Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder where the affected feel the need to check things often and repeatedly, perform specific routines over and over, or have specific thoughts repeatedly. Sufferers are unable to control either their actions or thoughts when certain tasks are being performed. Common actions include randomly counting things as if it was meaningful, checking to see if doors are locked, and hand washing. Some people may have trouble throwing things away, or getting rid of old trash. These actions occur to such severity that the sufferer's daily life is negatively affected. Sufferers often produce these negative actions for at least an hour a day. Most adults with OCD are able to realize themselves performing …show more content…
Treatment involves counselling, the most common form being cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and in some instances the use of medication, typically certain serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). CBT for sufferers of OCD involves growing exposure to the reasons the problems the sufferer faces while not allowing the repetitive behavior to occur. While the drug clomipramine appears to work as well as an SSRI, it has other, harsher side-effects. Atypical antipsychotics may be useful when used in addition to an SSRI in treatment-resistant cases, but are also associated with a greater risk of side-effects. Without treatment, the condition often lasts …show more content…
Some people use compulsions to avoid situations that may trigger their obsessions. Although some people do certain things over and over again, they do not necessarily perform these actions compulsively. For example, bedtime routines, learning a new skill, and religious practices are not compulsions. Whether or not behaviors are compulsions or mere habit depends on the context in which the behaviors are performed. For example, arranging and ordering DVDs for eight hours a day would be expected of one who works in a video store, but would seem abnormal in other situations. In other words, habits tend to bring efficiency to one's life, while compulsions tend to disrupt
The assigned article of this week is about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder titled Two-Way Mirror: Facing a Daughter’s O.C.D by Beth Boyle Machlan. To clarify the definition of OCD, there are two main features of the disorder: one is obsessions meaning “persistent and intrusive thoughts, ideas, impulses, or images”, another is compulsions which include “repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors or mental acts that are performed in response to an obsession or according to rules that must be applied rigidly” (lecture). In the article, there is a girl named Lucy who may have OCD, and the article seems wrote by her mother. Lucy’s mom has been suffer from depression and bipolar, and Lucy has a history of Tic disorder (article). The story basically depicted in detail about Lucy’s first session with the doctor, Clark, regarding her OCD.
Obsessive-Compulsive disorder is defined in my textbook as a disorder of repetitive, uncontrollable, thoughts or urges that are followed up by repetitive behaviors or mental acts that the person feels compelled to perform. The thing people are often unaware of when talking about obsessive compulsive disorder is that obsessions and compulsions are two totally separate things that happen with this disorder. The obsessions are the thoughts in this disorder defined in the book as intrusive and recurring thoughts, images, or impulses that are persistent and uncontrollable they often feel irrational to the person experiencing them. The compulsions are the behaviors that occur in this disorder defined in the textbook as repetitive, clearly excessive
OCD is distinguished by two prominent and pervasive behaviors: obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are defined by the presence of recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images, which are unwelcome and invasive (American Psychological Association, 2013). Compulsions are manifested by “repetitive behaviors or mental acts that an individual feels driven to perform in response to an obsession or according to rules that must be applied rigidly” (APA, 2013, p. 235).
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 can be distressing and can cause dysfunction in people’s everyday lives. People all around the world suffer from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder no matter their gender, race, or culture. Children, teens, and adults could potentially gain OCD depending on the stressful situations that occur in their lives. People who suffer from this disorder often have uncontrollable thoughts of worry and anxiety that lead to actions and behaviors that become repetitive habits. The actions normally occur when people think that the worst possible things might happen to them. So in order to attempt to suppress the fearful thoughts people may perform different habits over and over again throughout each day in order to gain a
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
A person with obsessive-compulsive disorder may choose between two main treatments: medications and psychotherapy. Though you can choose which one of them suits your needs best, a combination of the two is often found to be most effective in dealing with OCD symptoms.
