This past Thursday, Grace shared with us her presentation on OCD ( Obsessive compulsive disorder)

She shared that she has moderate to severe OCD. Grace first started experiencing OCD symptoms during her first or second year of high school, and she wasn’t officially diagnosed until about a year ago. In the beginning of her OCD, she was seeing a therapist, and had been making some good progress. And then Covid hit us, and all of her progress was soon interrupted. 

So, some basics about OCD. It’s what it sounds like; a disorder characterized by obsessions and compulsions. These obsessions and compulsions are excessive and can interfere with a person’s day to day life and cause distress. These obsessions are usually unwanted recurring thoughts or urges, and may cause feelings such as anger, guilt, or fear. Some common ones involve contamination, symmetry, or harm coming to one’s self or others. Compulsions are repetitive actions that a person feels driven to perform. Compulsions can involve anything. Some examples include repeating certain phrases in your head, washing hands, checking things like locks or the stove, or seeking reassurance. 

OCD at one time was considered an anxiety disorder, but now falls under the category of obsessive compulsive and related disorders. People with OCD seek to neutralize their obsessions with compulsions. Although it is very common, anxiety is not a necessary part of OCD. It can be driven by other forms of distress such as disgust, guilt, or uncomfortableness. These obsessions and compulsions can involve anything. Having more than one type of OCD is not uncommon. 

Some types are:

Relationship OCD…A person with relationship OCD may fear that they are not with the right partner or that their partner may leave them. They may look inline to see if they should be with their partner, and ask their partner for reassurance.

Contamination OCD…a person with contamination OCD may obsess over germs and contamination, They may fear getting or spreading illnesses. They may constantly wash their hands, shower and clean things.

Checking OCD,..a person with checking OCD may fear that something bad happened or will happen to themselves or to someone else. They may repeatedly check things physically or mentally. 

Purely obsessional OCD…involves obsessions and compulsions that are purely mental and that cannot be seen.

OCD can be assessed with the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive scale. This scale assesses many different obsessions and compulsions. It rates how often they are experienced, how much they interfere with daily life, how much distress they may cause, and how much control a person has over them.

OCD can develop when a person feels like they have a lack of control in their life. They may feel that their obsessions allow them to have control over things, despite many people being unable to control their symptoms. Someone may be more likely to develop OCD if they have a family history of OCD or other mental disorders or have had traumatic and stressful life events.

The therapy typically used for OCD is exposure therapy. This is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy that is used to reduce distress by having the person gradually and safely exposed to their obsession. They would learn techniques to handle distress and not give in to their compulsions. Exposure therapy can also involve things like vividly imagining the subject or triggering physical reactions to deal with the response. Different types of antidepressants are the medications typically used to treat OCD.

Many thanks to Grace for sharing her very helpful and informative presentation with us.

A job well done!