Sunday, November 27, 2011

What is OCD?








 “I could not touch any doors in public areas. I knew it did not make any sense, but I was afraid of getting germs that could kill me. I could not go out in public. If I thought I had touched anything, I would have to wash myself for hours. Sometimes, I washed so much until my skin would get red, raw as well as bleed”- patient with OCD
OCD or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is characterized by obsessions (instruisive, repetitive thoughts or images thet produce anxiety) or compulsions (the need perform acts or to dwell on anxiety).
  • Obsessions can occur separately but usually they occur together.
  • It can happen to everyone and affects both men and women equally, starting from childhood and adolescence.
  • The impact of OCD on a person's life is remarkably high and it may affect every aspects of a person's life including the way a person thinks, feels and behaves.
  • OCD is a psychiactric disorder that are troubled by recurrent obsessions and compulsions to the extent that they resulted in distress, occupy more than hour a day or significantly interfere with normal routines or occupational or social functioning.
OBSESSION


  • Obsessions is an intruisive and repeatative anxiety-arousing thought or image. 
  • People with OCD may realize that the thought is irrational but he or she cannot stop it.
  • OCD can be persistent enough to interfere with daily life and can cause distress and anxiety. It may include the feeling of doubts, impulses and mental images.
  • People with OCD will repeate the behavior or action frequently and it can be continuously.


 They are six common obsessions that afflicting people:
  1. Contamination- fear of contamination (eg: germ, dirt)
  2. Doubting- fear of not having done a specific act that could result in harm (eg: turning off the stove, leaving the door unlocked)
  3. Perfection- a need for ferfection (eg: the person may take an hour or more in order to make sure everything he or she do is perfect)
  4. Aggressive- fear of harming oneself and others people
  5. Sexual- experiencing forbidden or unwanted sexual thoughts, images or urges.
  6. Responsibility- exaggerated feeling of responsibility toward something.






COMPULSION
  • Compulsion was defined as the need to perform acts or to dwell on mental acts repetitively.
  • It may lead to distress and anxiety if the behavior are not perform or if it is not done 'correctly'.
  • People with obsessions usually end up by engaging in extreme compulsions or so called as rituals
  • However, acting out these compulsions does not give them pleasure but it may reduce the feeling of anxiety and distress.

They are four common type of compulsions:


  • Washing or cleaning- excessive in cleaning or washing.(eg: showering, bathing, brushing teeth, grooming a lot or having detailed toilet routines, cleaning household items or objects)
  • Compulsive checking- (eg: checking door)
  • Ordering or arranging- (eg: make sure that everything they do are just right and consistent with a specific rule such as bed sheets or notes on the desk)
  • Hoarding- belief that they cannot throw things away. they worry that they may need that item that they throw or that item is irreplaceable (eg: mug, paper)



















No comments:

Post a Comment