Compulsive texting/emailing

I have a problem with this and I don't know if it's OCD. I googled some stuff and some sites mentioned compulsion to text people to check they're OK, but that's not why I do it. It's more for reassurance that someone cares about me. If they don't reply immediately I start to doubt that they do.

I found this page http://www.alcoholismdrugabuse.com/#article/1331 which is a bit more like what I have, and it's clear to me that I fit the profile of what they discuss. But they don't discuss it in connection with OCD, it seems to be an addiction site. How do I know if this is OCD or 'just' an addiction? As I said, I do it for a reason, and there is reassurance and doubt.

I know I've asked this question before, sorry. It just bugs me that I can't answer it. I asked my doctor but he was useless.

This is probably going to be a bad answer (sorry!) but I think it can totally be a compulsion related to OCD as you do it to reduce doubt and get reassurance.
Maybe finding out if this or that is related to OCD is a kind of compulsion, too?

I think it's important for you to stop trying to find the answer of if you fancy all of these women and just not try to find the answer and be with your wife to be. This also relates to the texting/emailing too. I have problems with this as well where I think they don't like me if they don't respond right away and I get worried.

Tanja- that was totally the answer I wanted, not bad at all! Although I realise the need to know must be OCD because I'm already thinking 'but what if Tanja is wrong?'!

JDD-yes I think you are totally right. You must be going off a previous post as I don't think I mentioned fancying people here? But yes it is a big problem I have too.

-- Sat Feb 20, 2016 8:34 pm --

Sorry, I meant to add- thank you both.

I think 'the need to know' is recognised as an obsession. My psychologist told me about this. Apparently I have this too.

More things we have in common

In fact one of the first reasons I thought I might have OCD was that I was driving myself mad trying to work out why I do certain things. Like I'd feel guilty about something, Google it, see it can be a sign of a personality disorder. Then see it can also be a symptom of depression. Of course now I know it's a symptom of OCD too. So if I feel guilty about something I'll think to myself 'is this OCD, or depression, or maybe I have a personality disorder?' I'll google 'OCD and thinking friends don't care' trying to work out if it's OCD. Can't find anything. Think could it be something else and not OCD? Etc etc.

It gets tiring but I feel an absolute compulsion to work it all out. But when I think I have, I'll then doubt it and it starts all over again.

Are you still obsessed with personality disorders? I am too and it's been going on for months. I've been convinced that I've had all of them at one time or another. However, I do think I have some borderline traits as I have bipolar too and I'm a moody cow. My psychiatrist also thinks so, but not enough to qualify for the PD diagnosis. He must love me. I give him the Spanish Inquisition every time I see him.

Yeah, I think I have borderline traits too. But I don't think they are strong enough to count as the full disorder. I'm not obsessed with it any more.

It does confuse me- I thought before I knew about the OCD that BPD was making me think people didn't care about me, but now I wonder if it's OCD, so maybe some of the reasons I thought I had BPD are actually OCD... Who knows. I wish I could figure it all out.

Bipolar must be hard. I know I have depression and OCD, the rest is a puzzle.

I suppose a fear of abandonment is a symptom, but you probably know that if you're a compulsive Googler like me! To be honest OCD is pretty weird and I've worried that I might have the shizotypal, avoidant, OCPD and paranoid ones. I don't but I've literally wasted days researching it online and not just Wikipedia. I'm talking psychiatric journals and the like. Again, I don't know if that means OCD or if it's a sign of me being a weirdo.

I've also thought I had OCPD and histrionic as well as BPD (and yes I did know about the abandonment). I think the OCD makes us want to know more than 'normal' people do exactly what we have wrong with us.