As a kid, I detested swimming. Not because I didn’t know how to swim or had a near-drowning experience, though. Instead, I had a phobia that vicious sharks were in the pool with me, waiting for a chance to sink their razor-sharp teeth into me and drag me to the bottom of the deep end to drown. Every time I went into a pool, whether it was three feet deep or twelve, these same violent imaginings ran through my mind, antagonizing me. I even saw the sharp-toothed monsters in my dreams at night. No matter how many times I was told that my irrational fear was exactly that- irrational, I could not shake these ideas from my head. I often experienced many different bizarre beliefs like my shark phobia. I have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or OCD. It was unusual for a kid to have this type of thought process, so I seldom talked to any of my peers, leaving me with few friends. Due to its detrimental effects on a person’s mental health, OCD can lead to a life of isolation. …show more content…
These are thoughts and pictures that recur over and over again, ceasing to fade away, regardless of any and all attempts to make them go away. You don’t get a mental image of flowers or cupcakes habitually in your brain, however. Obsessions are, most of the time, unwanted, upsetting, and disturbing. They usually involve doing something to yourself or someone else that deep down you know you wouldn’t do. For example, you stand on a ledge or balcony and wonder what would happen if you jumped. Or you talk to someone face-to-face and contemplate punching him in the nose. My life is full of these ‘what-ifs.’ What if instead of cutting this piece of paper, I cut off all my hair instead? What if I drop-kick this dog across the room? I would never do any of these things, but they still appear in my mind and I can’t get them
From a cognitive approach, obsessive-compulsive disorder is the result of people blaming their obsessions and compulsions on themselves and therefore having non-rational thoughts of bad things occurring if there compulsions are not acted upon. People with this disorder will attempt to neutralize their thoughts by the compulsions which is usually unsuccessful. In turn, the individual will only feel ease from the negative thoughts temporarily. Treatment from a cognitive approach focuses on giving the patient an understanding of the cognitive process involved in their disorder (Comer 167). Cognitive therapists will help the patient understand why they are feeling the way they are, then they begin to direct their thinking patterns in a more
Obsessive-Compulsive disorder is a type of severe anxiety disorder that impacts an individual’s entire life and way of functioning. Obsessions are considered intrusive and recurrent thoughts or impulses that cannot be removed through reasoning. Compulsions are the repetitive and ritualistic behaviors and actions that associate with the obsessions. These compulsions are to be performed according to specific rules or methods and are thought to prevent or reduce stress and feared situations. Both compulsions and obsessions cause disabling levels of anxiety. The individual affected is often able to recognize the behavior as excessive and irrational, but is unable to control or stop the behaviors without intervention.
The following is an overview about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), one of the most difficult psychiatric illness to be understood. The way of doing certain behaviors, thoughts or routines repeatedly is the essential condition of a person with OCD. In general, it is known and described by someone who is extremely perfectionist and meticulous. Unfortunately, they do realize those habits and be able to stop doing it. Common behaviors are such as checking locks, doors, stove bottoms, and lights, hand washing, counting things, or having recurrent intrusive thoughts of hurting oneself or somebody else.
What is OCD? OCD stands for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a psychological disorder that makes an individual have a great deal of anxiety due to unwanted thoughts. The individual will try to reduce it by engaging in repetitive behaviors or compulsions. OCD is a part of an individual’s everyday life, so it is natural to have some obsessive thoughts. However, when it interferes with your every day lifestyle, then the individual knows that it’s a disorder. An example of the most common OCD that someone may encounter are contamination, accidental harm to others, perfection when it comes to washing, cleaning, or arrangement of things. Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms can change over time. It is most common
Obsessive-compulsive disorder, as defined by Psychology Today, is “an anxiety disorder in which people have undated and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions), or behavior that make them feel driven to do something (compulsions).” OCD has implications on everyday life for people struggling with the disease, but specifically, how do OCD and organization (on a lesser scale) affect our memory system, or vice versa? And what implications does this have in our lives as students? What is the cognitive theory outlining OCD? As investigated in this paper, OCD ultimately reduces your confidence in your memory and links to impairments in nonverbal and spatial memory. However, organization on a lesser scale, where the obsession of it does not interfere with your normal routine as it does in OCD, can increase productivity and reduce distractions, thereby strengthening your memory around the material you’re studying.
