Re: /contaminated food

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I'm so sorry to hear of your struggles. While my daughter Kelsey (8 next week!)

only has OCD (and social skills deficits), I can definitely relate to the

frightening aspects of OCD around contaminated food. We probably came very close

to hospitalizing Kelsey as she got alarmingly thin and would jump from only one

food to another. I remember the day I cut her ramen noodles (the last thing

she'd eat) the wrong way and they were therefore contaminated. Fortunately, she

decided bean burritos were okay and ate them morning noon and night.

You didn't mention if you are doing any exposure & response prevention (E & RP)

therapy in your post. This is your way out of this mess! Are you familiar with

this? Basically, you would identify foods that she is less concerned about

contamination with and have her voluntarily take bites to prove she will not

die. You will

build her confidence slowly so that she can begin to eat foods she is more

afraid of.

Kelsey had huge contamination issues and we were able to overcome then, even

without meds. If you need more information, please feel free to e-mail me

privately.

Take care,

in San Diego (who's probably exhausted this list's patience with my CBT

cheerleading!)

[Guest guest]

> Hi ,

.....

> You didn't mention if you are doing any exposure & response

>prevention (E & RP) therapy in your post. This is your way out of this

>mess! Are you familiar with this? Basically, you would identify

foods >that she is less concerned about contamination with and have

her >voluntarily take bites to prove she will not die. You will

> build her confidence slowly so that she can begin to eat foods she

>is more afraid of.

You are preaching to the choir here! I'm well convinced that CBT

is really her best solution in the long run. I've searched far and

wide for a good therapist who really will use CBT. I found one that

was supposed to be very good. After a few months, I suggested that

he have her try to touch and hold some of the household chemicals

that caused her a lot of stress. I brought a collection of different

products; everything from a tube of vaseline up to a can of Drano and

a container of lighter fluid. I ranked them on paper for him so he'd

know which I felt sure would be the most and least frightening to

my daughter. He ran her through the exercise once, rewarding her

with nickles when she'd hold on to a container for a while. That was

it. He decided she was " cured " . Some of them she needed to actually

have on her... not the lighter fluid or Drano, of course, but

some of the less caustic substances so she could see that they would

not hurt her. The one-time exercise did very little in the long

run.

Our problem with CBT and Micaela eating was that she became afraid

of EVERYTHING. Nothing was safe to her. Even drinking Boost out of

a can was frightening. Her mind was finding all sorts of bizarre

ways that this could be poisoned. It wasn't paranoia... she wasn't

saying someone was out to get her. She just wasn't SURE that it

was safe. Now that she is in better control, I really would like

to see her receive CBT on an ongoing basis. I bought Dr. March's

book on treating children and adolescents with OCD and the

approach is so reasonable and methodical. I probably need to

get another copy since I loaned mine to one of Micaela's

psychologists and never saw it again. :-( I hope he at least

read it all!

Thanks for the input, you are confirming what I believe is true!

>

> Kelsey had huge contamination issues and we were able to overcome

then, even without meds. If you need more information, please feel

free to e-mail me privately.

>

I hope to see Micaela off of these meds eventually, but for now,

she can't do CBT until she is rational enough to even TRY to

overcome her fears. She's getting there, though!

in Dallas

[Guest guest]

Hi , I for one never get tired of your e-mails .I love to read

them!Beth in IN.

Re: /contaminated food

> From: Roman <chrisroman@...>

>

> Hi ,

>

> I'm so sorry to hear of your struggles. While my daughter Kelsey (8 next

week!) only has OCD (and social skills deficits), I can definitely relate to

the frightening aspects of OCD around contaminated food. We probably came

very close to hospitalizing Kelsey as she got alarmingly thin and would jump

from only one food to another. I remember the day I cut her ramen noodles

(the last thing she'd eat) the wrong way and they were therefore

contaminated. Fortunately, she decided bean burritos were okay and ate them

morning noon and night.

>

> You didn't mention if you are doing any exposure & response prevention

(E & RP) therapy in your post. This is your way out of this mess! Are you

familiar with this? Basically, you would identify foods that she is less

concerned about contamination with and have her voluntarily take bites to

prove she will not die. You will

> build her confidence slowly so that she can begin to eat foods she is more

afraid of.

>

> Kelsey had huge contamination issues and we were able to overcome then,

even without meds. If you need more information, please feel free to e-mail

me privately.

>

> Take care,

>

> in San Diego (who's probably exhausted this list's patience with my

CBT cheerleading!)

>

>

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