Wow, incredible balance of intimacy, honesty, and humor. Amazing work, Whitney! As your fellow idilic-white-childhood OCDer, this really resonated with me.
My theory is that repetitive thoughts are behind a few issues, basically the ones that fall into the 'serotonin re-uptake' category. Anxiety is basically an inability to control one's thoughts. You have some thought, and for most folks it would just fly through their heads, but if you have repetitive thought issues, you can latch onto that. It's not that you are actually going to kill your neighbor's dog with a salmon filet, you are actually thinking about the fact that you just thought about killing your neighbor's dog with a salmon filet. And then you starting thinking about the fact that you are thinking about the fact, and it just spirals out of control. None of it is REALLY about dogs or salmon, it's about your own inability to stop a cycle of thoughts. Next think [sic] you know you are curled up on the bed and wondering if you should call 911. As I always say, the fear of fear itself is more than enough, thank you Mr. Roosevelt. OCD is very similar, it's just that the repetitive thoughts are manifest in a different way. I think a lot of people who have one will have the other sometimes. Lint, it drives me crazy. I can't let it sit there, it has to be removed. I dream in cycles a lot. Presumably it's the same underlying issue. It's not that I'm doing repetitive things in the dream, but the dream content will wind around through a pattern. Even if I wake up it will continue as I try to go back to sleep sometimes. I had horrible problems with this stuff during the mid-90s into the mid-to late 2000s. Ultimately, for me, maybe similar to you, I just got tired of it. After the thousandth time of freaking out, you realize that you aren't going to die. You aren't going to have a heart attack. And I came to just see it as being like losing a limb. You just have to accept that you are inside a slightly broken machine, and sometimes it doesn't work perfectly. You can learn eventually to just get around it by being mindful of the symptoms and to separate the stresses from your reaction to the stresses. There are always real stresses, but the anxious or OCD person piles onto those with their own reactions, and then their reactions to their reactions, and their reactions to their reactions to their reactions, and on and on. You can learn to stop the onset of the reactions, or to damp them down considerably. Obviously some folks have more serious problems and may never get out of it without serious medication. But huge numbers of people, I think, have just run of the mill issues like mine. They scare themselves and they don't know that it's just them scaring themselves. They can waste a lot of precious time before figuring that out. I still have the same underlying problems as always, but I can now stop the cycle before it starts. BTW, nothing is all bad. Having these sorts of problems can also be a creativity machine, a pattern matching machine, etc... A lot of problems in the world need to be solved by extreme examination of the problem or by looking for connections between various things, or for creative people by constantly running little mini-movies through their heads. If you can learn to damp down the bad bits, you can sometimes benefit from the effect. I'm a software engineer, and thinking about logic patterns and finding relationships between the parts of problems is sort of part of the business. Sometimes, I'm doing something, like going for a walk, and I feel like it's been forever, but it's just that in the last ten minutes I just saved the world, became light middle weight MMA champion, re-lived that horror story guitar recital in school, won the lottery and used it to double literacy in America, discovered a new fundamental force of nature, and twenty other Walter Mitty'esque mini-movies, all running through my head. Anyway, sort of a long ramble there. But, hopefully it might help someone who is at the start of their 'adventure'.
I had a childhood like a shitty Lifetime movie. I'm PTSD, it brings crap like random things making me suicidal, magical thinking, irrational fear, and panic attacks. The fear and the panic are hard to deal with. I used to be OCD, I had a ritual for most everything, but I never tried to understand why. It's mostly gone away, or just turned into other things. I was ok with it, it made me good at my job, and helped keep other emotional issues under control. Still to this day, I can tell you what time it is to within 5-10 minutes. I suspect there's a thought process somewhere that is counting seconds. I vaguely remember doing that as a child, often.
Boy......that was one of the better OCD vids I have watched in a long time. You have a certain straightforward way of explaining your OCD traits that gives hope to those of us that struggle every day with this disease. Thank you.
