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OCD By the Numbers

1 = good
2 = good (but 2 x 2 bad)
3 = good (but 3 x 2 bad)
4 = fair
5 = good
6 = bad (but 6 x 2 fair)
7 = good (but 7 x 2 bad)
8 = bad
9 = good
10 = good

One of my primary compulsions is “good” numbers and “bad” numbers. I can eat 2 M&Ms for instance, but if I eat 4, I need to eat a 5th. If not, I feel uncomfortable – like something will go terribly wrong. I’m not sure what, but it’ll be something and it’ll be bad. It’s like an unscratchable itch that doesn’t go away until I eat that 5th M&M. It sounds crazy – and maybe it is. But that’s true for a lot of OCD obsessions and compulsions.

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