Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – OCD

Have you ever heard someone casually refer to themselves as OCD because they like to do things in a precise and orderly way? ‘OCD’ is often misunderstood and the term is misused as a synonym for uptight, fussy, hard to please, overly neat, or too precise.¹

However, OCD is a serious anxiety disorder characterised by uncontrollable, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and ritual behaviours that sufferers feel the need to repeat over and over (compulsions).^{2, 3}

Unlike someone who is particular about personal hygiene or safety and security, a person with OCD may repeatedly wash their hands on a daily basis until they are raw. Likewise, they might spend so much time checking and rechecking if their front door is locked that they may be late for work regularly.

A typical OCD cycle = Obsessive thought – Anxiety – Compulsive behavior – Temporary Relief ²

People who have OCD likely know that their obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours are irrational – do not make sense.² Even when trying to resist them, these obsessions (thoughts) and compulsions (urges) keep coming up and their brain gets ‘stuck’.^{1, 2} He or she cannot just snap out of it or get over it.^1,2,4 Feeling powerless to resist or control them, they may carefully disguise or hide their obsessions and compulsions from others so as not to appear odd or crazy.^{5, 6}

While no one knows for certain what causes OCD, researchers believe it may result from a combination of genetic, cognitive, and environmental factors.^7,9,10

• Genetic. There is a tendency for OCD to run in families
• Cognitive. Cognitive function refers to the brain-based skills we use to perform simple and complex tasks – neuroimages (pictures of the brain) suggest that chemical, structural and functional differences in the brain may play a role
• Environmental. Behavioural conditioning (learned responses) help temporarily reduce or prevent the anxiety connected with the obsessive thought or compulsive behaviour^{9, 10}

OCD occurs in males and females. While it can develop at any age, it tends to first appear between the age of 8 and 12 or between late teens and early adulthood.¹

Signs and symptoms can be mild, moderate or severe, can come and go throughout a person’s life, and may ease over time or get worse.^3,4 While most people with OCD have both obsessions and compulsions, it is possible for someone to have one or the other.²

• Extreme fear of being contaminated by germs or dirt, or contaminating others
• Fear of losing control together with aggressive or horrific thoughts about harming    yourself or others
• Disturbing, intrusive sexual or violent thoughts and images
• Excessive focus on religious or moral ideas
• Fear of losing or not having things you might need
• Excessive beliefs about perfection, order and symmetry – the idea that everything must line up perfectly
• Superstitious beliefs such as walking on cracks on a pathway will cause harm to  yourself or others^2,4,11

• Following a strict daily routine
• Not touching objects touched by others
• Excessive checking and rechecking things, such as the stove, taps, light switches, locks
• Repeatedly checking in on loved ones to make sure they are safe
• Counting, tapping, repeating certain words, or doing other senseless things to reduce  anxiety
• Spending a lot of time washing hands or cleaning
• Needing to arrange things symmetrically and precisely
• Praying excessively or engaging in rituals triggered by religious fear
• Accumulating everything you have ever owned, including items that should be thrown away such as old newspapers or empty food containers^{2, 4, 11}

Obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours can become all-consuming and overwhelming, causing serious distress, impacting work, school and relationships.^{2, 3, 4}