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Could there really be benefits to having OCD?

It's not often, but sometimes to get a slight advantage on the bully that is OCD, I throw it a curve and think about the benefits of having OCD.

Yeah, I know, there aren't many. And maybe it's stretching it to say there are any at all.

But I came up with a few to throw in the bully's face.

First, I believe having OCD has made me a compassionate person. There's no way to truly understand mental illness without experiencing it, in my opinion. I have empathy for others that I might not have if I didn't experience OCD first hand.

I try hard to be non-judgmental. OK, I judge myself 90 percent of my waking hours -- but I do try hard to be non-judgmental of others. I give a lot of credit to my mother, who lived her life that way. But I also credit OCD. I have a better sense of what people may be going through because I know what I'm often going through.

Speaking of my mother, she was excellent in a crisis. She was a nurse and a caretaker for her ill and aging parents. So I picked up my crisis skills, in part, from her. But I'll also give OCD some credit here, too.

Why? I think because OCD puts so many imaginary crises in my head, that when I get to the real thing I either can handle it because I've had mental practice, or, frankly, it may not be as bad as OCD had me imagining in the first place.

I'm not saying, "Yay, I have OCD." But I am suggesting that maybe it's helped me develop skills -- like being empathetic toward others -- that I might not have gained otherwise.

And at least thinking of possible benefits once in a while takes the edge off, even for a moment.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

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