Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness that
affects a large segment of the population. It’s an anxiety disorder
where worry, fear, and nervous tension are so bad that you perform
repetitive behaviors to make those feelings go away.
The negative thoughts you suffer from are extremely upsetting.
They’re called obsessions and they rarely leave your mind for any length
of time. You create rituals which banish these thoughts from your mind
temporarily. OCD can be debilitating and seriously interfere with your
daily life. For some sufferers, whole days can be consumed by their
obsessions.
What Does OCD Look Like?
What’s the nature of these obsessions? They differ from person to person. Each sufferer has their own, but some examples include:
Worrying about things being dirty or out of order, causing you to constantly clean
Having to say the same things over and over again or ask the same questions
Fear of getting injured or sick
Needing to count things repeatedly or perform an action a set number of times
Having to do things in a specific order
Hoarding or worrying about things getting lost
People who suffer from OCD may be totally aware that they have a problem but unable to stop their negative thoughts and compulsive behavior. This is because the urge to perform these actions is absolutely overwhelming. The compulsive behaviors work to get rid of the fear or negative thoughts, but only for a while.
Do You Have OCD?
Obsessive compulsive disorder is extremely common but it often goes undiagnosed, especially in cases where it’s not terribly severe. We often mistake the symptoms as simply a person’s personality quirks. However, these obsessions and compulsions can take a considerable amount of time, interfere with normal functioning, isolate you socially and even cost you money.
When diagnosing OCD doctors look for a few key traits:
You have unwanted thoughts or extreme anxiety
Your worries are irrational, often not connected to any event or situation in everyday life
You use a specific thought or action to suppress them
There are rigid rules for your rituals that must be followed perfectly
The point of your rituals is to reduce stress and they work to do that
Doctors don’t know exactly what causes OCD but they believe there may be a biological cause. It appears to have something to do with the neurotransmitter serotonin. There may also be environmental causes. In some cases, people who have undergone a serious trauma develop the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder.
Learning to Live with OCD
There are several effective treatments for OCD. One is called exposure and response prevention. Your therapist exposes you to the things that cause your anxiety and then you’re prevented from performing the ritual. For example, you have to touch a doorknob and you’re not allowed to wash your hands. This treatment may sound harsh, but it’s highly effective. In most cases, the urge goes away on its own.
Cognitive therapy is also used to treat OCD. This type of therapy focuses on your thought processes and dispelling irrational beliefs. It goes after the root cause of the disorder. You work with a therapist to discover the true reasons why you feel such anxiety.
Medications are also used to treat the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder. Anti-anxiety drugs and anti-depressants both work well.
We all have our personality quirks, but if your obsessions and compulsions are interfering with your life, you may have a serious problem. Therapists can help you manage your OCD and live a normal life.
What Does OCD Look Like?
What’s the nature of these obsessions? They differ from person to person. Each sufferer has their own, but some examples include:
Worrying about things being dirty or out of order, causing you to constantly clean
Having to say the same things over and over again or ask the same questions
Fear of getting injured or sick
Needing to count things repeatedly or perform an action a set number of times
Having to do things in a specific order
Hoarding or worrying about things getting lost
People who suffer from OCD may be totally aware that they have a problem but unable to stop their negative thoughts and compulsive behavior. This is because the urge to perform these actions is absolutely overwhelming. The compulsive behaviors work to get rid of the fear or negative thoughts, but only for a while.
Do You Have OCD?
Obsessive compulsive disorder is extremely common but it often goes undiagnosed, especially in cases where it’s not terribly severe. We often mistake the symptoms as simply a person’s personality quirks. However, these obsessions and compulsions can take a considerable amount of time, interfere with normal functioning, isolate you socially and even cost you money.
When diagnosing OCD doctors look for a few key traits:
You have unwanted thoughts or extreme anxiety
Your worries are irrational, often not connected to any event or situation in everyday life
You use a specific thought or action to suppress them
There are rigid rules for your rituals that must be followed perfectly
The point of your rituals is to reduce stress and they work to do that
Doctors don’t know exactly what causes OCD but they believe there may be a biological cause. It appears to have something to do with the neurotransmitter serotonin. There may also be environmental causes. In some cases, people who have undergone a serious trauma develop the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder.
Learning to Live with OCD
There are several effective treatments for OCD. One is called exposure and response prevention. Your therapist exposes you to the things that cause your anxiety and then you’re prevented from performing the ritual. For example, you have to touch a doorknob and you’re not allowed to wash your hands. This treatment may sound harsh, but it’s highly effective. In most cases, the urge goes away on its own.
Cognitive therapy is also used to treat OCD. This type of therapy focuses on your thought processes and dispelling irrational beliefs. It goes after the root cause of the disorder. You work with a therapist to discover the true reasons why you feel such anxiety.
Medications are also used to treat the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder. Anti-anxiety drugs and anti-depressants both work well.
We all have our personality quirks, but if your obsessions and compulsions are interfering with your life, you may have a serious problem. Therapists can help you manage your OCD and live a normal life.
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