OCD and ADD — ADD Tip o the Day 284

Remember the movie, As Good As It Gets?  Jack Nicholson with OCD.  That’s the disorder, with symptoms.  But there is a spectrum, from style, traits, personality disorder, to (neurosis) disorder.  The majority of American males have obsessive-compulsive style, which doesn’t really bother anyone except their significant others.  Personality disorder means it bugs the heck out of everyone except the guy with it.

The OC style person is scrupulous, rational, detail oriented, frugal, inflexible, always right, unemotional, often indecisive.  Has very high standards for himself and others, concerned with right and wrong, sees things in black or white. Finds it hard to prioritize, everything is important. Can be a great employee, a real pain in the neck, and a disappointing mate for anyone seeking intimacy (ie a woman).  You want your accountant and your neurosurgeon to have this style.

If we have ADD or ADHD, a touch of OC can help.  The perfectionism can make procrastination and demoralization worse, but can make us try harder to do things right and not just slop thru, and motivates us to get things done. OC helps us pay attention to detail which the ADD could cause us to brush over.  The fear of making mistakes and the valuing of self control helps some with the impulsiveness and the blurting out and the frugality with excessive spending.

So it’s a trade off.  Therapy can help moderate some of the negative OC traits while keeping the helpful assets, but it’s hard work.

doug

These are my thoughts on this, and even tho I’m OC style, I’m not sure they’re all accurate.  Hopefully will get some helpful comments. 

quote of the day – a wise man once told me, don’t listen to what wise men tell you.