Understanding Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Symptoms

Many people have ‘quirks’, unusual little behaviours that are unique to them and make a part of who they are as a person. That’s entirely normal, and often times people’s quirks contribute to their charm. However, when a person engages in specific behaviours over and over again in rapid succession for no logical reason then that’s no longer a quirk. Same goes for having the same thoughts over and over again, and being unable to stop thinking that way. What is obsessive compulsive disorder? It is a type of mental illness, and the inability to stop thinking or behaving in a certain way repeatedly and without reprieve is at the core of obsessive compulsive symptoms.

Ask anyone who’s overcome this condition, or is currently still struggling with it, and they’ll almost certainly tell you that obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms are a destructive influence on your life and make it difficult to be happy, contented, productive, and social. This discussion will look at obsessive disorder causes, as well as provide a brief overview of treatments for obsessive compulsive disorder. Fortunately, the condition is quite treatable and the majority of sufferers respond very favorably to medication.

A Closer Overview

The terms obsessive and compulsive are very key to the term used to define this mental health condition, and we can look at them in their standard noun forms to lay out exactly what obsessive compulsive disorder involves. An obsession is a state of being where the individual is unable to take their thoughts off a subject. Their thoughts are devoted to it nearly all the time for an extended period, and in worse cases it will be indefinite. Often these thoughts will be irrational.

Compulsions are the action equivalent of obsession’s thoughts in obsessive compulsive disorder. Compulsions push a person to engage in a certain action, even if they would rather not do it or understand that it’s not a smart choice. Your mind insists that you do it, and if you don’t then you feel ever-greater levels of internal pressure in your mind.

An example of an obsession would be thinking that you’re unpopular with people who’s opinion of you is something that’s important to you, and constantly thinking about what you can to make yourself more popular with them. An example of a compulsion would be washing your hands over and over again even though you know they’re as clean as can be because you’re convinced of exposure to germs.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Causes

There is still no definitive consensus on what causes obsessive compulsive disorder among the medical community. There is a prevalent belief that it is related to abnormal brain infrastructure and / or brain biochemistry, and it is true that PET scans of the brain’s of people with OCD have shown noticeable differences between them and people without this mental illness. Genetic predisposition may also be one of the obsessive compulsive disorder causes, and you are more likely to develop the disorder if you have a parent or sibling with OCD, or if you have a history of depression, anxiety, PTSD, or abuse.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Symptoms

We’ve defined the basics of obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms above, but let’s look at them in greater detail now. One of the most important things to understand is that obsessions tend to fuel compulsions with OCD, and vice versa. Quite often the individual will be very much aware of the fact that they’re obsessions and / or compulsions are completely irrational and harmful, but they have no ability to slow or stop them.

Common obsessions within obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms include:

• Risk of contamination
• Accidental harm to self or others
• Inflexibility with symmetry and exactness – things ‘need to be a certain way’
• Insistence on perfection
• Being given reassurances
• Forbidden thoughts

Common compulsions within obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms include:

• Washing and cleaning to excess
• Checking or affirming security or safety
• Recounting
• Tapping, rubbing, or other forms of unexplained touching
• Reordering or rearranging

It’s quite common for obsessive compulsive disorder to first surface at a young age, and many sufferers report their first instances of the condition coming between the age of 7 and 12. OCD is more common in boys that girls during childhood, but the opposite is true in adulthood with women being more affected than men.

Obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms can manifest themselves in the body too, with physical symptoms like stomach aches, elevated heart rate, dizziness, shallowed breathing, headaches, muscle tension, and derealization.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Treatment

OCD is treated very effectively with medications, and often the physician will prescribe antidepressant meds like Prozac (Fluoxetine) or Paxil (Paroxetine) to start, as well as referring the individual for psychotherapy approaches like CBT (cognitive behavior therapy) or ERP (exposure and response prevention) to ensure a multi-tiered approach to recovery. Rather than the above meds, Anafranil (Clomipramine) will be prescribed for children under 8 years of age who are displaying obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms.

In instances where medication and psychotherapy approaches are ineffective, deep brain stimulation may be used to help the individual overcome obsessive compulsive disorder.