Obession with numbers - what to do to stop it?

Hello everyone; i am new to the forums.

I have had anxiety for a while now and i have OCD behaviour. I have been to the doctors and seen a councellor and was referred to CBT with a professional; but the waiting list has been that long that i have never actually seen the profession to talk about the CBT.

I have an obession with numbers and watching the clock. It seemed to start off quite low key a few years ago; but now has taken over my life.

I wont eat if the clock says '13' on the digital display or if for example it says 10:48 as those numbers added together; make 13.

Also; another example; if i scratch my face or something like that; i dont seem to scratch it once; i will count 2 or 3 scratches; even though thr itch has gone.

If i get a glass out of the cupboard which has been washed and is clean; i seem to have this thing where i must rinse it under the tap 3 times to get rid of germs/dirt before i drink from it; even though it has been washed; cleaned; and put back in the cupboard; it all is very strange behaviour.

Any advice would be good as im sure people notice; and it is becoming very frustrating and taking over my life.

Thank you!?!

I have obsessions about numbers in some ways similar to you, like adding them up to make significant numbers, pausing TV when the numbers are symetrical, seeing numbers in everything and trying to find a pattern, liking significant dates etc. I am not sure what to do about it but it does not seem to intrude on my life as much as it does yours, I see it as an intellectual exercise if that makes sense. Have you told anyone about this? If not maybe you should? Good luck and you are not alone.

Cracked

I also have an obsession/fixation with certain numbers... especially the number 13. I notice that number all the time... if I look up and see that the time is 4:13 or 10:13, etc. it kinda startles me. I especially don't like the time 3:13... and if I wake up in the middle of the night and 13 is on the clock... it really freaks me out.

And sometimes I have to wait until the clock changes to 14 to continue what I'm doing. LIke if I'm about to leave the house and I notice the time shows 13... sometimes I won't leave until it changes to 14... like I'll think something bad will happen if I leave the house while 13 is on the clock...

Katchit wrote:If i get a glass out of the cupboard which has been washed and is clean; i seem to have this thing where i must rinse it under the tap 3 times to get rid of germs/dirt before i drink from it; even though it has been washed; cleaned; and put back in the cupboard; it all is very strange behaviour.

I do the same thing!!! Although I don't have to rinse the glass/dish a certain number of times. But, even though I know it's clean I have to rinse it before I'll use it. Just in case there's any soap residue or dirt, etc... I do the same with silverware a lot of the time...

EO

CBT is based on the idea that our thoughts influence our behaviour and vice versa. So if you change one, you can change the other.

If you want to start working on this, I suggest you pick one thing to start with. For example, you could try sitting down to eat at 10:10, but sitting down where you can't see the clock - you know that you'll still be there at 10:13, but you won't be able to see it happen. Nothing bad will happen, and over time you may be able to deal with that one.

Or with the glass, try rinsing it twice, then filling it with your drink, and reminding yourself that you won't have a problem with germs or dirt. Then, eventually only rinse it once. Eventually you can step down to not rinsing the glass at all.

Don't worry about what other people may or may not notice - people notice a lot less then they're given credit for. But the things that are frustrating you and taking over your life, definitely have a go at dealing with those (:

Hello.

Thank you for the replies.

I think that is good advice about trying to rinse the glass for example, twice instead of 2 times, and then once instead of twice.

I also think the idea with the clock is a good one, i.e. so i cannot see the clock but know when i am eating, etc...

Thank you for your help everyone.

I do appreciate the replies!