ObsessiveCompullsive Disorder Essay Research Paper What is

Obsessive-Compullsive Disorder Essay, Research Paper

What is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Have you ever known somebody who washes their hands excessively are constantly checking to see if the doors are locked. This may be the cause of low serotonin levels in the brain. Serotonin is responsible in helping nerve cells communicate. More plainly, they may be symptoms of the all-unbearable anxiety disorder known as obsessive-compulsive disorder. Although about 5.5 million people in the U.S. are affected by OCD not all of them are aware or just are too embarrassed by their peculiar behaviors to get help. In approximately 80% of all cases [of OCD] persons performing these rituals are painfully aware that their behavior is unreasonable and irrational (n.d., Phillipson).

Worries, doubts, superstitious beliefs all are the common in everyday life. However, when they become so excessive such as hours of hand washing or make no sense at all such as driving around and around the block to check that an accident didn t occur then a diagnosis of OCD is made. In OCD, it is as though the brain gets stuck on a particular thought or urge and just won t let go. People with OCD often say the symptoms feel like a case of mental hiccups that won t go away. OCD is a medical brain disorder that causes problems in information processing. ( OCF 1998)

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder symptoms can occur in people of all ages from preschool age to adulthood usually by age 40. About one third to one half of adults diagnosed with OCD say that it started during their childhood and it went unnoticed until adulthood. Approximately one million children and adolescents in the United States suffer from OCD, which, means three to five youngsters per average sized elementary school and about twenty teenagers in a large high school (NAMI 2001). On average, people with OCD see about three to four doctors and spend over nine years seeking treatment before they receive the right diagnosis. Studies have also found that it takes an average of seventeen years from the time OCD begins for people to obtain appropriate treatment. OCD tends to be under diagnosed and under treated for a number of reasons. People with OCD may be secretive about their symptoms and cleverly hide obsessions and compulsions from family members and coworkers or they may just lack the insight of their anxiety disorder. This is because many healthcare providers are not familiar with the symptoms or are not trained in providing the appropriate treatments. Then there are just some people who do not have the access to treatment resources such as medication or behavior therapy. This can be unfortunate since earlier diagnosis of OCD and the proper treatment, including finding the right medications, can help people avoid other sufferings associated with OCD and lessen the risk of developing other complications such as, depression, or marital and work problems. (OCF 1998)

OCD can take so many different forms and there are two characteristics associated with the anxiety disorder. They are the obsessions and the compulsions. Obsessions are thoughts, images, of impulses, which are often intrusive and upsetting. These things occur over and over again to the point where it is out of one s control. The person does not want to have these ideas or the disturbing and intrusive images but they can t help it. They know that these thoughts are irrational and ridiculous but they can t stop their anxieties. Some the thoughts or mental images that can be associated with obsessions are:

Germs

Dirt

Doubt

Order

Symmetry

repugnant sexual thoughts

Excessive religious/moral doubt

Horrific/violent images

Forbidden thoughts

Fear of forgetting

Need to tell/confess

Fear that a mistake will harm a loved one

Someone that worries excessively about dirt and germs is usually obsessed with idea that they are contaminated or may contaminate others. Or they can have an obsessive fear of hurting somebody else maybe while they are pulling their car out of the driveway (OCF 1998). These obsessions are usually accompanied by an uncomfortable feeling, such as fear, disgust, doubt, or sensation that things need to be done in a way that is .just so. x

On the other hand compulsions are done in reaction to obsessions in an attempt to relieve their anxieties such as, fear of harm or germs. Compulsions are characterized by a repetitive behavior in response to an urge or anxiety. They are provoked by obsessions in order to make the obsessions go away. These rituals are performed again over and over again and become difficult to stop. Like someone who is obsessed with germs and contamination may wash his hands constantly to the point where their hands are raw and red (OCF 1998). Or somebody who locks and relocks their doors everyday before going to work for an hour and a half (OCDRESOURCE 2001). Some examples of compulsions include:

Washing hands

Checking locks

Checking stoves

Touching things

Counting things

Ordering things

Cleaning things

Performing silly rituals until it feels right

Hoarding/saving

Praying

When a person uses up more than an hour a day devoted to washing their hands, showering, ect, repeatedly it can be considere

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