Opening Up

[shurikenMarch]

I don't care what most people think of me, but there are some people who I really respect and i think the world of. I don't think they know about my OCD - if they do they haven't said anything. I'm not sure whether to tell them or not.
Has anyone had any negative experience in opening up and confessing to their OCD? Or any experience for that matter.
I don't drink alcohol because the following days my obsessions get really bad, it's sickening. People always ask me why I don't drink and i always say it's because I don't like the 'after effects'. Which isn't really lying. But it's kinda decieving them into thinking that I don't like hangovers (who does?!).
With the people I mentioned above, i can't lie to them, I could but that gets me feeling really uncomfortable, which leads to stress which in turn leads to more obsessions, so I never do. But if one of them asks why i don't drink for instance should I just come out and say it? Or keep telling them it's about the 'after effects'?

Thanks

sM

[Maverick]

To be honest I really don't think anything could go wrong if you told someone that you can trust. If you aren't ashamed about it and you don't like lying then tell them. Personally I'm more of a reserved person so normally I'd just say something like "Yeah I don't like the aftereffects" but if you tell trustworthy people like good friends I think it would be a decent thing to do.

But if you just tell the average person, sometimes it's just better to go with the excuse because people normally don't respond well to say "well I have OCD."

But if they're trustworthy and understanding people I'd say go for it as long as you are 100% comfortable sharing it.

[shurikenMarch]

Thanks Anthony.
The people I'm talking about are trustworthy and I guess I owe them my honesty. I'll just have to make sure noone else is overhearing.
It's hard too because, I don't know whether this is common or not, but the more I like and respect someone, the more they appear in my obsessions. And sometimes I feel bad speaking to these people when I have images flashing in my head of sevearly hurting them.
I know it won't lead to anything, I just feel guilty in a way.

[byee]

keeping personal things private isn't lying. And it sounds like you're making sure that while you're not exactly sharing the reason you don't drink, you're also not crossing the line and downright lying to them, either. This is really admirable.

The choice to share anything personal (not just stuff like OCD) should be based on what your goal is in sharing, as well as the listener's ability to accept what you have to say. A lot of people feel they have to share things with their friends, but do not take into consideration how that info might affect them, because they are sharing for themselves, not necessarily for the benefit of their friends. So, you might want to be clear that you can trust your friends to receive this info and be okay with both it, and you. And, make sure this info will help them in some way (as in accept why you do not share their elbow bending at the local pub). If they're already ok with this, then you might want to ask yourself why it is you actually want to tell them, and what you hope to gain.

You're entitled to privacy, and that circle of privacy might be best to widen only when it helps both you and them.