets so upset having to do these things. I'm looking for suggestions on how I can support her when she gets very upset and repetitive?
My daughter's OCD: Hello, I am here for my 1... - OCD Support
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My daughter's OCD
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Auntbessy
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It's really helpful for OCD sufferers when other people are patient, don't interfere, just support! It can be trying for those around the OCD sufferer, but their quiet patience and toleration is a boon.
Most therapists insist that you must not actively enable someone's OCD, but in practice this is very difficult. Observing someone in distress without doing something to help is very hard. But as far as possible, just let your daughter get on with it. Just having you there for her can help her.
There are a number of books available aimed at children. I'm not an expert on these, but a quick google brings up titles such as What to do when your Brain gets Stuck: A Kid's Guide to Overcoming OCD or Breaking Free from OCD: A CBT Guide for Young People and Their Families and lots of others. Make sure that any you choose use CBT, or cognitive behavioural therapy, techniques.
CBT is effective, but not easy to do. But practice does help, and it's a matter of try and fail and try again. Best, I think, not to celebrate successes, as this can make someone feel self-conscious and awkward. Just let your daughter know that each attempt, whether or not it succeeds, is a little step forward.
I had a few little tics when I was a child, and this developed into an elaborate ritual of counting and touching lots of different parts of my body which I felt I had to do each day. It became increasingly irksome and I managed to chip away at it until it was almost gone. And then I got rid of it altogether. I didn't know that it was OCD then, as it wasn't much known about, but I had sporadic symptoms which became acute in my early 20s. Learning CBT techniques when she is young should help your daughter to keep it at bay.
Best of luck with helping your daughter to attack her OCD, and feel free to come on this forum again.
I ought to have added, make an appointment with your GP for her and ask for a referral to CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service). There is rather a long waiting list, and it is appallingly underfunded, but they can give her professional treatment.
There are private therapists, but if you use them, make sure that they are properly qualified and use CBT techniques. If they promise a miracle cure but don't tell you how they do it, or try to lure you in with a fee, they are frauds. Don't touch them with a bargepole!
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