A helpful OCD and psychosis intervention

   I am putting this post on my mental health blog even though to me it really could be on the theology blog.  This post is about one of my strategies that helps me get through situations when I feel like I fall short of important standards in front of everyone.  A lot of behavior details matter to me, and I do think that small interactions can be very important and very representative of people's character and regard for other people.  But I do have some crazy neurosis and psychosis, so when I go wrong on a little detail and say the wrong thing or don't stick up for my faith and beliefs, or give a false impression or forget something important, I feel terrible and also feel ashamed in front of imagined onlookers who probably have their own goals to think about. It is a recipe for torment, but I have found a great mental and spiritual solution that works almost every time to help me accept my imperfections.  The thing that works is simply taking a few moments to think of letting someone else get the honor that I would have gotten for keeping certain standards.  You know, for everything I get wrong, there are people who would and who do get it right, and who don't bail on people and don't let people get picked on in their presence, and who do a better job of reporting suspicious packages at the subway. So when I fail, I have found that because I am so driven to be perfect, I actually can understand and feel happy for other people who actually achieve that vision, and I can successfully console myself by thinking about someone else getting some kind of glory, and some kind of reward, and some kind of credit in our world or even on the actual Judgment Day in heaven.  Some of this could be material for comedy, but to me it is a serious thing deep in my heart and I am thankful to be able to get such relief for every failure and to know that some of the service in the world and the good deeds from each other that we all rely on and sometimes take for granted are actually not that easy. And failure is a reminder of the cost of all the successes, and a comforting guarantee that I can look forward to other people's rewards as much as my own.