I suffer from OCD and my sanity really benefits from having things structured in my life.  I know that the stability of having things structured is not unusual and that most people benefit from it, but I kinda get crazy when things get out of place.  Meaning that I obsess over them until they are back in their rightful place, which is why I prefer that hubby and son don’t empty the dishwasher.  Actually I don’t use my dishwasher, I prefer to wash dishes by hand, and somehow I find it rather soothing to stand at the sink staring out into the pond in the backyard daydreaming at the end of the day with my hands in warm soapy water.

 Back to the OCD – I don’t like anyone else to put up the clean dishes because every dish in my kitchen has its own rightful place.  Generally they will make it into the right cupboard, but not necessarily in the right spot.  The thing about it is that I realize this is a quirk of mine and don’t blame the boys or get mad at them if they put stuff in the wrong “spot” it’s just that I can’t deal with anything else until the pots are back in their rightful places.  Usually, if I know that the boys have put the dishes away, I will re-check all cupboards for orderliness and correct any mishaps so that I can be at peace with the world.  The same thing goes with the rest of my house.  My sister teases me because the furniture in my house was placed in a certain spot when we moved in 7 yrs ago and hasn’t ever been moved (except to be cleaned underneath every quarter – another OCD symptom).  I don’t like to re-arrange furniture so I don’t – she, on the other hand, has something moved to a different spot every time I go over there.  She is consistently changing things, even going as far as re-doing wallpaper, changing paint colors on the wall, different texture on the ceiling and ripping out wood floors to put down tile, then a year later changing that tile because it no longer matches.  I’ve often wondered how we can be so different when we came from the same parents and raised together.  I’ve always teased her that I was adopted because she is younger than me and I remember mom being pregnant with her so I must be the one who was adopted.  Right?

The other ways that my OCD raise it’s ugly head is that I “Spring Clean” my house 3 to 4 times a year.  Yes, this means that everything (including fridge, washer & dryer) gets moved and cleaned underneath, tops of door frames get wiped, baseboards get washed, everything gets moved out of cabinets and they get wiped down and all closets are gone through with bags of clothes donated to the local charity at least once a year.  The good thing about this is that hubby understands my NEED to do this so instead of complaining he helps.  He will vacuum the carpet right up next to the baseboards with the shopvac, dust and move the heavy furniture to vacuum underneath it.  He also keeps the garage and attic neat and orderly and we both take care of the yard and flowerbeds.  I just love this man!  And my closet, oh lets talk about my closet for a minute.  All clothes items have to be hung facing right, top buttons buttoned, skirts and pants zipped and buttoned and certain items hung on certain hangers.  Shoes lined up in their rightful places with same colors grouped together (usually going from lightest to darkest).  The clothes are hung with like items together, like all shirts are facing right and hung together going from shortest to longest and broken down even further into groups of “dressy”, “casual” and “oh my god your not going to wear that out in public are you”.  Towels, now towels and t-shirts are another OCD trigger and have to (HAVE TO) be folded a certain way, if they are not I will shake them out and refold them without even thinking about it.

I’m so glad my husband understands.  I’m not sure that he understands in such a way that he actually knows what it feels like to obsess over things not being in their rightful place, but he at least understands that this is something I need to do for sanity.  Instead of making fun of me for needing to do things a certain way, he tries to do things the way I need them done and if I start obsessing over something then he will pitch in to help make it right.  I sure wouldn’t want to live with me!

The strange thing is that if I go to someone else’s house I don’t notice how their towels are folded or if their books are coordinated by colors on their bookshelf or even if they have dusted or not.  It just doesn’t matter to me how someone else chooses to keep their house as long as I know things are right in mine.  Guess what, it’s time to Spring clean again.