Are you really “sooo OCD?” The Truth about OCD
Hey there! Gather ‘round because we need to talk about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The week of October 11-17, 2020 is OCD Awareness Week. I have been treating OCD for many years and I have managed to unlearn everything I THOUGHT I knew about this illness because it has a tendency to be an overused and misunderstood catchphrase in pop culture. OCD is far from a punchline because your partner likes to keep all their shirts color coordinated in the closet, or you panic because there’s a cookie crumb on the floor. OCD is actually a serious, sometimes debilitating illness.
OCD is not just an illness that affects adults. Children are also impacted by this illness. Recent data shows that 2-3 million adults are diagnosed with OCD at some point in their lives and about 500,000 children and/or teens have OCD.
So what is OCD? The explanation is in the name. An OCD diagnosis is typically given to people that have intrusive, disturbing, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) that are so distressing that they engage in specific (and sometimes time-consuming) behaviors (compulsions) as a way to stop the feared thing from happening or to avoid it in any way possible.
So it’s not just that the shirts have to be in color order. It’s that if they aren’t, I believe that there is a significantly bad consequence and/or I will feel discomfort to the point of no return unless they are in color order. See the difference? A person without OCD might see that and go to work a little annoyed. A person with OCD (that has not received any treatment) may be late or even skip work until things are the right way. Big difference.
OCD is a very stereotyped disorder. When I tell people that I treat OCD, I often am asked about people that are “germaphobes” and wash their hands a lot. To be honest, I have treated dozens of people with OCD and that is not a presentation I see as often as others. Types of OCD obsessions can be things like fear of contamination, contaminating others, breaking religious rules, perfectionism, harming someone else, saying or doing the wrong thing, and the list goes on. You might be thinking, “lots of people worry about this stuff. Who wants to contaminate someone?” And you’re right. But a person with OCD will go to extreme lengths to not do this. They may avoid touching any surface, even hugging their own family members. And the obsessions can be so frequent and strongly present, that people cannot do their regular activities, may withdraw from people, and suffer from depression. The severity of this illness can be mild to severe and may require medication or hospitalization.
The compulsion part of OCD is doing everything possible to AVOID the feared outcome. There’s a belief that “if I don’t do this, I will definitely harm/contaminate/break the rule/etc” and the feared thing has a high likelihood to happen.
What’s even more frustrating for the person with OCD is that they sometimes know deep down that their fear isn’t real and will probably never happen. But they can’t shake it off. They HAVE to do the compulsion. They have to say that prayer, count, check the locks once more, ask for reassurance. At the risk of dating myself, if you have ever heard a music record skipping over and over again, that is how people with OCD may feel sometimes. Like they can’t stop making sure everything will be okay so they do things again and again until it feels like they have satisfied the fear for the moment. But as I stated in a previous post about avoidance- doing this actually makes the fear worse in the long run, not better. It’s a short-term fix with long term consequences.
But there is good news for people that are struggling with OCD….there is treatment out there.
When people with OCD or caregivers of people with OCD are finally feeling ready to seek help, there are proven treatments that can empower people with knowledge about their illness, how to challenge their obsessions, and resist the urge to engage in any of their compulsions (or rituals- as they are called in therapy treatment). And people with OCD are not alone. Millions of people struggle with this every day and it’s comforting to know that there are plenty of great therapists that can help. I will tag some resources below.
So when you hear things like “I’m sooo OCD,” remember that people still do not know or understand much about this illness and how painful it can be for those that struggle with it. And if you are a person who has used that phrase before, well…now you can’t say you don’t know. People with OCD often suffer in silence and may be engaging in their compulsions without you even realizing it. So try to be more attuned and remember to be gentle in offering support so no one ever feels like they are being stigmatized.
Let’s continue to build our knowledge about this and help those around us to address their OCD. For more information about OCD and how to get help, check out:
The International OCD Foundation: https://iocdf.org
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America: https://adaa.org
Let’s continue to get and stay well…together.
