Which are the symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
See the worst symptoms of affected by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) here
Symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition characterized by intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions) that individuals feel driven to perform. These symptoms can significantly interfere with daily life and cause distress. Here are some common symptoms of OCD:
Obsessions:
Intrusive Thoughts: People with OCD often experience unwanted and distressing thoughts, images, or urges that repeatedly enter their mind. These thoughts are intrusive and difficult to control.
Fear of Contamination: Some individuals with OCD have an intense fear of germs, dirt, or chemicals. They may constantly worry about getting sick or contaminating others, leading to excessive handwashing or cleaning rituals.
Need for Symmetry: Some individuals feel a strong need for things to be in perfect order or symmetrical. They may spend excessive time arranging objects or aligning items until they feel a sense of relief.
Unwanted Aggressive or Taboo Thoughts: People with OCD may experience distressing thoughts related to violence, harm, or taboo subjects. These thoughts are often contrary to their true values and cause significant anxiety.
Fear of Losing Control: Some individuals with OCD have an intense fear of losing control or acting on their intrusive thoughts. They may engage in rituals or avoidance behaviors to prevent these feared outcomes.
Compulsions:
Repetitive Behaviors: Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts that individuals with OCD feel compelled to perform in response to their obsessions. These behaviors are often aimed at reducing anxiety or preventing a feared outcome.
Checking: Checking behaviors are common in OCD, such as repeatedly checking locks, appliances, or personal belongings to ensure they are secure or free from harm.
Cleaning and Washing: Excessive cleaning or handwashing is a common compulsion in OCD, particularly in individuals with contamination fears. They may spend hours each day cleaning or washing to alleviate anxiety.
Counting and Ordering: Some individuals with OCD engage in counting or ordering rituals. They may count objects or perform actions a specific number of times to achieve a sense of certainty or prevent harm.
Hoarding: Hoarding is a compulsive behavior where individuals have difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, leading to an accumulation of excessive items that clutter their living space.
Impact on Daily Life:
OCD symptoms can significantly impact an individual's daily life, relationships, and overall well-being. The obsessions and compulsions can be time-consuming, often taking hours each day, and can interfere with work, school, or social activities. The distress caused by OCD can lead to feelings of shame, guilt, and isolation.
It is important to note that OCD symptoms vary from person to person, and individuals may experience a combination of different obsessions and compulsions.
OCD is characterized by obsessions related to fears (e.g., fear of harming someone, fear of contamination, fear of being crazy- there are MANY more) and compulsions or rituals performed to temporarily counteract the anxiety induced by these fears (e.g., checking, hand washing, counting- again, there are many more).
People with OCD recognize that their symptoms (their obsessions, their compulsions) are unreasonable, but they may/may not understand that they are, at least contextually, irrelevant. Perhaps a universal characteristic of OCD that actually gives rise to the symptoms is more important, and that is difficulty accepting:
1.) uncertainty (an inevitable aspect of, well, everything), which in turn allows doubt to take over, and
2.) possibilities of scenarios that are inconsistent with one's held values, beliefs, identity, etc., which can lead to guilt and shame. These inconsistencies may actually just be uncertainty as well...
For example, you hold the belief that you are a good person, but you're a cognitive miser (as we all are) and seek to know for certain that you are a good person. The issue is that being a "good person" is just a label that your mind has categorized; there is no universal definition or it. So uncertainty arrives and tortures you, the cognitive miser. In an effort to combat uncertainty and ensure that you are indeed a good person, you check that you did not cause harm to someone accidentally. Because if you caused harm to someone, either A.) you would not be a good person, or B.) your categorization of "good person" has errors -- and uncertainties. But If A is true, your previously held beliefs about yourself have errors -- also uncertainties. The cognitive miser in you can either prove that A and B are untrue (for now) by checking to making sure that you did not cause harm to someone, or, it can accept the uncertainty and possible errors and just move on and live. We are all cognitive misers, but the OCD's are all the former, wishing we could be the latter.
In my personal experience, the worst part of dealing with OCD is not a specific symptom, obsession, or compulsion. Rather, it's the frustrating inconsistency (for lack of a better word) between:
1.) My overwhelming desire to adhere to the logical, 99.99% of my consciousness: my declarative knowledge that my obsessions and compulsions are unreasonable and unproductive, and
2.) The urges, sensations, emotions, and thoughts that cling to the other .01%: the "but, what if?".
Posted Aug 15, 2017 by Alyssa 100
