Have you ever found yourself thinking about how your hands aren’t clean? And how washing them again and again does not satisfy you? If you have found yourself in such a scenario, then this might indicate the underlying condition of ‘Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).’ But what is OCD Behavior?
It’s a complex concept. Let me give you another example. You are going to sleep at night. You have locked the door, dimmed the lights and have jumped in your comfortable bed. A thought shoots through your mind, that you haven’t locked the door, it’s still open. So, you get up, you check the door, you make sure it’s locked. Let’s imagine doing that at least 20 times through the night. Terrifying, isn’t it?
This is what having Obsessive Compulsive Disorder feels like. It starts with having repetitive thoughts, and ends at repetitive behaviors. Let’s explore more about this nasty illness, and how one can overcome it.
Table of Contents
What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is a Psychological Illness. It’s long-lasting and severe in most cases. It consists of two parts; thoughts and behaviors, which make no sense at all. People with OCD don’t think and perform such actions because they enjoy them. It’s because they can’t stop them. Let’s understand more:
Obsessive Thoughts
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder gets the first part of its name from Obsessive thoughts. These thoughts, images or impulses are intrusive. They get to your mind with sheer intensity. Obsessive thoughts have some themes:
- You get fear of dirt. You clean your hands again and again, although your hands have not a speck of dirt on them.
- You doubt yourself. You feel difficulty in tolerating uncertainty. You want everything to be perfect.
- You want everything in order. If your room is not set, you can’t tolerate that.
- You get obsessive thoughts about harming yourself. Or you think about others getting hurt.
Compulsive Behaviors
To cater to the obsessive thoughts, you do compulsive behaviors. This is the second part of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. You feel the urge to perform the behavior again and again. For example:
- Fear of dirt makes you wash your hands again and again.
- You have doubts about performing a certain chore, so you do it again and again e.g checking the door, stove etc.
- You may silently repeat a word or a prayer again and again. It can be counting something as well. You just can’t stop doing it.
What Triggers OCD in a Person?
There can be many factors behind Obsessive Compulsive Disorder that you need to know:
Genetic Predisposition
Genetics are the main factor behind an adult getting diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. If you have a family history of OCD, or If one parent of yours has OCD, chances are you might get it in adulthood as well.
Major Life Changes
Sometimes, major life changes trigger Obsessive Compulsive Disorder as well. If you get a new job, change a home, or just had a baby, the stress and pressure of new responsibilities may trigger OCD.
Personality Factors
Sometimes, it’s in-built. It can be in your personality. If you are a person who likes everything organized and neat, or if you are a born leader, you may run the risk of having OCD, whenever any such trigger arises.
Traumatic Experiences
If you underwent a traumatic experience, chances are you will find yourself in the trap of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder sooner or later e.g If you got a severe skin rash or allergy from a chemical, it can lead to compulsive hand-washing.
How to Know If You Have OCD?
There are many symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which can help you in knowing If you have OCD. In Psychology, we call it the themes of OCD.
Cleaning
If you think about dirt, and do cleaning for almost 1 hour every day, you have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It’s a constant fear of contamination, which provokes one to clean again and again.
Order & Symmetry
You hate things not being in order. It can be from a non-orderly room to a picture hanging slightly bowed in the wrong angle. You will have the compulsion of straightening things again and again. Still, it doesn’t feel enough, when in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Hoarding
You can’t seem to let go of things. It feels impossible for you to dispose of the things that aren’t even useful to you. These can be old newspapers, pictures, books, unusual objects etc.
Counting
You mutter under your breath, counting something. It can be your belongings, or you can just count the number of beads in your necklace. If you lose count, you would find yourself starting again and again. Such is the torment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Safety
As we discussed in the start, a person with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can have irrational fear about safety. Those fears cause him/her to check the door lock again and again, or the stove to see If it’s on or off.
How to Know If You Pose a Risk Factor for OCD
Family history of OCD plays a great role in developing Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in a person. Studies have shown that people who are at high risk of OCD, have structural differences in their brain. Their frontal cortex and subcortical structures are anatomically different from normal people. Similarly, environmental factors and association of a trauma leads to OCD in most cases.
Some Treatment Options for OCD
There’s not a complete cure for OCD. But the symptoms can be managed through several ways:
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is the first resort for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Your psychologist can use a combination of techniques to help you. Exposure and Response Prevention is the most common technique, where anxiety is induced artificially by creating a situation. It helps you lessen your negative anxious thoughts under the supervision of a psychologist.
Relaxation Exercises
You may be suggested some relaxation exercises to add in your daily routine. These exercises can be deep breathing, meditation and yoga. They help with stressful OCD symptoms.
You also can read about simple ways to improve your mental health, because we are living in such a stressful, fast paced world. It’s better to take care of one’s mental health on an everyday basis.
Medications
When Obsessive Compulsive Behavior is severe, medications are prescribed. They help in controlling obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors.
Medical Devices
In rare cases, when Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is so severe that medications and therapy aren’t helping, your doctor may suggest some medical devices. These devices are put on the brain, and they help in controlling the electrical activity of your brain areas involved in OCD.
Conclusion
There’s a difference between being a perfectionist and OCD. A perfectionist wants flawless arrangement and perfect results and performance, but he usually doesn’t care. While a person with OCD will spend hours on an obsessive thought and doing compulsive behaviors, still they aren’t satisfied with it.
Having OCD is not a joke at all. If you relate yourself to OCD symptoms, or know someone who might be going through it, consult the best Psychologist in Lahore for dealing with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. You can book an appointment via Healthwire.pk or call at (042) 32500989.
