Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders In The Film Melvin

Melvin takes his obsession of being clean to extremes; this is a very common manifestation of someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder. When Melvin goes out for breakfast he takes his own plastic utensils wrapped inside of a plastic bag, because he thinks that the silverware at the diner are not clean enough for him. This is another example of his fear of contamination.

Melvin Udall suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Melvin sticks to the same routine every day in order to not upset himself, if one thing goes wrong in that daily routine, Melvin’s entire day seems to be ruined to the point where he cannot function well. Melvin is afraid of the germs that are all around him. He does not enjoy being touched in any way, or by anyone, whether it is a stranger walking down the street or a friend, of which Melvin does not have many. Melvin always enters his house and turns around to lock the door, which he counts as he does, turning the lock five times before he is certain that he will avoid any danger that might come if he does not fulfill these rituals; he has the same

In this movie, Melvin displayed many compulsions. When he comes back to his apartment he locks his door 5 times and turns on and off the lights 5 times. He also washes his hands with 2 new bars of soap each time he washes his hands. When he walks, he avoids stepping on any cracks. He also sometimes repeats words quietly after someone has said something. Instead of trusting one, his has two clocks side by side near his bed for an alarm. These are just a few examples of the many compulsions Melvin has. He always

Melvin initially portrays himself as superior to others resulting in lack of intimate relationships; however, he displays periods of inferiority to people who threaten to challenge or change his obsessive thoughts or compulsive behaviors. For example, Melvin who has been rude to customers and waitresses as his daily restaurant becomes subservient to the other who forces him to leave. However, as Melvin is gradually exposed to different triggers including taking care of animal, the audience observes his impairment in his social functioning improving. Melvin tires to stop avoiding people’s emotions and provide empathic understanding towards others. This issue helps build a better understanding regarding the cognitive distortion influencing OCD as well as support the effectiveness of field’s use of exposure therapy when treating the compulsive

Throughout the movie, Melvin Udall exhibits abnormal behavior. Not only does Melvin show misogynistic behavior, racist behavior, as well as homophobic behavior but he exhibits signs of obsessive-compulsive disorder (also known as, OCD). To accurately diagnose someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder a clinician would benefit most by using a multifaceted approach including different perspectives. No matter the approach taken a clinician will refer to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (2013), also known as The DSM-5 (2013). The DSM-5 is used by clinicians for official definitions of mental disorders and the criteria needed to diagnosing mental disorders and dysfunctions. The DSM-5 criteria for diagnosing Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is in section 300.3 of The DSM-5. The patient will have either an obsession, compulsion, or both. As stated by The DSM-5 (2013),

Melvin has multiple obsessive thoughts that are combated with multiple compulsive behaviors as well. This is very common among individuals who have OCD. He lets his compulsive behaviors take over his life. One of his obsessions is his constant fear of contamination. Even in his own apartment, he can never truly relax and feel carefree. There’s always perfectly new bars of soap to use for the multiple times he washes his hands with scalding hot water or a shower that needs to be taken for an unusually long amount of time. Another obsession is his need for control. He has the same set schedule that he follows precisely every day. However, as his routine continuously gets disturbed, he becomes even more anxious and irritable. His last obsession is doubt in himself and everyone around him. He locks and unlocks doors at his apartment whenever he enters a room and never steps on a crack outside in fear of something bad happening in the future.

In the movie “Matchstick Men” Nicholas Cage plays the character Roy Waller a con artist who in the end realizes he is being coned over himself. I agree with the diagnosis that he is suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder. From the beginning of the movie to the end he shows clear signs and symptoms of someone who has been suffering with this disease for most of their life.

These people feel obligated to do these actions. Compulsive behaviors are not normal actions someone would do to relieve the stress of, for example, mud on their hands. These people would stress over their hands not being washed after touching a clean door knob ("Moving beyond OCD with higher treatment standards.", 2018). Compulsions also tend to have themes, like cleaning, checking, counting, orderliness, routines, and repetitive reassurance ("Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)", 2016). Melvin’s compulsions consist of cleanliness and checking. Cleanliness is demonstrated through his repetitive handwashing with scorching hot water and a new bar of soap every time, only using brand new plastic silverware that has been wrapped every time he eats, wears gloves to avoid touching things possibly contaminated, and gets anxious when someone gets close to him. Checking is demonstrated through him locking and unlocking the door five times and turning the lights on and off five times. Other compulsions he has are not stepping on sidewalk cracks to ease anxiety and not allowing anyone to enter his

About 60% of obsessive-compulsive disorder patients have multiple obsessions. Not only does Melvin display behaviors associated with his fear of contamination, but also he presents compulsions under the symmetry/exactness/”just right” symptom subtype. This subtype deals specifically with the need for symmetry, in which things are put in a certain order and rituals are repeated. Melvin has very specific expectations of order in his daily routine. Every

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.

Imagine feeling like a slave in your own body. Being forced to do ridiculous rituals and having constant compulsions to do things that you know don’t make sense. This is what it is like to live with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). In the United States alone, over 2 million people suffer from OCD (Parks, 2011) but no one has found the cause of this disorder. It affects people of all races, genders and socioeconomic backgrounds (Parks, 2011). Since it’s discovery and modern conceptualization, there has been an ongoing debate whether OCD is caused by environmental factors or if it is inherited through genetics. However, since both sides of the debate raise a solid argument and there is not enough hard evidence, the source of the disorder

Persistent fears that harm may come to self or a loved one, an unreasonable belief that one has a terrible illness, or an excessive need to do things correctly or perfectly, are common. Again and again, the individual experiences a disturbing thought, such as, "My hands may be contaminated--I must wash them"; "I may have left the gas on"; or "I am going to injure my child." These thoughts are intrusive, unpleasant, and produce a high degree of anxiety. Often the obsessions are of a violent or a sexual nature, or concern illness.

Marvin Udall displays typical behaviors that many functioning obsessive compulsives have in common. Mr. Udall has obsessions which are, “persistent thoughts, urges that are experienced as intrusive and unwanted, whereas compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts that an individual feels driven to perform in response to an obsession (American Psychiatric Association., 2013).” Very early in the film we see Mr. Udall struggles with contamination-related obsessions and participates in ritualistic activities which serve to lessen his obsessional anxiety. We see him engage in hand washing rituals with extremely hot water and several bars of soap which is only intrusive to him, to later in the film where he must take a shower before dinner and has the character Carol waiting on him for what seemed like hours. Mr. Udall has a ritual to eat at a certain restaurant everyday for breakfast, where he also must bring his own plastic silverware for fear of germs.

Howard Hughes was a business tycoon, aviator, and film director who had a fear of germs that over time evolved into a phobia. With his fear of germs, Howard develops obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which throughout the film plagues his life with problems and challenges. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric condition in which unwanted obsessions or compulsions are very time consuming and cause a great deal of distress or impair daily functioning (Weis, 2013). This is very much true in the sense of Howard’s condition.

From a cognitive approach, obsessive-compulsive disorder is the result of people blaming their obsessions and compulsions on themselves and therefore having non-rational thoughts of bad things occurring if there compulsions are not acted upon. People with this disorder will attempt to neutralize their thoughts by the compulsions which is usually unsuccessful. In turn, the individual will only feel ease from the negative thoughts temporarily. Treatment from a cognitive approach focuses on giving the patient an understanding of the cognitive process involved in their disorder (Comer 167). Cognitive therapists will help the patient understand why they are feeling the way they are, then they begin to direct their thinking patterns in a more