Obsessive compulsive disorder

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic mental health condition that is usually associated with both obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviour.

Obsessions

An obsession is defined as an unwanted thought, image or urge that repeatedly enters a person’s mind such as

Recurrent, persistent thoughts, images, or impulses which are disturbing, intrusive, or inappropriate and cause significant stress or anxiety.
The thoughts, impulses, or images are not attributed to excessive worry about real-life problems
Person attempts to suppress, ignore, or neutralize thoughts, impulses and images (neutralizing the thought or impulse with some other thought, action, or ritual)
Person recognizes that the obsessions are irrational.

Examples:

Fear of dirt, germ contamination
Fear of being embarrassed
Fear of thinking evil thoughts
A need for symmetry and order
Excessive doubt, superstition

Compulsions

A compulsion is defined as a repetitive behaviour or mental act that a person feels compelled to perform in response to an obsession.

Unlike some other types of compulsive behaviour, such as an addiction to drugs or gambling, a person with OCD gets no pleasure from their compulsive behaviour. They feel that they need to carry out their compulsion to prevent their obsession becoming true. Behaviours are aimed at the prevention and reduction of distress, or to counteract a dreaded event or situation, unconnected with the chosen behaviours

Examples:

Repeated hand-washing
Repeated checking – i.e. checking the oven or iron to make sure it is turned off, to the point that the person may be several hours late for leaving the house
Counting while performing routine tasks
Eating foods in a specific order
Need to perform tasks or rituals a certain number of times
Hoarding items unnecessarily

Obsessions and compulsions are time consuming, cause distress and impaired functioning at work, school, or socially. The person suffering from OCD recognizes that the behaviours or thoughts are unreasonable.

Potential Causes of OCD

No specific cause is known yet, but a combination of biological and environmental factors may be involved.

When does OCD start?

Onset could be in childhood, adolescence or early adulthood. OCD occurs equally to men and women and affects people of all races and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Possible forms of treatment:

There are a variety of treatments for OCD. Even when a complete cure is not achievable, effective treatment can reduce the severity of symptoms and help to improve quality of life. Main treatments include:

Cognitive-behaviour therapy: This is the most widely used psychological therapy with OCD. The approach is focused on reducing anxiety and catastrophic thought distortions while discouraging ritualistic behaviour
Medication: such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) which are a type of antidepressant
Or further treatment at a specialist OCD Treatment centre

More information can be found on the websites below.

workplacewellbeing.com assumes no responsibility for the content of linked websites.

https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd/

http://www.ocduk.org/

http://www.ocdaction.org.uk/