Whitney, I so appreciated your frankness in this video. I've struggled with OCD and depression since the age of 10 and I developed social anxiety somewhere along the line as well. I've felt like a freak for more than half of my life because of my struggles with mental illness, but I'm so grateful that there are people like you out there who are willing to open up about their own similar struggles. I hope that there are some 7th grade boys and girls out there who will watch this video and feel a little less alone and freakish, knowing that there's someone like you out there who has felt what they have and that it's possible to make life with mental illness as livable as possible. P.s. I really hope to see a second season of Lonely Woman sometime soon!
I have clinical depression and seem prone to panic attacks. I constantly get mad at myself because I don't even have a bad life and I don't get why I still get depressed so often. My doctor says my "happy chemicals" in my brain don't work like most peoples do. I take Effexor, seems to help me feel normal. Loved this video Whitney! You have the rare ability to help us with mental stuff laugh at ourselves:)
I've always loved your channel and now I love it even more. I have OCD and I can totally relate to everything you mentioned, tapping things, giving a certain meaning to colours, etc. I also have intrusive thoughts, but that's not the point. I just wanted to thank you for making this video, you've opened up about your struggle in a very creative way that reminded me that sometimes we should laugh a bit about how fucked up we are. You're amazing. Can't wait to see you become famous.
One thing I really like about the "Lonely Woman" series, is that it felt authentic. I suspected it came from personal experiences with OCD, and the like.
I'm also on 40mg of lexapro and 3-6mg of klonopin. My psychiatrists (from which I bounce around due to avoidant behaviors/agoraphobia as a result of my OCD) are frustrated. I finally found a psychologist trained in OCD specifically and that has been working wonders for me. She knows my every waking thought, fear and self-doubt from her experience. Before that I was working with Freudian type therapists that wanted to trace everything back to a trauma. And I'm sure you must know, if you've dealt with a scary form of OCD, how fucking awful and horrible Freudian psychology is on OCD patients.
Thanks for sharing, that's courageous and helps other people with similar situations know they are not alone. I dislike how methodical and close minded some "experts" can be. I've encountered therapists that could not be less caring because it'd be illegal. In one experience, in the middle of been made to cry with questioning, the psychologist just shouts "Why can you JUST get over it?!", I was so shocked, I had no words. I had another therapist whom just says "aha" and I tested her a couple times to see if she was paying attention. No she did not, just randomly would say something she thinks we were talking about. The same lady, when we first met told me to stop, that it was too much for her to hear at once. I find taking care of myself to be best with what I've experienced so far. I mean, what kind of "care" is that? lol! ahhh, the things we go through sometimes, gotta laugh. I wish you the best through your life journey. Regardless of what issues you may be struggling with, remember you are built to overcome and succeed at whatever you put your mind to. I understand how hard it is to live with things you don't fully understand. Have a great weekend.
one of my struggles with ocd is always having to see everything, even if I'm late somewhere I have to stop running and closely examine something on the way bc I feel if I don't I won't be able to move on with my day
I struggle with an Anxious Personality Disorder and a couple social phobias like Agoraphobia.. It makes it harder to really get out there and accomplish my goals, because majority of the stuff in the world are done by socializing and basically struggling with this disorder it makes you avoid interacting face to face. Opening the door to the outside feels like i'm almost gonna pass out any near second and i always get very nervous and feel sort of "lost" when i'm surrounded by a lot of people, i feel awkward and think i don't look or present myself the right way like everyone else does, but that's the only way to help it really that you're surrounding yourself around people and go to places. It helps when someone close to me and i feel comfortable with is around me to leave me sort of "company" when i have to deal with important stuff, but that also makes me feel like i'm not strong enough, i depend on others too much and i'm not accomplishing things by myself..
Unlike most of the "i have ocd! omg! give me attention" type of videos, this is the most realistic and truthful depiction of the condition I have ever seen. Thanks. Keep fighting!
