The obsessions or compulsions are time-consuming (e.g., take more than 1 hour per day) or cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. Example: Maya’s obsessions and compulsions have made a drastic impact on her life. While in school she began missing large segments of classes due to her constant need to was her hands. She said, “Some days I spend most of my time just washing my hands.”…
Ultimately, you feel driven to perform compulsive acts in an effort to ease your stressful feelings. (“Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)” Web). The causes of OCD are biology; OCD may be a result of changes in your body 's own natural chemistry or brain functions. OCD also may have a genetic component, but specific genes have yet to be identified. The environment; OCD may stem from behavior-related habits that you learned over time and insufficient serotonin. The effects of OCD include suicidal thoughts and behavior, alcohol or substance abuse, depression, eating disorders, contact dermatitis from frequent hand washing, inability to attend work or school, and troubled relationships. (“Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)”…
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder of the brain and behavior that occurs in two forms, obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are recurring thoughts and emotions which become very distracting and compulsions are a set of behaviors which become rituals that a person feels compelled to perform. Repeating these behaviors are supposed to counteract or diminish the anxiety associated to your obsessions or averts something bad from occurring. However, preforming the compulsion only offers a temporary relief from anxiety of the obsession.…
People with this behavior cannot enjoy life the way others can. They are not free to be spontaneous. They are constantly worried with their obsessions. People suffering from Obsessive Compulsive disorder know that their behavior is irrational and excessive, yet they still have very little control over it.…
What is obsessive-compulsive disorder? It can be described as “thoughts, images, or urges” that can cloud an individual’s mind with persistence, often “invading” their level of consciousness (Comer, 2014, p. 127). It makes the person suffering from this disorder act in a “repetitive and rigid” way in order to “prevent or reduce” the anxiety that they feel (Comer, 2014, p. 127). Statistics estimate that about 1 percent of the…
Answer D. A compulsion is a repetitive act or impulse helps a person to reduce anxiety unconsciously. An obsessive-compulsive patient does not want to call attention to self and cannot control thoughts. This patient’s priority is to reduce anxiety, not maintain the safety of the home.…
People with OCD struggle with their disease and can sometimes feel overpowered by it, like it controls all their actions. “Obsessive Compulsive Disorder does exactly what it says on the tin: it gives you obsessive thoughts, compelling you to do irrational things” (Wells 14).…
Exams and tests may be done to make sure that anxieties are not being caused by health problems and are not related to alcohol or drugs. To be diagnosed with OCD an individual must show either obsessive behavior or compulsive behavior and either must be preventing the individual from living a normal everyday life. (Mayo Clinic)…
There are four main explanations to OCD, these are biological explanations which states that the condition is often hereditary and the gene make up of a person has a part to play in the condition. Another possible explanation is the psychodynamic explanation, this theory states that the person is fixated at the anal stage in the psychosexual stages.…
Many think that children do not suffer from stress or anxiety. How can children suffer from stress or anxiety? They don’t have a job or have to pay bills. Regardless of no job or bills to pay, it is important to realize they do experience stress/anxiety. What is the cause of it, the best way to cope with it, and when is treatment necessary?…
Sometimes OCD can be misdiagnosed, especially in children. Younger children suffering from OCD may be diagnosed with…
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a potentially disabling condition that can persist throughout a person 's life. An individual who suffers from OCD becomes trapped in a pattern of repetitive thoughts and behaviors that are irrational and upsetting but extremely difficult to overcome. OCD occurs in a spectrum from mild to severe, but if a severe case goes untreated, it can destroy a person 's ability to function at work, school, or even in the home. In OCD, it is as though the brain gets stuck on a particular thought or urge and just can 't let go. My research will focus on three main aspects of Obsessive-compulsive disorder: 1) What causes it, 2) What are the symptoms, and 3) What are the treatments that can curb its sometimes debilitating effects.…
Many people who have OCD know that their actions often do not make sense. They may try to hide their problem from family and friends, and may have trouble keeping a job because of their actions. Without treatment, obsessions and the need to perform rituals can take over a person’s life. OCD is an anxiety disorder that can be life-long. A person with OCD can also recover and then get the illness again, or relapse. This illness affects women and men in equal numbers. Most often, OCD begins during the teenage years or early childhood, although it can start in an adult.…
As defined by the National Institute of Mental Health, obsessive-compulsive disorder is “characterized by recurrent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and/or repetitive behaviors (compulsions).” So what does this mean? Imagine a thought in your head. This thought gets replayed over and over again. It’s like an avalanche, and the only way to get rid of this thought is to immerse yourself in some type of repetitive behavior. The most common behavior, or symptom is washing of the hands over and over. This helps to alleviate the anxiety caused by the thought that’s stuck in your head. Some other common symptoms include the need to repeatedly check things, such as a door lock or light switch. Also, an inability to throw away anything. This is commonly referred to as hoarding. These “rituals” can become very time consuming. A 2001 study conducted in 19 clinics right here in northern California determined the severity of symptoms in patients having new-onset OCD. Now as you can see from this illustration, 38% had mild symptoms which occupied up to 2 hours of their day. 19% had moderate symptoms which occupied 2-6 hours of their day. And finally, 8% had severe symptoms which occupied more than 6 hours of their day. With the remaining 35% unable to be determined. As you can see, OCD can be very…
something. (National Library of Medicine) OCD is a hardship that many people have to endure…