Is there something that you're mildly OCD about?

Fire. I double triple check my curling iron is unplugged before I leave the house.

Keeping my hands clean. My 80 year old father had open heart surgery 4 years ago to replace a worn out aortic valve, and when they sent him home, they said that infection was his biggest threat and they told us to make sure that we kept our hands clean when we were tending to him and preparing his meals.

A year later my brother was diagnosed with a serious congential heart condition that had gone undiagnosed for 51 years, they told us that most babies with the condition die before they’re a year old, so no one at our hospital had even seen a case of an adult with this condition. Again, they told us that infection was one of the biggest obstacles to avoid. So I clean the kitchen before, and after I cook, and I wash my hands multiple times while I’m cooking, like if I touch the fridge or the microwave handle, or my cat, or the lid of the trashcan or the phone or the TV remote or anything else.

A good friend of mine, who had non-hodgkins leukemia died last year from what started out as a simple cut on his finger. He was 60. His cancer had been in remission for about 8 years, then he was doing some gardening and cut his finger. He died 3 weeks later.

I’m not one of those people who actually have OCD, I don’t rub my hands raw. I just pay very close attention to what I’m doing when I’m cooking or when I’m around people who are ill so as not to make their situations worse and I try to avoid picking up anything from sick kids that I could inadvertenly pass along to my Dad or brother.

I always carry wipes in my bag, when I go to a restaurant I usually wipe down the table myself. Have you ever noticed the waitresses carry around those disgusting wet rags and they use the same dirty rag to “clean” all of the tables.

I used to get very bad colds and bronchitis several times a year, before I started up my current cleanliness routine. Now I don’t.

If my hands are sticky, smelly, dusty or any number of things other than what they should feel like, I want to wash them desperately. I don’t use antibacterials or sanitizers or anything like that, I just like regular soap (preferably one that smells nice, like lavender) and water. Second best is just water when that’s all that’s available.

I hate open kitchen cabinet doors or drawers.

Oooo @Kardamom and @jca… we’d get along great. I must have my hands perfectly clean before I touch my partner. When I get out of the shower and head into bed I will turn off the lights with a tissue so my hands stay clean. You never know what they might be touching later. ;-)

Hand washing. I was raised by a Brahmin AND I have a crappy immune system, haha.
Also, I work at a university… And lots of the undergrads haven’t figured out hygiene or other basic human self-care out yet >_>

Toilet paper. It must roll over and not under.

@Pied_Pfeffer I’m with you on that one.

Also, eating candies that are in multiple colours; I endeavour to get to an even number of each colour so I aways start with eating the ones that are over-represented. Once I have an even number of each colour I eat one from each colour in sequence to keep the numbers as even as possible.

@Pied_Pfeffer Do you change it in other people’s houses?

@marinelife I have to tell this story. I have a friend who said she was very annoyed while living with a friend as roomates the other girl always left kitchen cabinets open (I actually didn’t even know that was a thing. That people leave cabinets open). Anyway, when she finally moved into her own place, there were still cabinets being left open. She realized all that time she herself was the person who leaves the cabinets open.

@JLeslie Yes, and I do it in public restrooms if it isn’t locked.

@Pied_Pfeffer Too funny. Well, if you ever come visit you don’t have to worry, the TP is the correct way.

I get a little obsessive about keys and keep checking they are still in my pocket.

Slightly???? Extremely!!!!!

@Pied_Pfeffer Why on earth would anyone install the roll under? I don’t get it. I was thinking of asking a question about it. It makes no sense at all to me and yes, I did change it at the inn the other night. I wish I could change it at work, but they paper is locked.

But is this OCD? I don’t think so.

You want OCD?

I spend hours combing through my lawn, weeding by hand, and cleaning up the leaves and berries and whatever else is there by hand, as well. But I’m not OCD. It’s a meditation, see?

@wundayatta Your point is understandable. I even wafted about posting on this thread because it could be considered taking a professional diagnosis of OCD offensive for those that have it. Now I wish I had adhered to my initial reaction. The reason for posting though is that I understood what @Mama_Cakes was asking. I should have included an additional note.

Weeding the yard is different than the toilet paper example. I used to weed the yard by hand as well. It has nothing to do with meditation. Nor does switching around a toilet paper roll. The latter is an obsession. I don’t know why; it just is.

@marinelife I whole-heatedly support you in keeping drawers and cabinet doors shut. My brother and I had a silent battle for years about this. I finally broke down and asked him why he leaves them open. He said that it allowed them to air out. I don’t buy it, and the silent battle continues.

Omg, I do the same as @downtide… I thought it was only me.

I don’t think about it much but after reading some of the answers, I have to admit I’m slightly amused with myself. I also have to have the TP rolled over. I have to keep items out of my house (bedroom is allowed to be a little sloppy since it’s private.) I have to triple check my curlers off in the morning, same with the coffee pot. I triple check the windows and doors are all locked. I double-check my dogs & birds have fresh water. I have to have my bathroom vanity clear of debris- nothing is to be left on it except decorative bamboo plants. Hopefully that’s most of it….lol

I’m OCD about my underwear and sock drawers. All my undies and socks are neatly folded in a very, very specific way and lined up in perfect rows. If they’re folded “wrong” by someone else, I’ll unfold then fold them “right.” I’m the same about the linen closet but not as insane- a towel turned the “wrong” way is noticed, but not corrected.

I’m very aware I’m OCD about it and pretty unapologetic. It’s one of my quirks and I’m not interested in changing that one part of myself. I tell my kids I’d be worse if they weren’t around to mess things up. LOL!