Obsessive compulsive disorder is a common psychological disorder that is often associated with misconstrued stereotypes. OCD is considered an anxiety disorder consisting of obsessions that are often combined with compulsions. These obsessions are usually recurrent and persistent specific thoughts and be urges. Compulsions make up the second part of OCD. They are repetitive behaviors performed according to rigid rules that are completed in an attempt to help prevent obsessions from becoming true. The compulsions are maintained by negative reinforcement meaning that the patient continues to perform the compulsions because the obsessions are prevented. This idea forces the patient to continue the vicious cycle of performing compulsions to prevent
Obsessive compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder in the brain which is distinguished by unaccommodating thoughts and fears termed as obsessions. These obsessions are categorized into two groups described as aggression which entails the fear of harming others and contamination which is the fear of being dirty in relation to sex, religion and exactness. These obsessions can later lead one to commit repetitive behaviors which are termed as compulsions. Compulsions are customs that people believe will reduce their risk of the obsessions coming true, or at least reduce the anxiety they produce. There are various types of compulsion such as washing and cleaning, counting, checking,demanding reassurances, following a strict routine and orderliness.
Obsessive compulsive disorder, or OCD, is a common disorder that can continue for a long time affecting the brain and a person’s behavior. The disorder causes uncontrollable severe anxiety and reoccurring thoughts in the form of obsessions and compulsions which takes up a lot of a person’s time. The obsessions and compulsions cause the person to feel urges to repeat over and over. This creates endless sequences of repetitive thoughts and behaviors that can damage some lives. OCD usually allows little time for other activities because the person is so focused on an obsession and compulsion, resulting in a lower value of life.
Psychotherapy: exposure and response preventions, most effective treatment for OCD, exposes client to feared objects or obsessions gradually until client can be around object and not feel the
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a prevalent disorder in the population affecting 1 to 17% of the population (Silverman, Ginsburg, & Kurtines, 1995). It is characterized by repetition of thoughts that cause significant distress to the individual along with compulsory behavior, whether overt or covert intended to alleviate the feelings of distress (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2000). Obsessive-compulsive disorder is not only debilitating to the diagnosed individual but it affects the diagnosed individual’s family members as well (Silverman, Ginsburg, & Kurtines, 1995). Due to the disorder’s impactful nature on the family, treatment often entails that of family members (Silverman et al., 1995). Keeping in mind the prevalence
Obsessive compulsive disorder also known as OCD, is an anxiety disorder. People who have this disorder have repetitive thoughts and behaviors that they cannot control. A chemical imbalance of the neurotransmitter serotonin throws off communication in the brain. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians (2015), it can also cause impulses that manifest through obsessions, ideas, and images. The next part of this disorder is compulsions. These are the behaviors that people who have this disorder perform in order to get rid of the uncontrollable thoughts and feelings.
Psychotherapy in conjunction with medication has been proven to be the most effective. The most common form of treatment is psychotropic medications and cognitive behavior therapy (CBT). Together they have shown a decrease in obsessive symptoms and participants retained their improvement after the CBT sessions ended (Borue, Sharma, Hudak, 2015, Carlson et al., 2013). Suggesting that the medication helps with the extinction of the maladaptive thoughts and behaviors. Evidence suggests that this approach works to help those with OCD by working on two main aspects of the disorder; unscrambling the irrational thoughts and gradual exposure to the feared object or idea until the patient is desensitized to or can tolerate their anxiety without engaging in compulsive rituals. A modest proportion of patients will achieve freedom from significant symptoms (Borue, Sharma, Hudak, 2015, Carlson et al., 2013).
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a disorder, which causes an individual to have intrusive thoughts of a frightening or disturbing nature, which in turn may cause a person to do things repeatedly. It is characterized by obsessive thoughts and/ or compulsive behaviors that significantly interfere with normal life. Obsessions are unwanted, recurrent, and disturbing thoughts, which the person cannot suppress, and which can cause overwhelming anxiety. They are not voluntarily produced, but are experienced as events that invade a person 's consciousness. The person neither wants nor welcomes them instead they usually resist them and will try to get rid of them (Desilva and Rachman, 1992, pg. 8). Compulsions are repetitive, ritualized behaviors that compulsive rituals can occupy many hours of each day (# 1OCD). The activity is not connected in a logical or realistic way with what is intended to achieve or it may be clearly excessive. The person recognizes the senselessness or irrationality of the behavior and does not derive any pleasure from carrying it out although it provides a release of tension or a feeling of relief in the short term (Desilva and Rachman, 1992, pg. 9). OCD usually begins in adolescence or young adulthood and is seen in as many as 1 in 200 children and adolescents.