Wanting to be a teacher but experiencing MH-related intrusive thoughts about :/
as you can guess I am referring to the 'what if I am a pedophile' anxious thought/OCD/rumination, but also things like 'what if I snap and hurt all the kids'
Teaching is the first job I can think of which really appeals to me. Having struggled with my self-esteem and social anxiety from a young age due to my Dyspraxia, I would like to encourage the next generation to believe in their potential and help them reach it, the way that my family and teachers did for me. My first opening for that is the voluntary service Beanstalk, which all round sounds great.
However because of my stupid anxiety, I sometimes feel like I am going to turn out to be not just an awful teacher but the next Jimmy Saville (no joke). I have never experienced any arousal around a child, thank God, but when I have been working in retail I have had the most disturbing and inappropriate thoughts of either harming a child or…you know. o_o
I know that this is common in those prone to OCD/anxiety and needs to be addressed like any intrusive thoughts but just the fact I have them is really making me question my credibility for passing the DBS check. What can I do?
Teaching is the first job I can think of which really appeals to me. Having struggled with my self-esteem and social anxiety from a young age due to my Dyspraxia, I would like to encourage the next generation to believe in their potential and help them reach it, the way that my family and teachers did for me. My first opening for that is the voluntary service Beanstalk, which all round sounds great.
However because of my stupid anxiety, I sometimes feel like I am going to turn out to be not just an awful teacher but the next Jimmy Saville (no joke). I have never experienced any arousal around a child, thank God, but when I have been working in retail I have had the most disturbing and inappropriate thoughts of either harming a child or…you know. o_o
I know that this is common in those prone to OCD/anxiety and needs to be addressed like any intrusive thoughts but just the fact I have them is really making me question my credibility for passing the DBS check. What can I do?
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Intrusive thoughts are really common. In fact it is estimated that every human at some point in their life will experience them.
I get them a lot.
My therapist told me that usually facing the fear is the best was to get over it or reduce it.
Could you maybe get some work experience teaching to build you confidence?
The thing with intrusive thoughts is they are just that "thoughts". They are not actions.
So many people experience them but rarely talk about it because of embarrassment of fear people will think less of them.
There are some good links on line for managing intrusive thoughts. I suggest you do a quick google search and collect some coping skills.
It would be a good idea to talk to a health professional as well so see if there is any treatment they can offer to help you manage them.
Don't give up. The majority of the time intrusive thoughts are just thoughts and never turn into anything more.
I get them a lot.
My therapist told me that usually facing the fear is the best was to get over it or reduce it.
Could you maybe get some work experience teaching to build you confidence?
The thing with intrusive thoughts is they are just that "thoughts". They are not actions.
So many people experience them but rarely talk about it because of embarrassment of fear people will think less of them.
There are some good links on line for managing intrusive thoughts. I suggest you do a quick google search and collect some coping skills.
It would be a good idea to talk to a health professional as well so see if there is any treatment they can offer to help you manage them.
Don't give up. The majority of the time intrusive thoughts are just thoughts and never turn into anything more.
Original post by anon2010
Intrusive thoughts are really common. In fact it is estimated that every human at some point in their life will experience them.
I get them a lot.
My therapist told me that usually facing the fear is the best was to get over it or reduce it.
Could you maybe get some work experience teaching to build you confidence?
The thing with intrusive thoughts is they are just that "thoughts". They are not actions.
So many people experience them but rarely talk about it because of embarrassment of fear people will think less of them.
There are some good links on line for managing intrusive thoughts. I suggest you do a quick google search and collect some coping skills.
It would be a good idea to talk to a health professional as well so see if there is any treatment they can offer to help you manage them.
Don't give up. The majority of the time intrusive thoughts are just thoughts and never turn into anything more.
I get them a lot.
My therapist told me that usually facing the fear is the best was to get over it or reduce it.
Could you maybe get some work experience teaching to build you confidence?
The thing with intrusive thoughts is they are just that "thoughts". They are not actions.
So many people experience them but rarely talk about it because of embarrassment of fear people will think less of them.
There are some good links on line for managing intrusive thoughts. I suggest you do a quick google search and collect some coping skills.
It would be a good idea to talk to a health professional as well so see if there is any treatment they can offer to help you manage them.
Don't give up. The majority of the time intrusive thoughts are just thoughts and never turn into anything more.
Thanks for replying, it means a lot. Yes I am getting work experience teaching for specifically this purpose! It's more the concern that they could mean something more, and I can't afford to take that risk if I'm going to pass my DBS. I am also going to discuss this with my counsellor next week hopefully.
Original post by Anonymous
as you can guess I am referring to the 'what if I am a pedophile' anxious thought/OCD/rumination, but also things like 'what if I snap and hurt all the kids'
Teaching is the first job I can think of which really appeals to me. Having struggled with my self-esteem and social anxiety from a young age due to my Dyspraxia, I would like to encourage the next generation to believe in their potential and help them reach it, the way that my family and teachers did for me. My first opening for that is the voluntary service Beanstalk, which all round sounds great.