Just now trough your video I actually realize that I had an OCD as well...I mean I knew what OCD meant by definition but just now I actually realize what it can be trough those examples. My OCD was that whenever I saw something that I liked with some kind of logo or so, like Princess Peach in her Kart where she has her logo in the front, I would have to "recolor" it in my mind. Like I would paint the layers: black, white, yellow, red, blue, etc. and those layers would always have to add up to either 3,6,7,10,12 or 17. It was insane and I couldn't stop...if they didn't add up my mind would go crazy and I would freak out. One day it just stopped, as you said I think I just got really tired of it and freaking out all the time because of something so stupid...
Thanks for sharing this. I've found that making light of my own anxieties is one of the best ways for me to deal with them. Nothing better than laughing at myself.
I have to have the right music at the right moments. Or else no music at all. And not having a car or drivers lisence is a pretty big problem too(not a disorder or illness but it causes depression)
Thank you for sharing, it's awesome to have someone in my life who are willing to be open about the real them on such a public platform! Loving the little chat at the end that you do now too, feels extra personal
loved the video!!! i think my 'ocd' strugles are: always closing doors and drawers and having always a certain spot for each object, like being very organized
This was awesome! A nice way to share it too and the editing 🌮🌮🌮. I have anxiety that manifests in having to go to the bathroom immediately - which adds another layer of anxiety over 'will there be bathrooms wherever I'm at' fml. In high school I did the 200 crunches thing and you are absolutely right...it was a good thing. Maybe I should start that up again.
I suffer from intrusive thoughts of unworthiness, which often manifests in over-analyzing my interactions with others. I often misread into their intent, such as disliking me. For example, I wrote this comment 6 times because I am worried of offending you. I have had a long history of suffering for anxiety and depression, but have effective coping mechanisms - such as giving less frocks. Thank you for sharing this video with us, I love 'The Lonely Woman' series and find your channel a source of inspiration.
I have a bit of an obsessive personality, but I don't think I have any rituals, I do struggle with generalized anxiety though, and that's just great... I dig the long vids, keeps my mind occupied. Any possibility of a season 2 of Lonely Woman?
Dearest Whitney - I love your channel and your wide range of creative comedy. I look forward to everything you post! I have watched all of your videos (more than once) because I think you are hilarious! This was an interesting video. I am sorry that you suffer(ed?) from OCD. I am sure that's difficult. I am glad though that you sought help, but that therapist was an asshat. I was on Lexapro for many years, and it helped keep my depression somewhat at bay. I think it's a good drug, with little side effects. I am on another medication now, plus something for panic attacks. Loads of fun! Not. I would enjoy seeing you in full costume as the Wicked Witch - that would be awesome! Your impression was spot on. Anyway, I wish you all the best, and please, please come to NY to do a show! I would enjoy seeing you live. Have a good day.
Приколы
Wow, incredible balance of intimacy, honesty, and humor. Amazing work, Whitney! As your fellow idilic-white-childhood OCDer, this really resonated with me.
Thanks for sharing your own issues, everybody! It's a cool thing to be screwed up! xx
~*holds up screwdriver of the cocktail variety*~ Cheers.
My theory is that repetitive thoughts are behind a few issues, basically the ones that fall into the 'serotonin re-uptake' category.
Anxiety is basically an inability to control one's thoughts. You have some thought, and for most folks it would just fly through their heads, but if you have repetitive thought issues, you can latch onto that. It's not that you are actually going to kill your neighbor's dog with a salmon filet, you are actually thinking about the fact that you just thought about killing your neighbor's dog with a salmon filet. And then you starting thinking about the fact that you are thinking about the fact, and it just spirals out of control.
None of it is REALLY about dogs or salmon, it's about your own inability to stop a cycle of thoughts. Next think [sic] you know you are curled up on the bed and wondering if you should call 911. As I always say, the fear of fear itself is more than enough, thank you Mr. Roosevelt.
OCD is very similar, it's just that the repetitive thoughts are manifest in a different way. I think a lot of people who have one will have the other sometimes. Lint, it drives me crazy. I can't let it sit there, it has to be removed.
