Introduction - 3 Year Old with Just So OCD

May 30, 2012

Hello all -

I am have been reading posts for the past several months. Wow - what an amazing

groups of parents!

My daughter is 3.10 years old and has " just so " OCD. It started at about 18

months with rigid clothing requirements. By November of last year, she couldn't

tolerate any clothing at all. Most of her symptoms have been sensory related

(extremely discomfort in car seat, refusal to wipe after peeing because she

couldn't make herself feel dry enough, etc). More recently, she started

exhibiting other symptoms of OCD that are non-sensory related (needing blankets

to be wrinkle free, needing her dolls' arms to be down, and needing things to be

the same as they were - " make it like is was " ). We tried OT last summer --

under the theory that she has " sensory integration disorder " -- and it wasn't

helpful.

As many of you with younger children have experienced, I had a very difficult

time finding a psychologist to work with her (despite living in a major

metropolitan area with a ton of psychologists). So, I contacted Dr.

Storch at USF, and one of his team members - Dr. Rahman - agreed to work

with her. We did a two-week intensive earlier this month. She is now SO much

better. She's wearing dresses consistently (no issues) and underwear a great

deal of the time (though it can still be quite challenging). She is no longer

in agony in the car seat (but still naked ) and she can wipe once after she

pees and walk out of the bathroom with no issues. We still have a lot of work

to do; but she is definitely on the right course.

Dr. Rahman and the postdoc who worked with her (Dr. Sulkowski - he'll be

starting at the University of Arizona in August) were OUTSTANDING. I can't say

enough good things about them - very smart, patient, calm, and supportive.

Despite the lack of an existing road map for addressing these issues in very

young children, they were willing to work with us.

The work that we are continuing to do -- modified ERP (because of her age) with

behavior management -- can be VERY challenging. But, I am so grateful to be on

the right path.

I look forward to posting here.

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