OCD
...relationships with others. Obsessions or compulsions can displace useful and satisfying behavior and can be highly disruptive to overall functioning. Because obsessive intrusions can be distracting, they frequently result in inefficient performance of cognitive tasks that require concentration, such as reading or computation. In addition, many individuals avoid objects or situations that provoke obsessions or compulsions. Such avoidance can become extensive and can severely restrict general functioning. (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 1994). Symptoms of OCD include repetitive, ritualized behavior, such as counting, hoarding objects, or handwashing; obsessive fear of threats, such as germs; or a fear of committing violent acts. (Klobuchar 266) The American Psychiatric Association classifies OCD as an anxiety disorder. People with OCD suffer from persistent and disturbing thoughts, images, or impulses, called obsessions. They relieve the anxiety caused by their obsessions through compulsions-repeated behaviors that they feel driven to perform. (Goodman, 1994, p.104) The DSM-IV defines obsessions as recurrent thoughts, images, or impulses that are anxiety-provoking and are perceived as intrusive or senseless. (Gragg & Francis, 1996, p.1) The intrusive and inappropriate quality of the obsessions has been referred to as "ego-dystonic." This refers to the individual's sense that the content of the obsession is alien, not within his or her own control, and not the kind of thought that he or she would expect to have. However, the individual is able to recognize that the obsessions are the product of his or her own mind and are not imposed form without (as in thought insertion). (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 1994). Obsessions typically fall within seven major categories. i.e. Contamination obsessions, which typically involve excessive concerns about germs, disease, and cleanliness. Somatic obsessions, which are persistent, repetitive thoughts about physical concerns. Children may experience intrusive thoughts that they have a tumor or that they are developing sensory impairments. ual/Aggressive obsessions typically involve recurrent thoughts or images that one has committed an unacceptable ual or aggressive thought or act in the past or is likely to do so in the future. Hoarding obsessions are worries that things should not be thrown away just in case they might be needed later. Doubting obsessions are incessant worrying that one will be responsible for a terrible consequence resulting from one’s failure to fulfill an obligation or complete a task correctly. Religious obsessions typically involve thoughts about committing or having committed an immoral act or sin. And lastly, a need for symmetry and exactness. These obsessions are characterized by excessive concern about putting objects in a specific position, scheduling events in a certain order, doing and undoing motor acts in an exact fashion, or making sure that things are precisely symmetrical. (Gragg & Francis, 1996, pp.2,3) The individual with obsessions usually attempts to ignore or suppress such thoughts or impulses or to neutralize them with some other thought or action (i.e., a compulsion). For example, an individual plagued by doubts about having turned off the stove attempts to neutralize them by repeatedly checking to ensure that it is off. (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 1994). The DSM-IV defines compulsions as repeated behaviors or mental acts that a person feels compelled or driven to perform, either in response to an obsessions or according to a self-imposed, rigidly applied rule. (Gragg & Francis, 1996, p.4) There are six major types of compulsions. The most common compulsion is washing, bathing, or cleaning to relieve an obsessive fear of contamination from germs, dirt, or some imagined source. Washers may scrub their homes or bathe until their skin is raw before they feel safe from the imagined danger. Checkers may find themselves repeatedly driving back over a stretch of road to confirm that they haven’t ally hit a pedestrian. (Goodman, 1994, p.107) Washing and cleaning compulsions typically involves excessive washing and cleaning of oneself and one’s surroundings, as well as active avoidance of objects, places, or persons considered to be unclean. Checking compulsions typically consists of an overwhelming urge to check and recheck objects and/or actions. Repeating compulsions involve redoing physical or mental acts a certain number of times or until it feels just right. Counting compulsions include rituals that include having special or lucky numbers that dictate the number of times they must do, say, or think things. Ordering compulsions are typically associated with the obsessions involving the need for symmetry and exactness. Hoarding compulsions are rituals that often occur in response to hoarding obsessions, that involve the inability to throw things away or the need to collect useless objects. (Gragg & Francis, 1996, pp.4-6) OCD was once thought to be rare. It is now estimated that up to 3 percent of the U.S. population may suffer from OCD at some point in their lives (about 5 million people). The disorder usually begins in adolescence or early hood, but it may also occur in childhood. (AMI/FAMI). By definition, s with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder have at some point recognized that the obsessions or compulsions are excessive or unreasonable. This requirement does not apply to children because they may lack sufficient cognitive awareness to make this judgment. (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 1994) The exact causes of OCD are still unknown. However, researchers strongly suspect that a biochemical imbalance is involved. Alterations in one ...