Anyone ever have terrible flash images?

[Champ]

The other night my girlfriend was telling me occasionally she gets these images that last about a second of bodies mangled, real terrible images. I asked her if she got them often, she said not really. I asked her if it was just recently and she told me she had them her whole life. She tells me that is why she is so preventive of terrible things happening to anyone, which I thought she was being over-protective. I didn't really know what to make of it since it seemed real unusual since I don't have them or heard of anyone else having them. What should I make of it? What should I suggest?

[Double T]

1. She should see a psychiatrist or psychologist ...

to help her work through this situation. Fear can be crippling.

[Champ]

2. I agree

Which Is why I wondered why she hid knives from me awhile back ago. She used to be afraid to go to sleep before me until it took lots of re-assuring that I wouldn't do such a thing. She told me she didn't go to sleep before her ex-husband for 5 years into their marriage. She explained it was nothing against me, she was just afraid. Again being preventitive of terrible things happening. The paranoia she has reminds me of that of a meth-addict, which she is nothing of. She is really great person overall and surprised she still loves me and is still with me even though most women wouldn't be. These images just worry me and like you said and I feel it holds her back from fully enjoying life.

[Double T]

4. Hope things work out, your support will be very helpful and important.

[woo me with science]

9. If she is hiding knives...

it does sound like classic OCD symptoms: intrusive images, combined with a behavior to attempt to neutralize them or reduce the threat. Most OCD sufferers recognize that the fear is on some level "crazy" or unrealistic, but they are compelled to respond to it anyway. If these sorts of things are happening to the extent that they are interfering with her life, the condition is diagnosable and treatable. Here is a link I found just by typing in "obsessive compulsive disorder hide knives" in yahoo.

http://www.jnkdavis.com/Personal/ocd1.html

Just as a side caution, what you describe would not lead me to suspect PTSD unless she clearly recognized the images from a previous trauma. This does not sound at all like what you are describing. If any therapist tries to suggest to her that these images are from some "repressed" traumatic experience, get rid of that therapist fast, because you have found a repressed memory quack. There are more of them out there than you think.

[Champ]

11. Thank you

There have been alot of things that didn't make sense and my fault I took some of the things personally when I shouldn't of. Explain to me how I should break to this to her, she may resist the notion she has such a thing, even though I can think of countless things and behaviors that relates to the illness?

[woo me with science]

13. I would broach it when....

she seems in distress over it. If she isn't bothered by the symptoms, there is little chance that she'll want to seek treatment and risk getting a label.

For a lot of people with OCD, the symptoms tend to "creep" and become more time-consuming and intrusive over time if not treated. For example, I knew someone who had to count to eight when she had an intrusive image. Over time, she started to have to count to eight, eight times, and then to add eight movements or eight cycles of movements.... Eventually she ended up getting up an hour earlier, then two hours earlier, to fit in all the rituals she was developing. People with OCD can be afraid that the rituals mean that they're "crazy" or that other people will think that they're crazy, so they often try to hide what's going on. If you can approach her when she is distressed over the symptoms, she may be more open to reading information that will help her understand what is happening to her. If you broach it at the right time, it can come as a relief that it actually has a label and can be treated.

You might want to look around for some reading material that you can have handy when she seems ready for a conversation. Pick something that includes a description of symptoms that she can relate to, and that stresses the effectiveness of treatment. That way her first message about OCD is a hopeful one. Avoid the scary case studies and anything that will make her shut down more. You can't force her to get treatment, but it may actually come as a relief to her that someone understands.

[bertha katzenengel]

3. I used to. Yes.

Have her see a psychiatrist, Champ. Mine was part of my dx of post-traumatic stress disorder and major depression. I was in hospital for two months. Obviously I don't even begin to suggest that this might happen w/ your girlfriend. But I tell you this to stress that it could be serious.

Good luck, Bud. :hi:

[Lauri16]

5. Are they images

that she can associate later on to a news story or something? I know that alot of people don't believe in psychics, but if you believe in that sort of thing, maybe that's what they are?

Just a thought.

[Champ]

6. I have no idea

[woo me with science]

7. it's a feature of

obsessive-compulsive disorder. intrusive thoughts and images. it can become OCD if the person develops rituals to try to avoid or neutralize the threat. if not, it could just be something milder on that spectrum.

[Champ]

8. Just looked it up - it sounds alot like her

ESPECIALY this part

People with OCD may worry excessively about dirt and germs and be obsessed with the idea that they are contaminated or may contaminate others.
<snip>
People with an obsession about contamination may wash constantly to the point that their hands become raw and inflamed. A person may repeatedly check that she has turned off the stove or iron because of an obsessive fear of burning the house down. She may have to count certain objects over and over because of an obsession about losing them.

She also doesn't like kissing (which I found extremely strange!) She only does it in very intimate moments and told me she didn't kiss her last boyfriend for one whole year.

[woo me with science]

10. I thought so when i saw your other post up there...

The good news is that OCD is one of the most successfully treatable psychiatric disorders. A combination of meds and cognitive-behavioral therapy (NOT insight-oriented, psychodynamic, or repressed memory therapy) usually results in a significant reduction in symptoms. If she seeks treatment, make sure it is with someone specializing in OCD....NOT someone who will try to uncover hidden "reasons" for the fear in her childhood. The research on what works is really clear.

[Kathleen04]

12. I have had these before

usually when my mind is kind of unoccupied, like the thoughts you have right before you go to sleep. The thoughts/images are usually about someone/something that I actually really care about so that doubles the frustration in trying to block them out.

It seems like I've had several of the symptoms of OCD at one point in my life or another, but I've never been diagnosed or treated. Some features of it, I seem to have "grown out of" such as the germ phobia--I had that pretty strong as a pre-teen and don't seem to have it at all anymore. I don't know if that's common w/ OCD? :shrug: I actually used to be bothered alot more by intrusive thoughts too.

Nowadays, I mostly have the fear of losing stuff where I'll keep rechecking to make sure I have everything..I'll put my keys in my purse 2 seconds before I'm walking out the door, then as I'm walking out, I'll check again--sometimes I'll be practically staring at my keys as I shut the door because I'm afraid of locking myself out.

I think perhaps I have a mild-form, because it doesn't really "interfere" with my life though I've definately seen how it could!

[woo me with science]

14. i think that's an important point

This stuff exists on a spectrum of very mild to taking-over-your-life. If it's not upsetting you and interfering with your life, there's really no need to treat it.