What Does Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Mean

       

What is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?

Obsession is recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images

that are experienced as intrusive and unwanted. The patient tries

to resist it but is unable to. Failure to resist against it leads

to marked distress.

Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts than an

individual feels driven to perform in response to an obsession. A

compulsion is a form of behavior that usually follows obsession.

The behavior is not realistic either irrational or excessive. It is

aimed at either preventing or neutralizing the distress or fear

arising out of obsession.

The compulsive act may be carried out in an attempt to reduce the

anxiety associated with the obsession does not always succeed

in doing so. The completion of the compulsive act may not affect

the anxiety it may even increase the anxiety Anxiety also increases

when a person resists carrying out a compulsion.

Many individuals with OCD have dysfunctional beliefs. These

beliefs can include an inflated sense of responsibility and the

tendency to overestimate threat, perfectionism and intolerance to

uncertainty and over the importance of thought and the need to

control thought.

Obsessive-Compulsive and
Related Disorders

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE and related disorders include

•  obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

•  body dysmorphic disorder

•  hoarding disorder

•  trichotillomania (hairpulling disorder)

•  excoriation (skin-picking) disorder

•  substance/medication-induced an obsessive-compulsive and related disorder

•  obsessive-compulsive and related disorder due to another medical condition

Diagnosis and clinical features

As part of the dx criteria for OCD, the DSM-5 allows clinicians to indicate whether the patient's OCD is characterized good insight, poor insight, or absent insight based on there individual over the course of the illness as follows

   

With good or fair insight:

The individual recognizes that obsessive-compulsive disorder beliefs are definitely or probably not true or that they may or may not be true. e.g., the individual believes that the house definitely will not, probably will not, or may or may not bum down if the stove is not checked.


With poor insight:

The individual thinks obsessive-compulsive disorder beliefs are probably true. e.g the individual believes that the house will probably burn down if the stove is not checked


With absent insight/delusional beliefs: 

The individual is completely convinced that obsessive-compulsive disorder beliefs are true. e.g., the individual is convinced that the house will bum down if the stove is not checked


Symptom patterns of OCD

The presentation of OCD is heterogeneous in adults, children, and adolescents. The symptoms of individual patients can overlap and change with time, but OCD has four major symptom patterns in adults.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in adults        

Obsessions 

Contamination
Pathological doubt
Intrusive thoughts
Symmetry

Response Compulsions

Washing 
Checking 
Slowness 
Praying 

Touching

Counting 

Repeating Actions

Treatment

The most effective treatments for OCD are Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and/or medication.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) 

1. Exposing the patient to the object or situation that triggers their OCD.
2. Teaching the patient to avoid rituals or other response after getting exposed.
3. Help patients with Faulty assumptions.

Medication

Fluoxetine (Prozac)
Fluvoxamine (Luvox)
Sertraline (Zoloft)
Paroxetine (Paxil)