Lock OCD down!
Here is our recommended daily timetable. A combination of our recommendations and feedback from clients on their ideal lockdown day for managing OCD. For those that haven’t started the recovery journey yet, introducing just a few of these elements into your day will be helpful:
AM
Wake up, breathe out: look down at your current stream of thoughts & remember they are meaningless traffic
Look around you: ground yourself by taking in your surroundings
Wipe the slate clean. today is a new opportunity, a new you
Remind yourself: ‘You are always good enough. For anyone and anything.’
Get up now: lying there thinking is not an option
Turn on some feel-good music: especially if you live alone
Stretch 1: spend a cat-like 10 minutes. Ease out the anxiety & prepare your body for the day
Remind yourself: ‘you don’t have to be anything other than you are'
Make your bed: respect your environment
Eat something: as soon as you can. Even if you are very anxious, try hard to eat so that your brain has some fuel to cope
Personal hygiene: mornings are tough for OCD. If so, delay inwardly focused cleaning teeth/showering until after midday
Work/study/children/projects/admin 1: morning is best spent being focused and mentally active. Manage that anxiety
Lunch: don’t skip a chance to give your brain some nutrition. Low blood sugar contributes to anxiety
PM
Recovery work: breathe, meditate, practice mindfulness, repeat rational statements, behaviour work, cognitive exercises. Choose one or more of these
Downtime: take 30 minutes to rest, have a cup of chamomile tea
Remind yourself: ‘you can only do the best you can do at any point in time’
Exercise: time to bust out some moves inside or out with family or alone
Work/study/children/projects/admin 2
Remind yourself: ‘failure is an important part of growth ‘if you don’t fail, you’re not even trying’ Denzel Washington and 'failure is where all the lessons are' Will Smith
Evening meal: nourish yourself and any family with great veggies, lean protein and complex carbs
Reach out: audio or video call a family member, loved one or friend to help you feel connected and brighten someone else’s day
Downtime: catch up on limited news, limited social media, reading, TV, box sets, browsing (try to avoid OCD researching).
Winddown recovery work: breathing, mindfulness, meditation, reading
Stretch 2: prepare your body for bed
Get into bed: aim to get to bed at a decent hour to regulate your body clock
Set your alarm: no later than 9.30am, an OCD mind needs daylight hours
Remind yourself and list all the things you are grateful for
Well done. Getting stronger every day.