I dream in cycles a lot. Presumably it's the same underlying issue. It's not that I'm doing repetitive things in the dream, but the dream content will wind around through a pattern. Even if I wake up it will continue as I try to go back to sleep sometimes.
I had horrible problems with this stuff during the mid-90s into the mid-to late 2000s. Ultimately, for me, maybe similar to you, I just got tired of it. After the thousandth time of freaking out, you realize that you aren't going to die. You aren't going to have a heart attack. And I came to just see it as being like losing a limb. You just have to accept that you are inside a slightly broken machine, and sometimes it doesn't work perfectly. You can learn eventually to just get around it by being mindful of the symptoms and to separate the stresses from your reaction to the stresses.
There are always real stresses, but the anxious or OCD person piles onto those with their own reactions, and then their reactions to their reactions, and their reactions to their reactions to their reactions, and on and on. You can learn to stop the onset of the reactions, or to damp them down considerably.
Obviously some folks have more serious problems and may never get out of it without serious medication. But huge numbers of people, I think, have just run of the mill issues like mine. They scare themselves and they don't know that it's just them scaring themselves. They can waste a lot of precious time before figuring that out. I still have the same underlying problems as always, but I can now stop the cycle before it starts.
BTW, nothing is all bad. Having these sorts of problems can also be a creativity machine, a pattern matching machine, etc... A lot of problems in the world need to be solved by extreme examination of the problem or by looking for connections between various things, or for creative people by constantly running little mini-movies through their heads. If you can learn to damp down the bad bits, you can sometimes benefit from the effect. I'm a software engineer, and thinking about logic patterns and finding relationships between the parts of problems is sort of part of the business.
Sometimes, I'm doing something, like going for a walk, and I feel like it's been forever, but it's just that in the last ten minutes I just saved the world, became light middle weight MMA champion, re-lived that horror story guitar recital in school, won the lottery and used it to double literacy in America, discovered a new fundamental force of nature, and twenty other Walter Mitty'esque mini-movies, all running through my head.
Anyway, sort of a long ramble there. But, hopefully it might help someone who is at the start of their 'adventure'.
I had a childhood like a shitty Lifetime movie. I'm PTSD, it brings crap like random things making me suicidal, magical thinking, irrational fear, and panic attacks. The fear and the panic are hard to deal with.
I used to be OCD, I had a ritual for most everything, but I never tried to understand why. It's mostly gone away, or just turned into other things. I was ok with it, it made me good at my job, and helped keep other emotional issues under control.
Still to this day, I can tell you what time it is to within 5-10 minutes. I suspect there's a thought process somewhere that is counting seconds. I vaguely remember doing that as a child, often.
such a unique combination of vulnerable sharing and off-beat comedy here. i like it. thanks.
Boy......that was one of the better OCD vids I have watched in a long time. You have a certain straightforward way of explaining your OCD traits that gives hope to those of us that struggle every day with this disease. Thank you.
Whitney, I so appreciated your frankness in this video. I've struggled with OCD and depression since the age of 10 and I developed social anxiety somewhere along the line as well. I've felt like a freak for more than half of my life because of my struggles with mental illness, but I'm so grateful that there are people like you out there who are willing to open up about their own similar struggles. I hope that there are some 7th grade boys and girls out there who will watch this video and feel a little less alone and freakish, knowing that there's someone like you out there who has felt what they have and that it's possible to make life with mental illness as livable as possible.
P.s. I really hope to see a second season of Lonely Woman sometime soon!
I have clinical depression and seem prone to panic attacks. I constantly get mad at myself because I don't even have a bad life and I don't get why I still get depressed so often. My doctor says my "happy chemicals" in my brain don't work like most peoples do. I take Effexor, seems to help me feel normal. Loved this video Whitney! You have the rare ability to help us with mental stuff laugh at ourselves:)
I've always loved your channel and now I love it even more. I have OCD and I can totally relate to everything you mentioned, tapping things, giving a certain meaning to colours, etc. I also have intrusive thoughts, but that's not the point. I just wanted to thank you for making this video, you've opened up about your struggle in a very creative way that reminded me that sometimes we should laugh a bit about how fucked up we are. You're amazing. Can't wait to see you become famous.
