The secret life - of a girl - trapped in her head

           This week, I am going to make you W.O.R.K – I mean, come on, I can’t be the only one around here having all of the fun now can I?   A few weeks ago I mentioned to my therapist: “Now, I may be going out on a limb here and self diagnosing myself but I need your opinion and advice on this…I feel there may be times where I feel “too deeply”, and get “too invested” in something. I feel at times, overloaded, and     that I feel things “too deeply” It can be a movie or TV show, or a particular book I   am reading. I feel connected to the characters in the story, and it’s as if I am  going through whatever they are going through. I get attached, I get upset, I get invested – and it’s all make believe, not real, and I know that’s the case BUT I still can’t turn off the feelings. Sometimes, I feel crazy for crying at the end of a good book, not wanting it to end, and talking myself out of writing a letter to t...

So, what's it like being a girl who suffers from contamination OCD during a national pandemic? Just picture yourself playing the longest game of hide and seek, with no end in sight. I cannot tag myself out, and there isn't a quirky saying that I can muster up to let COVID know I've had enough and I don't want to play anymore. Basically - my world with COVID is combined of good and bad days, and some days my anxiety is so high that I am a bundle of nerves, on edge until I finally pass out.  You see, I always had a fear of contamination - I just never knew this was an actually thing. BUT COVID has truly multiplied that fear by a million. Previously, my contamination OCD represented itself within the following ways:  If someone coughed, sneezed, or was sick near me - I would do my best to avoid it, and be cautious by washing/sanitizing/showering.  If someone threw up near me, i'd chug a quick cup of grape juice.  If someone prepared something for me, and they wound up ...