I always want everything to be in order with the books stacked neatly, the towels folded so each edge is even with each other edge. I also wipe down my own surroundings in restaurants and motels. When I see things out of place in stores, I often straighten them out.

I used to fell very strongly that hand wash cloths could not be dish cloths and the same for towels. I have always believed that there is right way and a wrong way to do things, but I have come to realize there are many different ways, and many of them are not wrong.

P. S. I have my toilet paper on a free standing holder and the users can decide for their selves.

Mildly OCD about?
I have all the shirts in my closet facing the same direction. I am not even sure if that is weird, but my wife doesn’t do that.

I’ve been given the look for wiping the table while others are eating or drinking. I cannot stand a spot on the table, it’s gross. I was watching Jon Stewart the other night and he had Robert Pattinson on and they were eating ice cream. There was ice cream spots all over the desk—it was driving me batshit! I felt like calling them…...

I have learned to avoid jigsaw puzzles, which tend to suck me into an ocd time-vortex from which escape is futile. Also I earn perfecto-fishes at the average rate of 17% of responses. That might qualify, lol.

@janedelila That reminded me of when we have company over. At their house, these are specific relatives I’m referring to, have laminate tables and those big old sectional couches with the laminate areas or cup holder where you can put your drinks.

At our house we have mostly wood furniture, including the dining room table, and they’ll come over and just set their glasses or cans of soda down anywhere. I’m always running around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to make sure there’s a coaster put under those drinks! We have one beautiful old walnut bookcase that still has a water ring on it from the 1960’s! We have to keep a potted plant over that spot, but it makes my skin crawl just thinking about it.

@downtide and @MilkyWay – Thank you! I thought that I was completely alone in eating multi-colored candies that way. I’m glad to know it’s not a club of one.

Laundry is something I’m a bit fussy about. I sort it specifically and when it’s not done that way, I get a little twitchy inside. I don’t say anything because I’m grateful to have a husaband that willingly does laundry. But inside… oof! It’s a laundry twitch-fest.

@filmfann I had no idea there were people who hang shirts any which way in their closet. I think my husband hangs his shirts the wrong direction, but he still does them all the same direction.

I don’t hang shirts in the closet at all. Well. Not regularly. I always wear polo shirts, which are folded and put in drawers. My wife folds them because I don’t do it right. The way I do it ruins the collars or something. Sigh.

^ You are so adorably sweet. :)

@wundayatta You don’t own any dress shirts or even suits or sportscoats?

@wundayatta I can’t imagine you wearing polo shirts. I don’t know why, but I’ve always pictured you as wearing long sleeved button up dress shirts, maybe with the sleeves rolled up, like This Guy. Isn’t that weird how we develop a visual image of other Jellies?

@Kardamom Oh, how funny. I don’t picture @wundayatta so clean cut. I have a more university liberal guy picture in my kind.

I’m going to do a Q for people to guess what others look like. I wonder if it will be a successful Q?

@JLeslie I own one suit that fits. I think I have a sports jacket and dress slacks that fit. I think I have two dress shirts, then about five button down shirts that fit. I own three fancy short sleeve chinese dressy shirts (my “jazz” shirts). I wear all of the above, combined, about six to twelve times a year.

I do look good in a button down shirt with sleeves rolled up, but there is so little call for me to look good. We don’t go out that much. Like I said—six to twelve times a year, and only one of those involves the suit. I don’t mind wearing suits in winter, but otherwise, I require short sleeves and shorts and the minimum amount of clothing I can get away with.

But I will dress up for a party. Or to go out. I like to look good. I just don’t get much excuse to do it.

@wundayatta OMG! You have some Chinese dressy shirts??? I absolutely love those. Any way for you to photograph them and post them on here?

I have a bunch of Mandarin collared women’s blouses that I absolutely love.

@wundayatta Those things you named do they all face the same direction in your closet? I assume those are all hanging.

I wish I had a bit of OCD when it comes time to clean the house, but not to the extent you are talking about. I’ve lived with a doctor for all but 12 years of my life and there was never any emphasis put on avoiding germs except when cleaning wounds or when one had an infectious disease like measles or mumps. Wash your hands and keep things reasonably clean was the rule.

@JLeslie I have no idea which way they are facing. When I get obsessive, I scan my old love letters and utility bills.

@Kardamom Sorry. I don’t have any pix. They all have those knot and loop fastenings and connect on the opposite side from the way I usually button shirts. And coming from China, there are no labels to say what they are made of. Some are clearly really unnatural fabrics, which I am probably allergic, too. But I’ve worn them anyway because they are so good looking, and, it seems, even I will do stupid things in the name of fashion sometimes.

There’s a lot of things I am mildly OCD about. Certain daily tasks require a specific routine and if I don’t follow that routine (even if the result is still the same) then it bothers me a little too much.

For example: At work, I use specific pens on specific days. This started as a way of seperating daily logs in one of my record books but has since turned into something I feel I must do. If I use the wrong pen on the wrong day it makes me very uncomfortable.

Yes I deffo do have a form of this – if I’m out walking the dog and we cross a road I have to be 3 strides on the pavement when the next car goes by…..my kitchen floor has to be spotless at all times which can be tricky with a dog in the winter months! I do that thing with a tissue when at a public loo whereby after I have washed my hands I get some tissue to open the doors on the way out etc….I dont think any of this is too unusual really….............

Cleanliness, germs, organization, bills. Unless everything is sorted to my specifications, I get uncomfortable. It comes in bursts though.