Many movies have been based on characters who have obsessive compulsive disorders; for example flicks like 'As Good As It Gets' where Jack Nicholson finds himself using a soap only once after he's washed his hands before discarding it as one of his many compulsions, is one such behavioral pattern. Another movie 'Matchstick Men' finds Nicholas Cage fumbling every morning with the light switches, counting the number of times he turns them on and off with other sicknesses that take form. The worst case of this problem can be seen in the series 'Monk' where Tony Shalhoub's innumerable compulsions are centered upon throughout the series. He even suffers from mysophobia which is fear of being contaminated by germs, which is a classic obsessive-compulsive behavioral trait.
OCD Causes
To get started on answering the question if one has OCD, we look through the OCD causes that are responsible for having brought on such a disorder in a person. If you or your loved ones are facing any of these factors, it will explain a lot when it comes to suffering from OCD. There's nothing to get panicky about, just that treatment in extreme cases need to be taken into consideration.
Environment
If one already has the capacity of becoming a compulsive disordered person, there are certain areas in his/her life that need to be looked over. Like if he/she were to be subjected to a certain kind of surrounding or incident, the symptoms could intensify after being kept under control for so long. The factors to look out for when it comes to OCD are, living conditions change drastically, relationship problems, physical or mental abuse on a regular basis, change in work/school routine, an illness of some sort or coping with the death of a loved one.
Matters of the Brain
Being as complicated an organ as the brain is, we can never tell when the nerve cells that make up its very core, that is neurons, will suddenly take on a drastic change that will alter our personalities or our health. In order for us to function the way we do, the neurons have to work on a pattern of systematic communication in order to keep us both sane and hearty. When there are depleting levels of serotonin in our brain, there is a chance that one can develop OCD. Due to this imbalance in a chemical that is important to the brain, the effects on the person can be quite damaging. This can be inherited from previous generations. The streptococcus bacteria has also been found to be responsible for developing OCD in children and adults, if it goes unobserved and untreated over time. Also look into compulsive behavior in children to understand how this affects them.
OCD Symptoms
We'll now browse through the obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms to help people identify the different ways in which this illness can creep in. It is important to read the signs of this disorder in order to get one the help he/she needs to cope with this disability, instead of leaving it to run wild and unobserved.
- Being fearful of sinful/evil thoughts
- Foods need to be eaten in a certain order
- Feelings of embarrassment or fear when behaving in a manner that is not appropriate in public
- Fear of being constantly plagued by germs or dirt
- Certain words, prayers or key phrases are constantly repeated in speech
- Fearing the idea of harming others
- Hoarding/collecting things that don't hold any value
- Disturbing images/thoughts that hamper sleep patterns
- Fearing the idea of making mistakes
- Not able to touch doorknobs or shake people's hands
- Needs to be assured on a regular basis
- Arranging things in a certain manner
- Checking things repeatedly like the stove or door/window locks
- Doubting things/people constantly
- Counting out loud or in one's head
- Need for order is crucial, even symmetry
- Carrying out tasks many times in a day or doing an action many times at once before carrying on to the next
There are two basic forms of treating this illness to help patients cope with this disorder and not have it take over their lives and minds. It can be quite disturbing to deal with people who suffer from this when in the case of friends or loved ones, but it is important to help them in this time and see them through the treatment process. It would do them much good and keep the illness at bay.
Medications
There are certain antidepressants that come into the treatment process to help those suffering from OCD. These are approved and sanctioned as safe for use by the FDA, which you always need to make sure of before use. If these don't come under FDA approved medicines, there are others known as off label medications that are legal for use but aren't FDA approved. The medicines that are appropriate for use when it comes to the approved ones are Paroxetine, ,i>Clomipramine, Fluxetine, Sertraline and Fluvoxamine.
Psychotherapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy is one's other optional treatment method where a method called exposure and response prevention is worked upon where the problem that you are scared of or whatever it is that forces one to go into that stressful state is exposed to you repeatedly to help you get over it. The patients go through a slow process of confronting these fears so that they can leave normal and eased up lives without this disorder from taking hold.
Now that the OCD causes, symptoms and treatment methods have been looked over and identified with, I hope that this answers your question of 'Do I have OCD?'. Family and friends need to be support systems for those who suffer from this illness, since treatment methods are quite effective in reining in this problem and keeping it under control if not completely ridding its existence. Have a safe tomorrow.
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