However because of my stupid anxiety, I sometimes feel like I am going to turn out to be not just an awful teacher but the next Jimmy Saville (no joke). I have never experienced any arousal around a child, thank God, but when I have been working in retail I have had the most disturbing and inappropriate thoughts of either harming a child or…you know. o_o
I know that this is common in those prone to OCD/anxiety and needs to be addressed like any intrusive thoughts but just the fact I have them is really making me question my credibility for passing the DBS check. What can I do?
Teaching is the first job I can think of which really appeals to me. Having struggled with my self-esteem and social anxiety from a young age due to my Dyspraxia, I would like to encourage the next generation to believe in their potential and help them reach it, the way that my family and teachers did for me. My first opening for that is the voluntary service Beanstalk, which all round sounds great.
However because of my stupid anxiety, I sometimes feel like I am going to turn out to be not just an awful teacher but the next Jimmy Saville (no joke). I have never experienced any arousal around a child, thank God, but when I have been working in retail I have had the most disturbing and inappropriate thoughts of either harming a child or…you know. o_o
I know that this is common in those prone to OCD/anxiety and needs to be addressed like any intrusive thoughts but just the fact I have them is really making me question my credibility for passing the DBS check. What can I do?
Hi. I'm sorry to hear you are having trouble with intrusive thoughts.
Everybody has intrusive thoughts about harming themselves or others. The most important thing to realise is that they are normal and that they don't make you a bad or danegerous person. Unfortunately you have attached sigificance to them whereas most people know they will never act on them. Experts will tell you that the people who attach meaning to them are the least likely people to harm others as it is because they are so desparate not to cause harm that they have become so involved with and disturbed by thses thoughts.
You should go speak to your GP about your situation (don't worry they won't do anything bad to you) and they should refer you for some cognitive behavioural therapy.
Here is some good infomation on CBT.
http://www.ocdaction.org.uk/resource/what-cognitive-behavioural-therapy-cbt
The site has lots of other good infomation and resources for OCD.
I hope you get the help you need and overcome this as it is not fun to suffer with these problems and it sounds like you will make a fantastic teacher!
if you've come into contact with kids in other areas of your life you know how you react to kids and to be honest some of them can be right little brats but you'll get used to it and unless you're the sort of person who generally snaps and attacks people there's no reason you'll snap and thump a child, to be honest you've got plenty of disciplinary measures in order to control the situation, more so than running into a naughty kid in public somewhere, you can punish them with detentions etc or send them out
Original post by doodle_333
if you've come into contact with kids in other areas of your life you know how you react to kids and to be honest some of them can be right little brats but you'll get used to it and unless you're the sort of person who generally snaps and attacks people there's no reason you'll snap and thump a child, to be honest you've got plenty of disciplinary measures in order to control the situation, more so than running into a naughty kid in public somewhere, you can punish them with detentions etc or send them out
Spoiler
Original post by Anonymous
Hi. I'm sorry to hear you are having trouble with intrusive thoughts.
Everybody has intrusive thoughts about harming themselves or others. The most important thing to realise is that they are normal and that they don't make you a bad or danegerous person. Unfortunately you have attached sigificance to them whereas most people know they will never act on them. Experts will tell you that the people who attach meaning to them are the least likely people to harm others as it is because they are so desparate not to cause harm that they have become so involved with and disturbed by thses thoughts.
You should go speak to your GP about your situation (don't worry they won't do anything bad to you) and they should refer you for some cognitive behavioural therapy.
Here is some good infomation on CBT.
http://www.ocdaction.org.uk/resource/what-cognitive-behavioural-therapy-cbt
The site has lots of other good infomation and resources for OCD.
I hope you get the help you need and overcome this as it is not fun to suffer with these problems and it sounds like you will make a fantastic teacher!
Everybody has intrusive thoughts about harming themselves or others. The most important thing to realise is that they are normal and that they don't make you a bad or danegerous person. Unfortunately you have attached sigificance to them whereas most people know they will never act on them. Experts will tell you that the people who attach meaning to them are the least likely people to harm others as it is because they are so desparate not to cause harm that they have become so involved with and disturbed by thses thoughts.
You should go speak to your GP about your situation (don't worry they won't do anything bad to you) and they should refer you for some cognitive behavioural therapy.
Here is some good infomation on CBT.
http://www.ocdaction.org.uk/resource/what-cognitive-behavioural-therapy-cbt
The site has lots of other good infomation and resources for OCD.
I hope you get the help you need and overcome this as it is not fun to suffer with these problems and it sounds like you will make a fantastic teacher!
