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Within these pages you will find articles, reviews & resources concentrating on self help for Sufferers of Anxiety, OCD, Depression & Panic Attack Disorders
So how do we determine which is ritual and which is compulsion?
How do we define obsessive compulsive disorder? This is not as straightforward an answer as you may think. There is a very fine line between simply having certain habits and it becoming an obsession. For example, if you dust and vacuum your house every day, this could be viewed as simply being House Proud, however if you feel the need to dust and clean several times a day, this could then be viewed as the start of displaying compulsive obsessive disorder symptoms.
How do I know if I have OCD or this is just habit?
There are no real reliable diagnostic tests to ascertain if an individual has OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) or not. Diagnosis is usually based on a thorough face-to-face interview conducted by an experienced mental health professional. It is hoped that eventually we will better understand the causes of obsessive compulsive disorder and compulsive behavior, and that we can look to see if there are any genetic reasons or characteristic patterns that may show up on brain scans that will confirm a correct diagnosis. One test based on the ‘cleaning’ scenario mentioned earlier, would be to not dust or vacuum the house for even one day and see how it makes you feel. Is it a feeling of relief to have some time to things for yourself, or are you worrying excessively and feel guilty because you feel you are living in filth.
There are some things you can do to determine if you have OCD and better understand compulsive obsessive disorder symptoms.
Most sufferers of OCD make the first diagnosis themselves. Discovering OCD can often be as a result of watching a Television chat show or a news story, reading a newspaper, magazine or internet article. This diagnosis can be made at an early age if you know the signs and what to look out for. My wife was diagnosed with OCD when she was 10 years old, and the early warning signs for her, were when her parents found her organising the food in her grandmothers kitchen in size order, then in colour groups, then in food groups (and on and on - the point being she was obsessed with getting the organisation of these items correct). To this day, at dinner she will not have the food on her plate touching its neighbour (very particular about beans!)
Many sufferers of OCD feel very alone until they witness the story of someone else who also suffers. Just when they thought they were losing their mind it suddenly becomes apprarent they are suffering from a legitimate mental disorder. They often don’t know how to describe their experience until they hear it described by someone else who has given it a name. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (or Compulsive Obsessive Disorder) was once believed to be a rare problem. Like many anxiety states, sufferers from OCD and depression keep their problems very much to themselves. This is mainly due to the irrational nature of the obsessions and the compulsive behavior that many sufferers are too frightened and embarrassed about revealing to others. As a result, until the last few years, the true scale of those suffering from this disorder was unknown.
It is estimated that over one million people in the United Kingdom suffer an obsessive compulsive disorder in one form or another. The disorder can manifest itself as both obsessive thoughts and compulsive behavior and those suffering may experience either obsessions or compulsions alone or, more commonly, a mixture of the two. This compulsive obsessive disorder can affect all of us, across all cultures, occupations and racial groups.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (sometimes referred to as OCD for short, or often as ‘Compulsive Obsessive Disorder’) is deeply rooted in obsessive rituals and thinking patterns.
This can also accompanied by a compulsion to perform certain physical rituals. One of the most common that many people will refer to is excessive washing / cleaning or the organising of objects in very specific order. Not all sufferers with obsessive compulsive disorder will have both, and it is possible to have the compulsive thoughts without the physical rituals and in some rarer cases – the compulsive obsessive disorder symptoms in a person may result in the need for a physical ritual without any mental compulsion.
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OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) Explained
Some Examples of Compulsions
garbage to ensure nothing of value has been trashed. Collecting useless items.
Preoccupation with aligning items in a certain way.
aggressively.
consequences that may result from doing so. Being afraid to use certain colours, numbers or letters
because they are considered ( by you ) to be unlucky.
items left on the street, warning others of small possible dangers. Concern that your own
carelessness or that of others may cause some terrible accidents. A fear of what you may say
could hurt the feelings of others, a ‘keeping everyone happy and safe’ compulsion.
continuously.
names or words. A Fear of forgetting certain important detail of an event or time, just in case when
relaying a story you get it wrong or forget important details. Thrown and bothered by the feeling
of some clothing, textures on your skin. Any small imperfections is intolerable.
ticking or street sounds. The intrusion of nonsense sounds, music, words.
Causes of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Whilst the causes of OCD remain unclear there is some evidence that compulsive obsessive disorder symptoms can be attributed to an imbalance of serotonin (a neurotransmitter in the brain), or a disturbance in serotonin metabolism is associated with the OCD sufferers.
Many sufferers (my wife is one of these) improve through the use of medications that up the brain serotonin levels (e.g. Prozac, Anafranil, Zoloft and Paxil). As with all Anxiety Disorders, OCD can be also overcome through self help and CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), often in partnership with anti-depressant drugs.
The process can be quite slow however the hard work does produce a positive outcome and it is possible to make a complete recovery
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