I struggle with finding people that like to do things. Hard to find individuals that don't want to just sit and watch TV.
One thing I really like about the "Lonely Woman" series, is that it felt authentic. I suspected it came from personal experiences with OCD, and the like.
I love you, Whitney!
I'm also on 40mg of lexapro and 3-6mg of klonopin. My psychiatrists (from which I bounce around due to avoidant behaviors/agoraphobia as a result of my OCD) are frustrated. I finally found a psychologist trained in OCD specifically and that has been working wonders for me. She knows my every waking thought, fear and self-doubt from her experience. Before that I was working with Freudian type therapists that wanted to trace everything back to a trauma. And I'm sure you must know, if you've dealt with a scary form of OCD, how fucking awful and horrible Freudian psychology is on OCD patients.
Thanks for sharing, that's courageous and helps other people with similar situations know they are not alone.
I dislike how methodical and close minded some "experts" can be.
I've encountered therapists that could not be less caring because it'd be illegal.
In one experience, in the middle of been made to cry with questioning, the psychologist just shouts "Why can you JUST get over it?!", I was so shocked, I had no words.
I had another therapist whom just says "aha" and I tested her a couple times to see if she was paying attention. No she did not, just randomly would say something she thinks we were talking about. The same lady, when we first met told me to stop, that it was too much for her to hear at once.
I find taking care of myself to be best with what I've experienced so far. I mean, what kind of "care" is that? lol! ahhh, the things we go through sometimes, gotta laugh.
I wish you the best through your life journey. Regardless of what issues you may be struggling with, remember you are built to overcome and succeed at whatever you put your mind to. I understand how hard it is to live with things you don't fully understand.
Have a great weekend.
one of my struggles with ocd is always having to see everything, even if I'm late somewhere I have to stop running and closely examine something on the way bc I feel if I don't I won't be able to move on with my day
I struggle with an Anxious Personality Disorder and a couple social phobias like Agoraphobia.. It makes it harder to really get out there and accomplish my goals, because majority of the stuff in the world are done by socializing and basically struggling with this disorder it makes you avoid interacting face to face.
Opening the door to the outside feels like i'm almost gonna pass out any near second and i always get very nervous and feel sort of "lost" when i'm surrounded by a lot of people, i feel awkward and think i don't look or present myself the right way like everyone else does, but that's the only way to help it really that you're surrounding yourself around people and go to places.
It helps when someone close to me and i feel comfortable with is around me to leave me sort of "company" when i have to deal with important stuff, but that also makes me feel like i'm not strong enough, i depend on others too much and i'm not accomplishing things by myself..
Unlike most of the "i have ocd! omg! give me attention" type of videos, this is the most realistic and truthful depiction of the condition I have ever seen. Thanks. Keep fighting!
Just now trough your video I actually realize that I had an OCD as well...I mean I knew what OCD meant by definition but just now I actually realize what it can be trough those examples.
My OCD was that whenever I saw something that I liked with some kind of logo or so, like Princess Peach in her Kart where she has her logo in the front, I would have to "recolor" it in my mind. Like I would paint the layers: black, white, yellow, red, blue, etc. and those layers would always have to add up to either 3,6,7,10,12 or 17. It was insane and I couldn't stop...if they didn't add up my mind would go crazy and I would freak out. One day it just stopped, as you said I think I just got really tired of it and freaking out all the time because of something so stupid...
Thanks for sharing this. I've found that making light of my own anxieties is one of the best ways for me to deal with them. Nothing better than laughing at myself.
I have to have the right music at the right moments. Or else no music at all. And not having a car or drivers lisence is a pretty big problem too(not a disorder or illness but it causes depression)
I'm struggling with writing good comments that you would love to read and reply.
+Oliver Sergiu XOXOXO
I just wrote a paragraph describing my dysfunctions then deleted it.
