Understanding and Treating
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition that can be very difficult for many people. Specialist OCD treatment and support can reduce your symptoms and lead to a robust recovery. Many people struggling with OCD seek treatment and assistance for their condition and receive the help they need to manage their symptoms, allowing them to live the life they desire.
What are the Symptoms of OCD
People suffering with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) may display symptoms and particular patterns of behaviour in different ways. However, usually they take the form of obsessions or compulsions, or both.
OCD can be broken down into 3 main elements:
Obsessions
This is where an intrusive, unwanted and quite often distressing thought, image or specific urge repeatedly enters your mind.- Emotions
This is when the obsession causes a feeling of intense distress and anxiety. - Compulsions
This is when people suffering with OCD perform repetitive behaviours or mental acts which they feel totally driven to perform as a result of the anxiety and distress caused by the obsession.
The compulsive behaviour temporarily relieves the anxiety, but the obsession and anxiety soon return, causing the distressing cycle to start all over again.
The majority of people suffering with OCD will experience both obsessive thoughts and compulsions, but one may be less prominent than the other.
Obsessive thoughts
Just about everyone will have unwanted or unpleasant thoughts from time to time, for example thinking they may have forgotten to lock their door, or to the extreme of sudden offensive or violent mental images.
However, if you are having persistent, unpleasant thoughts that dominates your thinking to the extent that it interrupts other natural thoughts, you may have an obsession.
Some of the more common obsessions that can affect people with OCD include:
Fear of self-harming yourself or others
A fear of deliberately harming yourself or others, for example, fear you may attack someone else, such as a loved one or even your children. Alternatively, you could fear fear may accidentally set the house on fire by leaving the cooker on by mistake.- Fear of contamination
This could take the form of fearing disease, infection or an unpleasant substance. - A need for orderliness or symmetry
For example, you may feel the need to ensure that all the tins in your cupboard are all facing exactly the same way or lined up precisely.
You may have obsessive thoughts of a sexual or violent nature that you find disturbing, frightening or repulsive. But it is important to remember that they’re just thoughts and having them does not mean you’ll act on them. These thoughts are classed as OCD if they cause you distress or have an impact on the quality of your daily living.
Compulsive behaviour
Compulsions start as a way of trying to prevent or reduce the anxiety caused by any unwanted obsessive thought, although in reality, this behaviour is either excessive or not realistically connected.
For example, a person who fears contamination with germs may repeatedly wash their hands, or someone with a fear of harming their family may have the urge to repeat an action multiple times to “neutralise” the thought. Most people suffering with OCD realise that such compulsive behaviour is irrational and makes no logical sense, but they cannot stop acting on it and feel they need to do it “just in case”.
Common types of compulsive behaviour in people with OCD include:
- Excessive cleaning and / or hand washing
- Repeatedly checking things such as are doors locked or is the oven off
- Ordering and arranging things in an exact or precise way
- Hoarding
- Counting
- Repeating words in their head
- Asking for reassurance
- Thinking “neutralising” thoughts to counter the obsessive thoughts
- Avoiding places and situations that could trigger obsessive thoughts
It’s important to remember that not all compulsive behaviours will be clearly obvious to other people, especially family and friends.
How is OCD Diagnosed?
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition that can be very difficult for many people. Specialist OCD treatment and support can reduce your symptoms and lead to a robust recovery. Many people struggling with OCD seek treatment and assistance for their condition and receive the help they need to manage their symptoms, allowing them to live the life they desire.
The first step in the diagnosis process for OCD is to talk about it with your GP or another medical professional. They will be asking you some basic screening questions which are provided by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to evaluate your current situation and discuss the need for further referral.
Based on your responses, a more formal diagnostic interview may be done to gain a deeper understanding of your symptoms and find out how OCD is impacting your life. Whilst some OCD symptoms are easily observable and reported, others can be very challenging to detect without thorough investigation, particularly when the rituals are concealed or carry a social stigma.
Keep your face always towards the sunshine,
and the shadows will fall behind you
How is OCD Treated?
OCD treatment is typically provided as outpatient therapy, where you collaborate with a team of mental health specialists whilst residing in your home. Based on your symptoms and how they impact your life, residential inpatient treatment is also an available option. This involves staying at a mental health facility on a residential basis where 24-hour care and support are provided.
Regardless of whether you receive treatment as an outpatient or inpatient, the OCD treatment methods will be the same, and these include various types of therapy and medication to manage your compulsions.
Therapy for OCD may take the following forms:
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
CBT is a very effective therapeutic method employed around the world to treat a broad range of mental health conditions, including OCD. The key principle underlying CBT is that OCD develops and becomes intensified due to a series of dysfunctional and deeply rooted thought patterns that lead individuals to assess and respond to situations in negative and unhealthy ways.
Thus, CBT aims to address the negative thought patterns forming the basis of your OCD, examine the reasons that led to their development, and then challenge you to view situations in healthier ways. The primary goal of obsessive compulsive disorder CBT programmes is to alleviate anxiety and prevent patients from engaging in the harmful rituals that commonly characterise OCD.
Exposure and response prevention therapy (ERPT)
ERP is a therapeutic technique that involves gradually confronting your fears until you develop tolerance or overcome the anxiety they trigger. Instead of giving in to distress and the compulsion to “put them right” or “neutralise” them, the process of ERP teaches you to allow yourself to experience those obsessive thoughts and anxiety.
Exposure involves the patient repeatedly testing their fear and expectations to build up a tolerance for the anxiety they experience without engaging in their rituals (response prevention). This means:
- Learning to give up control
- Resisting the compulsions
- Repeatedly tolerating the discomfort that occurs
- Planning out exposures and behavioural experiments so that patients test
out whether their irrational theories actually match the results
Through repeated exposures, patients gradually develop the confidence to face their fear and manage the anxiety associated with it. They may also be able to apply what they learned from the exposures to other areas of life. Although an increase in short-term anxiety and distress may be experienced, these typically decrease over time.
Eye movement desensitisation and re-processing (EMDR)
EMDR is a therapy method for treating a variety of mental health conditions such as trauma, addiction, anxiety and other emotional conditions. EMDR allows individuals to process an emotional experience they find hard to discuss. Experience has shown that, after undergoing EMDR treatment, individuals often gain the ability to talk more openly about their trauma and in a manner that they used to find difficult in the past.
OCD medication
Medication can also be a treatment for OCD, and is often prescribed to complement the therapeutic aspect of treatment. Medication is effective at lowering anxiety levels, reducing the risk of relapse post-treatment, and working as additional protection against OCD. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a form of antidepressant medication, are effective in the treatment of OCD. These drugs are non-addictive, and their effects can only be noticed after several weeks. It is crucial to take a full course of SSRI treatment, which is typically a year or more.
While there is no known cure for OCD, effective treatment and intervention makes it manageable. By consistently practising the coping techniques you will learn from your therapist and taking any prescribed medication, you should be able to effectively manage your OCD and live a normal life.
FREE OCD Assessment
If your or a loved one are struggling with the effects of obsessive compulsive disorder, we understand the challenges you’re facing and we’re here to offer compassionate help.
Our highly trained advisers are available to speak to you right away, simply call 0808 252 3379 today.
We can discuss your concerns in complete confidence, explore the options for treatment, and help you to understand what will work best for you.
We’ll also help you to book your free obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) assessment there and then, with appointments usually available within only a few days.
We understand that taking the first step can be the most difficult, but we’re here to support – with no pressure or judgement.
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