OCD Is OCD Preventable and Is There a Cure? Julia Pettis Caledonia- Mumford Is OCD Preventable and Is There a Cure? Julia Pettis Caledonia- Mumford Not only is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder unpreventable, but is often said to have no cure, or at least no cure for everyone affected. However, a cure could and probably will come out in the near future that will positively affect the majority of those suffering from this condition. This would be created by changing either a patient’s levels of glutamate or by changing a brain receptor called mGluR5. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental condition causing a person to have unwanted and repeated thoughts, or obsessions, which cause them to feel compelled to do something to …show more content…
OCD, however, is often seen as incurable, but rather improvable, in the same way a condition such as diabetes would be. The most common form of therapy to treat a patient with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT for short. The idea of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is to change the way a person thinks by changing their perspective. By changing a patient’s thoughts, it is supposed to change the way they feel, so they don’t sense the urge to complete compulsive …show more content…
This disorder is highly distressing, causing a person to repeat things in their head, and feel the need to rid them by performing compulsions, or by behaving in a strange and uncomfortable way. These compulsions may be in the form of doubting oneself and double checking things, washing themselves constantly, creating superstitions, hording, something else, or a combination of all these things. OCD is unpreventable in any way, shape, or form. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is typically said to have no cure when detected, but is often able to be treated with the use of therapy, and possibly the use of medication. The issue with these medications is they often have no effect, if not a negative one, and there is no way to ensure what the outcome of taking a prescription will be. Fortunately, research is now finding a new cause for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and linking the cause of it with a possible cure. This cure would be completely effective and cause a patient to be relieved of their uncomfortable symptoms forever. The idea of this could give hope to those with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder today that they will someday no longer have to deal with the anxiety it creates. Until a cure is found, those who have this mental illness and work toward maintaining it through therapy, medication, or a combination of the two, can in almost all cases live relatively
Two therapies that provide abetment for obsessive-compulsive disorders Psychodynamic Therapy and antidepressant drugs. Nevid (2015) cites on Psychodynamic Therapy, “Psychoanalysis, the form of psychotherapy Sigmund Freud developed, is based on the belief that unconscious conflicts originating in childhood give rise to psychological problems” (p. 526). Antidepressant drugs procure calmness in the body by increasing neurotransmitters, and serotonin levels decreased in the body. Nevid (2015) informs, “Antidepressants increase levels of the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and serotonin in the brain” (p. 547). Drugs like Tofranil, Elavil, and Zoloft raise the brain levels of norepinephrine and serotonin (Nevid, 2015). Nevid furthers on this medication
There are several different options of treatment for someone with OCD. Some of the options are drug
As explained by Seibell in the article “Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder”, (2015) it often takes many years before the correct treatment is obtained for an individual with OCD. Melvin seeks treatment as an adult because of his developing relationship Carol. In the movie he explains to Carol that he has sought treatment from a psychiatrist and is taking medication to help him with his
Firstly, psychological therapy, also called psychotherapy, treats the patient through exposure, group therapy, hypnotherapy, and response prevention to get help rid of compulsions and/or obsessions deep within a person’s conscious. Exposure involves exposing a patient to the stimuli that cause anxiety for a long period time over repeated times. Group therapy is similar to Alcoholics Anonymous involving patients suffering similar symptoms or who are under the same type of obsession or compulsion. This treatment is meant to help others with the illness and learn more about their condition. Hypnotherapy involves a hypnotist and the patient and the hypnotist will try to rid of the patient’s obsessions or compulsions while under hypnosis. Response prevention aims at helping the patient to avoid from performing tasks compulsively. Finally, drug use is believed by professionals to be successful at treating patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Since one of the causes for the disorder is lack of serotonin, antidepressants recuperate the lost serotonin, such as clomipramine, amitriptyline, imipramine, and much more. Despite all of these treatments available, a person is always capable of
What is OCD? OCD stands for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a psychological disorder that makes an individual have a great deal of anxiety due to unwanted thoughts. The individual will try to reduce it by engaging in repetitive behaviors or compulsions. OCD is a part of an individual’s everyday life, so it is natural to have some obsessive thoughts. However, when it interferes with your every day lifestyle, then the individual knows that it’s a disorder. An example of the most common OCD that someone may encounter are contamination, accidental harm to others, perfection when it comes to washing, cleaning, or arrangement of things. Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms can change over time. It is most common
Obsessive compulsive disorder are most effectively treated with Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and/or medication. The class of typically prescribed medications are called serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs). The most effective treatments are Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), which is a type of CBT.
