OCD

Once upon a time I was on the internet way too much and it made me not get as much homework done, or then have to stay up late because I still had homework to do after being online for too long. Now that I haven't had "homework" or student teaching work since last May, it has been nice to not feel bad about being online so much....except that I feel bad because there are books I want to read, I still stay up too late, and things don't get done that should like cleaning my room or other random tasks. Recent studies show that internet addiction causes brain changes similar to cocain or alcohol. Huh!

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/internet-addiction-harms-brain-cocaine-050244123.html
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/01/12/internet-addiction-causes-brain-changes-similar-to-alcohol-and-drugs-study/

Well I knew that because I read a book on it last year. But still. It's kind of ridiculous really. I believe it though.

I also wonder if ocd has any part in that? The need to check your phone or facebook or e-mail over and over all the time...maybe it creates some kind of ocd. I just bought a book (3 minutes ago!) on my kindle about OCD because I'm interested in learning more about it. I know there are some EXTREME cases where people wash their hands until they're bleeding or have to walk in and out of a doorway 7 times before going through it and stuff like that. But are their minor characteristcis? Surely there are. For example, I feel like I have OCD when I look at my split ends on my hair. I see a small section of my hair that has split ends and then proceed to cut them all off just above where it's split, but when I look up I realize I've done it for way too long and it's stupid. But I still do it again the next day. Or when I'm playing games on facebook or my iPhone like Bejeweled Blitz or tetris. I feel the need to win, yes, but more than that I just get stuck on it and keep playing forever. Does that count as ocd?

And other random tasks that require focus and repition - once I get into it, I'm stuck and I have to continue / finish. I remember in high school when I worked at Firehouse Subs, one day I was asked to portion meat - we put a handful of ham / turkey/ etc. onto a scale and it had to measure out to some exact number, then we'd roll it up and stick it in a bin, 3 wide by 5 high or something like that, so when they stuck the bin into the fridge part, the workers just pulled it out to make the sandwhich. Well one day I started and just kept going. Someone said, "Want to switch for a while?" "No, I'm good," I said, and did it for like 4 hours or something crazy. Same with labeling stickers on books when I worked at a bookstore. And when a new person makes a facebook, I like going through all my pictures to tag them in my pictures - it takes forever, but I feel like I have to do it and like to do it.

Ocd? Or not ocd? It's helpful in jobs, but not helpful in general life stuff.