Do you put these videos together yourself? If so, I'm impressed.
+Robert's Art Studio Put your dysfunctions on here! WE ARE FAMILY!
Thank you for sharing, it's awesome to have someone in my life who are willing to be open about the real them on such a public platform! Loving the little chat at the end that you do now too, feels extra personal
I count things. And check to make sure the stove is off. Repeatedly.
Whitney loving the content
loved the video!!!
i think my 'ocd' strugles are: always closing doors and drawers and having always a certain spot for each object, like being very organized
+João Oliveira Same
This was awesome! A nice way to share it too and the editing 🌮🌮🌮. I have anxiety that manifests in having to go to the bathroom immediately - which adds another layer of anxiety over 'will there be bathrooms wherever I'm at' fml. In high school I did the 200 crunches thing and you are absolutely right...it was a good thing. Maybe I should start that up again.
+Michelle Felt Lets start it up again
i have ocd that manifests itself in physical actions (like skin-picking and hair pulling and an array of other things).
I have OCD too so I sympathise with you your and struggles.
Hurry up and do your Sarah Poulson impression.
+Onmysheet OH YES
Whitney Rice Great!
I have to struggle with childish GTA Online players and that's exhausting. You play videogames to have fun, not to get stressed!
u r so talented
I suffer from intrusive thoughts of unworthiness, which often manifests in over-analyzing my interactions with others. I often misread into their intent, such as disliking me. For example, I wrote this comment 6 times because I am worried of offending you.
I have had a long history of suffering for anxiety and depression, but have effective coping mechanisms - such as giving less frocks.
Thank you for sharing this video with us, I love 'The Lonely Woman' series and find your channel a source of inspiration.
I think we're twins somehow
+Oliver Sergiu Oh, I have never had a twin before! This is exciting! 😋
wtf are you me?? It really sucks dealing with that 😒
+das weird We in this together. 😔
I have a bit of an obsessive personality, but I don't think I have any rituals, I do struggle with generalized anxiety though, and that's just great... I dig the long vids, keeps my mind occupied. Any possibility of a season 2 of Lonely Woman?
brilliant!
Very moving video. Hope you're having a good day.
Lexapro (Escitalopram) is good shit. You chose wisely.
I liked this video. I have OCD too.
It's all in your head.
It's awl in your head.
Depression and marijuana addiction!
Dearest Whitney - I love your channel and your wide range of creative comedy. I look forward to everything you post! I have watched all of your videos (more than once) because I think you are hilarious! This was an interesting video. I am sorry that you suffer(ed?) from OCD. I am sure that's difficult. I am glad though that you sought help, but that therapist was an asshat. I was on Lexapro for many years, and it helped keep my depression somewhat at bay. I think it's a good drug, with little side effects. I am on another medication now, plus something for panic attacks. Loads of fun! Not. I would enjoy seeing you in full costume as the Wicked Witch - that would be awesome! Your impression was spot on. Anyway, I wish you all the best, and please, please come to NY to do a show! I would enjoy seeing you live. Have a good day.
+lbd229 Thank you! Try some meditation also. Helps me a lot.
+Whitney Rice what kind of meditation do you do? I do TM and it's the only thing that helped quiet my mind.
Whitney you are so pretty gorgeous and my favorite RUclips actress; lush pretty girl
❤️❤️
Why would you be depressed in middle school no matter what? Most people don't get depressed. I mean don't get depressed in middle school.
I'm eating chicken salad and watching
is she acting or for real ?
Did she actually mean that or was it sarcastic? I just cannot tell ^^
+Louis Reitmann Ah nah this is real bro
Dope, Whitney. You're brave. Love ya *bro fist*
I don't see how you couldn't have been chosen as the wicked witch...and I mean that in the best way possible! Hehehehe
I fight with my ADHD everyday. Thank god for Adderall 💊=😁
I'm not sure if this is a skit or real. If it's a skit, ... I don't get the humour.
Where is the punchline? Or is this supposed to be a real issue? P.S. please bring back you curly hair