The therapist uncovers the root of the obsessions and compulsions However, OCD can be well treated with a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Apart from the treatment offered, a client with obsessive compulsory disorder should try shift his/her attention to something else when experiencing OCD urges and thoughts. A good example is listening to music, taking a walk, jog and even
By using Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) individuals are able to be diagnosed and treated for many anxiety disorders, one of which is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is an anxiety disorder associated with invasive thoughts, impulses and urges which can cause severe anxiety for an individual. These obsessive thoughts can then cause the individual to act compulsively to prevent the stress and anxiety that is occuring (American Psychological Association, 2013). According to CBT, OCD is caused by distorted cognitions and the way different thoughts are being interpreted (Whittal, Thordarson & McLean, 2005). Treatment for OCD includes various CBT techniques including Psychoeducation, creating symptom hierarchies and then combining it with the behavioural technique of Exposure Response Prevention (ERP). Both the aetiology and the treatment of the disorder have strengths and weaknesses.
There have been no genes identified specifically for OCD, although research shows that genes do play a part in the development of OCD. Development of OCD during childhood runs in families. If one or both parents have OCD, there is a bigger chance that the child will have OCD, but it is still a very low chance. Other than this, there is no proven cause of OCD. Research shows that OCD is the result of problems with communication between the front part of the brain and deeper structures. These two brain structures use the chemical serotonin and low levels of serotonin is thought to be involved in OCD. Therefore, drugs that increase serotonin levels often help with the symptoms of OCD. Another form of treatment for OCD is called cognitive behavior therapy and has shown to be effective in both children and adults. This type of therapy involves retraining your thoughts and routines so that the compulsions are no longer necessary. This therapy usually exposes you to your fear or obsession and teaches you healthy ways to deal with it. People with OCD
Obsessive compulsion disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder described by irrational thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead you to do repetitive tasks (compulsions) (Obsessive Compulsion Disorder, 2013). When a person has obsessive-compulsive disorder, they may realize that their obsessions aren't accurate, and they may try to overlook them but that only increases their suffering and worry. Eventually, you feel driven to perform compulsive acts to ease your stressful feelings. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is often driven by a reason, cause, or fear for example, a fear of germs. To calm the feeling of this fear, a person may compulsively wash their hands until they're sore and chapped. Despite their efforts, thoughts of obsessive-compulsive behavior keep coming back. This leads to more ritualistic behavior and a brutal cycle of obsessive-compulsive disorder. OCD is the fourth most common mental disorder, and is diagnosed nearly as often as asthma and diabetes (Who We Are, 2012). In the United States, one in 50 adults suffers from OCD. Obsessive compulsive disorder affects children, adolescents, and adults. About one third to one half of adults with OCD report a childhood onset of the disorder, they felt these anxieties but were not diagnosed or felt no need to be diagnosed until the compulsions over whelmed them (Who We Are, 2012). The phrase obsessive compulsive has been used to describe excessively meticulous, perfectionistic, absorbed, or otherwise fixated person. While
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder that is the fourth most common mental illness in the U.S. (8). OCD affects five million Americans, or one in five people (3). This is a serious mental disorder that causes people to think and act certain things repetitively in order to calm the anxiety produced by a certain fear. Unlike compulsive drinking or gambling, OCD compulsions do not give the person pleasure; rather, the rituals are performed to obtain relief from the discomfort caused by obsessions (2). OCD is more common than schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or panic disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (6). This disorder can be therapeutically treated, but not cured.
Obsessive compulsive disorder is influenced by neurological factors with symptoms such as repeating steps, continuously washing their hands, and having a fear of objects like germs. Although there is no cure, there are treatments such as medication and therapy that can help lessen the patient’s anxiety and discomfort.
Studies have found that drugs such as clomipramine, fluoxetine, and fluvoxamine help between 50 and 80% of patients. The downfall to this type of treatment is that once the patient comes off of the medication the obsessions and compulsions return. This treatment only covers the symptoms of this disorder. Since there are downfalls to each treatment, cognitive, behavioral, and biological therapies are often used in combination. Obsessive-compulsive disorder can last for years or even be life long depending on how successful the treatment is.
Even though there’s treatments there isn’t exactly any cures to mental illness. While a cure is defined as relieving a person or animal of disease or condition taking care of a mental illness infrequently has the outcome of a cure, essentially. What it does end in is an individual feeling improved, becoming well, and may even result in eventually no longer requiring treatments. Mental illness is considerably more frequent than the majority of diseases. Take depression for example, it tends to come and go in one’s life, even if they’ve successfully treated previous episode. There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of explanation or warning to when a mental disorder will take place, who it will attack and how long the episode will last. So technically a mental illness cannot be cured. Dr.’s and psychologists can assist individuals with understanding what it is, train and engage new ways of managing symptoms, and help them do the best they can with the resources they have
Treatment for OCD is no different than any other anxiety disorder. The treatments consist of medication and behavioral therapy. The medication sometimes is not effective but another medication should be tried in the non-effective ones place. Some medications that are used to treat OCD are: clomipramine, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine and paroxetine. Behavioral therapy is another effective treatment for OCD. Therapist use a method called “exposure and response prevention.” This method has proven useful in the treatment of OCD patients because the patient is voluntarily put in a situation that could possibly trigger and OCD attack,