Preventing Rituals


I must refrain to untrain my brain.

Exposure + Ritual prevention —>Anxiety —>Anxiety —> Compulsions

Ritual prevention is an integral part of exposing yourself to situations that
provoke obsessions or compulsions. Concerns about external danger,
negligence, incompetence, imperfection, bad luck, and scarcity usually
have elaborate rituals associated with them. Identify your rituals and the
amount of time you spend performing them to alleviate concerns. Examine
the following for ideas:

Negligence—>Checking:            
     •        Stove—30 times/day
     •        Trash can—3 times/ day
     •        Faucets—5 times/day
     •        Shower curtain closed—5 times/day        

Disorder—>Straightening:         
     •        Desk—10 min./day
     •        Drawers—30 min./day
     •        Books—30 min./week
     •        Collections—30 min./day
     •        Pictures—30 min./day  

Germs          
     •        Wash hands—20 times/ day
     •        Shower—90 min./day
     •        Scrub counters—30 min./ day

Scarcity                
     •        Clipping/filing newspaper Articles—30 min./day
     •        Collecting discarded items—2 Hrs./day
     •        Shopping—8 hrs./week   

Bad luck             
     •        Praying—50 times/day
     •        Repeating the “right” thought—30 times/day
     •        Patting my heart—100 times/day    

Appearance            
     •        Showering—5 times/day
     •        Putting on makeup—2 hrs./day
     •        Ironing underwear—10 min./day

PRACTICE PREVENTION

Tendencies to ritualize can be turned into opportunities to practice
prevention by practicing the following steps:

• Plan in advance how you will prevent rituals when you expose
  yourself to triggers. This gives you time to prepare yourself to
  change patterns. Sufficient time spent practicing exposure will take
  the edge off anxiety and make it easier not to ritualize. Your past
  attempts to stop rituals have probably been made on the spur of the
  moment.

• Use techniques for postponing rituals and refocusing on a pleasant
  activity to assist in ritual prevention.

• Do not engage in rituals to reduce anxiety when you begin exposure
  practice. Initially, this may involve “overkill”; for example, do not wash
  your hands all day; take one 10-minute shower a day; or do not save
  anything for a week.

• Clarify realistic standards by consulting with friends or professionals.
  Hands need to be washed only after using the toilet, before handling
  food, or when they’re visibly dirty. Stoves and front doors need to be
  checked only once before bed or leaving the house. Vacuuming,
  changing sheets, and dusting can be done weekly.

• Practice “symbolic” ritual prevention on a regular basis. Make it a
  point to carry a pocketknife. Leave one corner of a room
  disorganized. Rearrange decorative items regularly. Intentionally
  think “dangerous words.” Throw out unnecessary items frequently.
  Occasionally go to the store without brushing your hair or wearing
  lipstick.

• Be sure to identify all your rituals. You can use the above steps to
  eliminate them.