For example, someone may have to wash their hands a certain number of times or for a specific length of time, multiple times a day, everyday which can cause their skin to dry out, crack, and bleed. Contamination related compulsions can become very severe. Not everyone with the condition has fears and compulsions around contamination and cleaning. There are two main misconceptions about OCD, one being that OCD is ‘the cleaning disorder’. Research on OCD is ever growing, and there are more and more types of OCD being discussed. For example, someone who has distressing intrusive thoughts about bring contaminated by bodily fluids may avoid all public toilets at all costs. They may go back down the stairs to then walk up them again and count them.Īvoidance: the person works hard to avoid places, things, or people because of their obsessions. For example, someone may begin walking up the stairs and feel the compulsion to count them. These compulsions can take a lot of time to get ‘right’.Ĭounting: the compulsion to count things, counting to a certain number, doing behaviours a certain number of times, etc. People may obsess over the positioning of something because the discomfort, anxiety, or fear is overwhelming, or because they fear something bad will happen if they do not position the thing ‘right’. Symmetry and ordering: the need to have things positioned ‘right’. These thoughts are not voluntary and do not match with the sufferer’s true beliefs. These may be relationship, sexual, magical, religious, violent, or body focussed. Intrusive thoughts and images: when a person experiences repetitive, distressing, disturbing, frightening obsessional thoughts. A person may ruminate on a thought for a long time, going over and over the details, different scenarios, outcomes, and possibilities. Ruminations: prolonged thinking about an event, theme, or question. Although hoarding is its own disorder, some people with OCD hoard for specific reasons. Hoarding: the inability to get rid of useless, broken possessions. For example, someone may fear contracting a disease from public toilets, so may have the compulsion to wash their hands until they feel clean. This may cause someone to wash themselves, clean, or avoid the source of anxiety as a compulsion. For example, someone with arachnophobia may have to check their bedroom several times before feeling safe enough to go to bed.Ĭontamination: the fear of being dirty or contracting something. Checking compulsions may be carried out several times, take several minutes, even an hour or longer. There are a variety of types of OCD, some being checking, contamination (physical and mental), hoarding, ruminations, intrusive thoughts and images, symmetry and ordering, counting, and avoidance.Ĭhecking: the need to check something over and over until either it feels right, you have performed the check a specific number of times, or the intrusive thoughts and feelings have gone or reduced. It is considered a disability under the Equality Act. To relieve these feelings and reduce the thoughts, actions are taken which are performed again and again (compulsions). OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) is a long-term, mental health condition which causes people to experience repetitive, often highly distressing, intrusive thoughts or images with feelings of high anxiety, doubt, and fear (obsessions).
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