Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
By: Zachary Z
What is OCD?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is a type of anxiety disorder. It keeps a constant stream of uncertainty, doubt, or fear in someones mind. These are called obsessions, and keeps someone preoccupied determining whether something could be harmful, dangerous, wrong, or dirty.
Signs or Symptoms
- They may have the need for everything to be perfect
- Upsetting, disturbing, or doubting thoughts
- Feeling that they have to do something constantly
- They have the urge to do something over and over again.
How does it Affect Someone?
It gives a person constant anxiety and fear that something bad will happen at any time. They may not want to do things because they think it would be dangerous, even though nothing bad could possibly happen. They would do rituals that may take up some of or all of their day.
Other Names
It is frequently known as OCD
How is it Diagnosed?
To see if a person has OCD, a psychologist would ask them questions like:
- Do you have worries or bad thoughts that bother you?
- Do you have the need to check, repeat, ask, or do things over and over?
- Do you feel a pattern in what you are doing.
How is it Treated?
There are two steps in therapy treatment: CBT and ERP.
- CBT, or cognitive-behavioral therapy, teaches people how OCD works.
- Then ERP, or exposure and ritual prevention, allows people to face their fears slowly over time without doing compulsions.