Spoiler
Original post by Anonymous
Spoiler
I addressed the peadophilia related thoughts too or thought I had when I said that you know how you respond to children, I meant you see kids all over the place so if you were going to be sexually attracted to or have sexual urges towards one it would have happened by now
Original post by doodle_333
I addressed the peadophilia related thoughts too or thought I had when I said that you know how you respond to children, I meant you see kids all over the place so if you were going to be sexually attracted to or have sexual urges towards one it would have happened by now
I think I have something similar to this, is this what you're getting at?
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/planet-ivy/intrusive-thoughts_b_4560465.html
Original post by Anonymous
I think I have something similar to this, is this what you're getting at?
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/planet-ivy/intrusive-thoughts_b_4560465.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/planet-ivy/intrusive-thoughts_b_4560465.html
I got that you were talking about pure O but yeah basically I'm saying thoughts are just that but also you can challenge them with the knowledge that if you were a pedo you would have experienced arousal from children etc
And please don't self-diagnose you with an mental-illness.
Original post by Nathanielle
And please don't self-diagnose you with an mental-illness.
why can I not suspect Pure O? I have an anxiety problem (diagnosed) and have been experiencing consistent intrusive thoughts for over 2 years now, discussed with a counsellor but never as OCD, or in enough detail to do much about them.
Original post by doodle_333
I got that you were talking about pure O but yeah basically I'm saying thoughts are just that but also you can challenge them with the knowledge that if you were a pedo you would have experienced arousal from children etc
but even the fact that I'm having the thoughts, might be enough to prevent me being able to be a teacher
put it this way, my employment advisor, who is there to help me get back into work and recover, stopped responding to my emails once I mentioned this thought (I also mentioned what was effectively HOCD, fear I'd harm my family/my ex)
last night when I mentioned this to my dad, he facetiously responded (while usually sympathetic to my anxiety) that this is just an excuse not to work.
Secondly when he noticed my admittedly excessive Internet usage, he accused me of watching child porn, bestiality and other taboo things etc. because of my 'obsession with extremes'. I have never done anything of this sort.
I don't think he realises what it is like to live in the incapacitating fear that you have just had a thought which if you ever act on or even admit to having you may be stigmatised for the rest of your life. And in this case, lose my chance to fulfil one of my life goals.
Secondly when he noticed my admittedly excessive Internet usage, he accused me of watching child porn, bestiality and other taboo things etc. because of my 'obsession with extremes'. I have never done anything of this sort.
I don't think he realises what it is like to live in the incapacitating fear that you have just had a thought which if you ever act on or even admit to having you may be stigmatised for the rest of your life. And in this case, lose my chance to fulfil one of my life goals.
Original post by Anonymous
why can I not suspect Pure O? I have an anxiety problem (diagnosed) and have been experiencing consistent intrusive thoughts for over 2 years now, discussed with a counsellor but never as OCD, or in enough detail to do much about them.
You can suspect it, but you you can't say, you have it. It can have various reasons and it is difficult for you to decide, if it is severe enough to justify a diagnosis or if it is maybe only your anxiety speaking? The thing is, if you do suspect it, then go to somebody qualified to assess you. Counselling is not there to diagnose you. Thus saying it is part of your OCD is pure speculation and any suggestion to help you based on an apparantly-existing-OCD is useless, because without diagnosis you won't get therapy. (Therapy is NOT counselling.)
Original post by Nathanielle
You can suspect it, but you you can't say, you have it. It can have various reasons and it is difficult for you to decide, if it is severe enough to justify a diagnosis or if it is maybe only your anxiety speaking? The thing is, if you do suspect it, then go to somebody qualified to assess you. Counselling is not there to diagnose you. Thus saying it is part of your OCD is pure speculation and any suggestion to help you based on an apparantly-existing-OCD is useless, because without diagnosis you won't get therapy. (Therapy is NOT counselling.)
specifically I am with a CBT practitioner at present for booster sessions, which have not been going the way I hoped so far, frankly.
Original post by Anonymous
specifically I am with a CBT practitioner at present for booster sessions, which have not been going the way I hoped so far, frankly.
Fair enough, ... can you ask for a assessment regarding OCD? Maybe therapy will be more satisfying for you, if they have a specific ideas of what bothers you?
Original post by Nathanielle
Fair enough, ... can you ask for a assessment regarding OCD? Maybe therapy will be more satisfying for you, if they have a specific ideas of what bothers you?
Booked in with GP to discuss personality disorders at are's specialist clinic. That was originally to test for Aspegers (which I suspect) however it might be possible to get a diagnosis for OCD there too?
Original post by Anonymous
Booked in with GP to discuss personality disorders at are's specialist clinic. That was originally to test for Aspegers (which I suspect) however it might be possible to get a diagnosis for OCD there too?
Hm, I would ask. They should be testing you in various direction, but in case it is someone specialising in Asperger, you will probably only assessed for that and would need another appointement for OCD. Definitely ask before, it would be a pity, if the only reason they won't do it is because of time.