This case conceptualization of Francis discusses the principles of the cognitive behavioral theory that are based on the belief that learning, cognitions, and perceptions play a significant role in the development and maintenance of emotional and behavioral problems. Various CBT models are applied to the diagnostic determinants of Francis’ dysfunctional behavior and the empirically supported methods of cognitive behavioral treatment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder are used to build a treatment plan to aid in Francis’ recovery.
Often OCD is described as a disease of doubt (Ken and Jacob 1). Things are constantly running through the minds of OCD patients. Is the door locked? Is the stove shut off? When researching OCD, three important things to cover are the discovery of OCD, the diagnosis, and overcoming OCD.
Imagine feeling like a slave in your own body. Being forced to do ridiculous rituals and having constant compulsions to do things that you know don’t make sense. This is what it is like to live with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). In the United States alone, over 2 million people suffer from OCD (Parks, 2011) but no one has found the cause of this disorder. It affects people of all races, genders and socioeconomic backgrounds (Parks, 2011). Since it’s discovery and modern conceptualization, there has been an ongoing debate whether OCD is caused by environmental factors or if it is inherited through genetics. However, since both sides of the debate raise a solid argument and there is not enough hard evidence, the source of the disorder
Based upon the video, Leanne most likely has an obsessive-compulsive disorder 300.3 (F42.2). When I watched the video, I instantly noticed that she is fidgeting her fingers and shaking her legs, during her interview. She has self-diagnosed herself with this disorder. Leanne mentioned that she started seeing signs when she was about 14 or 15 years old. She has recurrent and persistent urges. She would do things in a particular order. The compulsion would start out small and be unbothersome, like packing her school bag a certain way, to then, being bothersome and taking up more time out of her day. It had gotten worse to the point when it started to stop her from going out. She cannot leave the house without checking multiple times if the house is locked. She would end up return home and turn the door handle to assure her that the door is locked. She went back and forth multiple times, in which she repeated turned the door noob. In the video, I
Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD) is defined as a personality disorder that “as an extensive pattern of preoccupation with perfectionism, orderliness, and interpersonal and mental control, at the cost of efficiency, flexibility and openness (American Psychiatric Association 2013).” This disorder affects between 2-9% of the U.S. population, and symptoms begin to show throughout a person’s middle adulthood. It happens to be the most prevalent personality disorder in the United States, with 7.9% of the population being affected. Men are twice as likely to be diagnosed with this disorder. One study found that Hispanic and Asian ethnicities are less common to have this disorder in comparison to African American and Caucasian ethnicities.
Persistent fears that harm may come to self or a loved one, an unreasonable belief that one has a terrible illness, or an excessive need to do things correctly or perfectly, are common. Again and again, the individual experiences a disturbing thought, such as, "My hands may be contaminated--I must wash them"; "I may have left the gas on"; or "I am going to injure my child." These thoughts are intrusive, unpleasant, and produce a high degree of anxiety. Often the obsessions are of a violent or a sexual nature, or concern illness.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Plastic surgery is formally known as Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). Someone who has this disorder would experience a flaw within their physical appearance and perceive it as significantly noticeable which would lead to impairment of regular activities as well as emotional pain; though one who is not diagnosed with this disease would see the flaw as minuscule and irrelevant. This anxiety disorder has a strong connection to obsessive-compulsive disorder. As it states within the text, “Obsessive compulsive disorder is called for when obsessions or compulsions are excessive or unreasonable, cause great distress, take up much time and impair daily functions” (Comer, 2008).
It will not examine any of the specific sub categories such as: Body Dysmorphic Disorder; or Generalized Anxiety Disorder; and the like.
It started with a chill, each vertebrae vibrating one by one up my spine. Then the heat, my face flush and palms clammy. I could never keep up with my breathing, for it seemed as though each time I breathed out, I needed more air almost immediately. Soon, my mind was flooded with unsettling images, a new one appearing nearly every second, each worse than the last. Everything that I found comfort in was now an enemy. When will this end? My body could not keep up with the trembles and I could not resist the urge to scream. Was this room always so small? My eyes grew indecisive, darting across the room, until the capillaries within them bulged so greatly that I clenched my eyelids shut. Then, a long, deep breath.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, also known as OCD, is a disorder that affects about two to three percent of the population (UOCD). Knowing what OCD is and who it affects is just step one in understanding the psychology of this disorder. The psychological symptoms of OCD can be quite varied which can make it difficult to diagnose. Understanding the therapy techniques and how people with OCD live their daily lives is one of the most vital part in the psychology of OCD. While the roots of the disorder may be complex, understanding the disorder in everyday life is quite simple.