If your loved ones have told you that you have obsessive thoughts or are compulsive in action, you have likely noticed that you do, in fact, have some compulsive behaviors. Most patients with OCD are aware of the behaviors they are displaying; they just cannot stop them. There is no self-assessment exam for OCD sufferers, but you can self-assess by getting together with your loved ones and coming up with a list of behaviors you consistently display. You can then discuss this list with your healthcare provider.
After speaking to you about your thoughts and behaviors, your doctor may recommend a psychological evaluation. Your doctor may also want to speak to your loved ones and close friends. The medications used to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder are the same drugs used to treat most anxiety disorders. Psychotherapy is another important aspect of treatment and generally recommended in conjunction with medication use. These psychiatric medicines can control compulsions and obsessive thoughts. They work by increasing the level of serotonin in your brain, which is generally low in sufferers of OCD.
Most anxiety medications, including the ones listed above, have side effects. Vomiting, diarrhea, loss of coordination, shaking, abnormal urination, vision changes, extreme confusion, stiff muscles, appetite changes, loss of sex drive and more are all possible side effects of these medications. If you experience any of these symptoms, call your doctor right away.
If you start to experience these symptoms, contact a medical provider or call right away. Depression often occurs with OCD, which is why part of the treatment plan involves psychotherapy. Most of the anti-anxiety medications used to treat OCD are suitable for treating depression as well. Your doctor might also prescribe a separate set of antidepressants to take with your OCD medications depending on your particular situation.
Aside from depression, there are other conditions that a person with OCD can have. These conditions differ in every individual with OCD because the behavior each sufferer displays is different.
What Are the Types of OCD?
For example, if you are obsessed with the thought of being thin, you may develop anorexia or bulimia, and your doctor may diagnose you with both OCD and one of these ailments. Treatment on OCD should focus on both issues in order to be successful. No matter how severe your situation may seem, you can get help to treat your OCD.
- Signs and Symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
- What is obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)?.
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD);
Getting help will allow you or your loved one to dramatically improve the quality of life you live. Obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD , as defined by the Mayo Clinic, is classified as a type of anxiety disorder. Therefore, an important strategy for managing your obsessions and OCD is to challenge the unhelpful interpretations of the obsession and replace them with more helpful ones. For more examples of unhelpful meanings commonly assigned to obsessions, see the Unhelpful Interpretations of Obsessions sheet.
Once you know what your obsessions are and how you are interpreting them, you can start to manage them. Here are some tools to help you out. It is normal to have unpleasant or unwanted thoughts. These thoughts are annoying but harmless.
Obsession - Wikipedia
One good way to manage your obsessions is to remind yourself that this is the case. You might imagine these thoughts like flies- irritating but harmless.
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If a few flies are buzzing around you, you can still engage in almost anything. So let these unwanted thoughts buzz about while you keep focused on your activity be it cooking, watching a movie, working, etc. Like flies you do not need to interact with them or give them any notice. Adults with OCD, like those with other anxiety disorders, tend to fall into thinking traps , which are unhelpful and negative ways of looking at things.
Use the Thinking Traps Form to help you identify the traps into which you might have fallen, and use the Challenging Negative Thinking handout to help you with more realistic thinking For more information, see Helpful Thinking. Challenge Questioning Here are some questions to help you to come up with a more helpful and balanced way of looking at your obsessions: Not doing everything in my power to protect my children is as bad as hurting them myself.
After you have challenged your initial interpretation, you are then better able to give a more balanced meaning to your obsession. This pen might be covered by some germs, but the probability of it containing a terrible disease for me to contract and then pass on to my children is extremely low. I am not an irresponsible parent just because my children get sick, since they might get sick from time to time no matter what I do to protect them from it. There is more evidence indicating that I am a responsible parent than evidence suggesting that I am an irresponsible one. At first, you might find it very difficult to challenge and replace the old interpretations of obsessions.
You might also have a hard time believing in the helpful interpretations that you came up with. This is normal and expected. Similar to resisting your compulsions, the first time you do it is the hardest; it will get easier with regular practice. Your belief in the new interpretations will grow stronger as you regularly practice resisting your compulsions and challenging your unhelpful interpretations.
Then determine the steps needed to make your worst fear come true. For example, what events would need to take place for your home to burn to the ground, if you do not check the stove was off before going out. Try to estimate the chance of each event happening. What is the chance of the item catching on fire and spreading? Calculate the overall chance of your worst fear coming true by multiplying together the chances of each separate event.
Compare this overall chance to your original prediction. If resistance gets to be too hard, try to reduce the amount of time you spend on your ritual. By anticipating your compulsive urges before they arise, you can help to ease them. For example, if your compulsive behavior involves checking that doors are locked, windows closed, or appliances turned off, try to lock the door or turn off the appliance with extra attention the first time.
When you're experiencing OCD thoughts and urges, try shifting your attention to something else. You could exercise, jog, walk, listen to music, read, surf the web, play a video game, make a phone call, or knit. The important thing is to do something you enjoy for at least 15 minutes, in order to delay your response to the obsessive thought or compulsion. At the end of the delaying period, reassess the urge. In many cases, the urge will no longer be quite as intense.
Try delaying for a longer period. The longer you can delay the urge, the more it will likely change. Everyone has troubling thoughts or worries from time to time. But obsessive-compulsive disorder causes the brain to get stuck on a particular anxiety-provoking thought, causing it to play over and over in your head. The following strategies can help you get unstuck. Write down your obsessive thoughts or worries.
Managing Obsessions: Helpful Strategies
Keep a pad and pencil on you, or type on a laptop, smartphone, or tablet. When you begin to obsess, write down all your thoughts or compulsions. Create an OCD worry period Rather than trying to suppress obsessions or compulsions, develop the habit of rescheduling them. Create a tape of your OCD obsessions Focus on one specific worry or obsession and record it to a tape recorder, laptop, or smartphone. Psychiatrist Jeffrey Schwartz, author of Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior, offers the following four steps for dealing with obsessive thoughts:.
A healthy, balanced lifestyle plays a big role in easing anxiety and keeping OCD compulsions, fears, and worry at bay.
Exercise is a natural and effective anti-anxiety treatment that helps to control OCD symptoms by refocusing your mind when obsessive thoughts and compulsions arise. For maximum benefit, try to get 30 minutes or more of aerobic activity on most days. Ten minutes several times a day can be as effective as one longer period especially if you pay mindful attention to the movement process.
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Not only can anxiety and worry cause insomnia, but a lack of sleep can also exacerbate anxious thoughts and feelings. Avoid alcohol and nicotine. Alcohol temporarily reduces anxiety and worry, but it actually causes anxiety symptoms as it wears off. Similarly, while it may seem that cigarettes are calming, nicotine is actually a powerful stimulant.
Smoking leads to higher, not lower, levels of anxiety and OCD symptoms. Accessing the Relaxation Response. While stress doesn't cause OCD, it can trigger symptoms or make them worse. Mindful meditation, yoga, deep breathing, and other relaxation techniques can help lower your overall stress and tension levels and help you manage your urges. For best results, practice a relaxation technique regularly. Just talking about your worries and urges can make them seem less threatening. Stay connected to family and friends. Obsessions and compulsions can consume your life to the point of social isolation.