From my OCD? Please help

Alright, I was diagnosed with OCD at age 13 and it hasn't been awful bad, just things like having to close doors a certain amount of times, flicking light switches on and off, checking the stove/etc etc to make sure theyre off repeatedly, that sort of stuff.

Well tomorrow morning at 9:15 am I have to get two teeth extracted. They both started going bad at age 14 and i'm 18 now (turned it October 1st) But I never went to the dentist and everytime my parents tried to i'd just run away from home for a day or two and come back because I have a horrid fear of the dentist (but realise now itll do me alot more good to get them removed than to keep them in, especially seeings as how infected they were and how painful they are)
(also a little note about somethign that im pretty sure set all this in motion - my aunt died from sepsis from a tooth infection about 2 years ago and now that im getting mine extracted its all i can think about, going in for a normal tooth extraction and next thing i know im dying im a hospital bed)

Well i've been on penicillin for about a month now for the infection and have been absolutely obsessed with germs and bacteria and such this whole time and it's only gotten worse. I've lost 18 pounds so far since about 1 - 1 1/2 weeks into november, which im assuming isnt good at all. the reason for this is because i'm too terrified of germs to eat, the only things ill put in my body as nourishment are things that i read about having um... disinfectent properties? germ killing i guess. for about a month now ive done nothing but drink tea (without sugar or anything), lemon juice, and loads of water. also taking about 3 garlic pills a day.

Well, I do 'eat' one 'food' if you could call it that, ive been obsessively eating cloves for the past week also because I read something in them can kill some germs. not eating huge amounts - only about 1-2 tablespoons worth a day (although thats probably a huge amount seeings as how most people dont make it a habit to eat cloves)

ive also developed a habit where i clean all the walls in my bedroom and all the door handles/sink faucet handles/etc etc etc with a mixture of bleach and water to kill any germs, i do this once every two days. I have to have something like tissue paper in my hand to open a door so the germs on the door handle dont get on my hand, and have to use germ-x afterwards even so, ive been carrying around one of the little bottles around with me everywhere i go. im just scared to eat because i cant help but think that all food is covered in germs and i'll end up getting a horrible infection and dying from them. all the plates/bowls/silverware are covered in germs, doors, my dog, family, friends...

it's really starting to worry me because im terrified to even give my mom or one of my friends a hug because im scared that they're covered in germs that will get on me and kill me. any cup i drink water or tea out of i have to totally cover in germ-x, then wash for about 2 minutes nonstop, and repeat until im satisfied i got all the germs off. i even do this between drinks (as in drink a cup of water and want more, ill have to do the whole process over again before i can drink out of the cup again.

sorry for ranting this is just really bothering me and i feel like im going insane and its scaring me

Don't use the word 'germ'' because it has bad connotations. Try calling them by more friendly names such as microorganisms or prokaryotes. Either way, they live everywhere and we cannot do anything about it. The total weight of all the bacteria in the world is greater than the weight of all the animals in the world. In fact, we would not survive without them. They live symbiotically with us.


They are our friends. Have you ever tried studying them? I mean, some people develop misconceptions about things and it scares them. I study microbiology and it has helped with my OCD. When I think of bacteria, I view them as friends, not foes.


Regarding the dentist - these procedures are 'perfected' nowadays and you have nothing to worry about. In fact, you may-well enjoy the experience.


Kevin.