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Dealing with obsessive-compulsive disorder
Dealing with obsessive-compulsive disorder
Personal ocd essay
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Before I begin it is probably best to inform you, the reader, about myself. I am, as I describe myself, a “high functioning” person with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. To put it plainly, I am very particular about most things and I follow a set of daily routines that must be accomplished, yet they do not have any drastic crippling effects on my day to day life. On the contrary, I find that I can use these compulsions to my advantage over most situations. At times, I consider it quite entertaining and even laughable. In my own case, an emphasis on punctual timing, organization, cleanliness and hygiene are of great importance to me. However, when such rituals are violated or compromised in any sort of way, it has the capability to cause me great …show more content…
To be exact, it was Thursday September 10, 2015. It started off as any other day where I woke up at exactly 6:00am, as always. I gathered my supplies for the day, got myself ready and made sure to leave my cottage at precisely 7:10am, never earlier nor any later. This actually works out quite well as it allows me to get my breakfast at Wanda’s before the line gets too long as well as giving me enough time to walk to the university’s engineering building. It’s perfect. That morning, I left at around 7:40, where I proceeded to walk to my next class at the engineering building, arriving at around 8:00, where I had extra time to briefly skim over some material before my 8:45 class. My day proceeded as planned for the next two hours or so where I would attend my classes and accomplish what needed to be done. It wasn’t until the end of my second class of the day when the chaos began to …show more content…
If I went any faster, I probably would have gone supersonic and shattered the sound barrier. I felt absolutely ridiculous running around the campus while everyone else casually strolled by and stared at me as if I was some kind of lunatic. To make matters worse, I had to wear a suit for the Male Chorale that day and the sun was being especially relentless. I felt my clothes fuse to my skin with visible stains in the armpit areas on the outside while my internal organs burned on the inside. So much for cleanliness and hygiene. In addition to everything else, my backpack’s zippers went undone causing all my books, which I had taken the time to ever so nicely organize into specific sections, to fly out onto the blazing hot concrete. Every fiber of my being screamed in protest as I hastily crammed everything back into my backpack without taking the time to reorganize everything into its proper place. I wanted to rip my hair out. Well, so much for
Regina is a 20 year-old single female who is struggling to obtain her business degree at a mid-sized university. In the last two and a half years she has only received 26 credit hours. Seeing that she is having problems, her adviser along with her parents, suggested that she attend therapy. Regina is frequently having anxiety about germs and performing certain rituals in order to lessen her anxiety. In order to be comfortable in her classes, she feels she must arrive early, find a specific desk on a certain row, and thoroughly clean the desk and seat before she can be seated. Also, before she can leave her off-campus apartment in the morning, she is finding herself spending more and more time cleaning her apartment, then showering and getting dressed, and then cleaning the bathroom thoroughly. Regina also has found herself fearful of eating in restaurants and going to eat at family and friends homes. Her fear of germs is intensifying and prohibiting her from having adequate relationships. This is leaving her to feel quite isolated and lonely.
In the case of Marjorie, she is a 24-year-old, single Caribbean American female who lives in the home with her mother and her two younger sisters. When she was 15 years old Marjorie’s father died. Marjorie is unmarried, has no children, and is employed part time. (Plummer, 2013). Since she had already received a definitive diagnosis of OCD by a psychiatrist, and had been initially prescribed Zoloft, (Plummer, 2013) I would begin by educating her about OCD, explaining that OCD is often shared with other disorders usually treated by mental health counselors such as depression or substance abuse; and explain that its onset usually occurs in the adolescent or college years (Noshirvani, Kasvikis, Marks, & Tsakirvis, 1991). (Spengler, n.d). Marjorie’s onset begun when she was a teenager and escalated once her father passed. As the worker being assigned to her case I would use Exposure theory as well as cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Marjorie is fearful of germs; through exposure therapy Marjorie could face her fears of germs by being exposed in a systematic and secure way to certain objects that she feels carries germs (Spengler, n.d) She could then safely address, dispell and face those fears. Allowing her to slowly move at a pace that is comfortable for her, by
upbringing" as a cause of OCD uncertain to say the least. This is a disease that
Randal initially sought a psychological assessment for the presenting problem of depression. He began by stating that he had been having a difficult time with simple tasks and was easily overwhelmed. After further questioning, Randal began to elaborate on some of the thoughts that occupied his time and led to difficulty concentrating. He was constantly absorbed in anxiety about himself, or his family, coming into contact with a microbial disease. This thought pattern led to him compulsively washing his hands, obsessively cleaning surfaces and doorknobs, and throwing out perfectly fine clothing due to fear of contamination. He went on to further state that he often avoided places due to anxiety about their cleanliness. Also, Randal explained that often just when thinking about dirt and germs, he would take a shower, as a result of feeling contaminated. When prompted, Randal intimated that this behavior has occurred for several years, but recently has begun to interrupt his day-to-day functioning.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is defined by select characteristics (compulsions) and thoughts (obsessions). Obsessive-compulsive disorder usually consists of irrational obsessions, fears, and compulsions. (Mayo, 1) Though obsessions and compulsions are common, it is not necessary to have both when defining Obsessive-compulsive disorder. Some individuals with OCD only have obsessions or compulsions. (Mayo,1)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a type of anxiety disorder that can be best characterized by the recurrent or disturbing thoughts that are labeled as obsessions. Sometime these obsessions can take on the form of intrusive images or the unwanted impulses. The compulsions can come from the repetitive or ritualized behaviors that a person feels driven to perform on a daily basis. The majority of people with the diagnosis of OCD can have both obsessions and compulsions, but most of the times about 20% have obsessions alone while 10% may have the compulsions alone (Goodman M.D., 2013) . Common types that have been illustrated in individual’s diagnoses with OCD can be characterized with concerns of contamination, safety or harm to themselves, unwanted acts of aggression, the unacceptable sexual or religious thoughts, and the need for symmetry or exactness. While some of the most common compulsion can be characterized as excessive cleaning, checking, ordering, and arranging rituals or the counting and repeating routines activities that are done sometimes on a daily basis multiple times in a day.
Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts that produce uneasiness, apprehension, fear, or worry. The acts of those who have OCD may appear paranoid and potentially psychotic. However, OCD sufferers generally recognize their obsessions and compulsions as irrational and may become further distressed by this realization. Obsessive–compulsive disorder affects children and adolescents, as well as adults. Roughly one third to one half of adults with OCD reports a childhood onset of the disorder, suggesting the continuum of anxiety disorders across the life span. OCD may be a result of changes in your body's own natural chemistry or brain functions. OCD also may have a genetic component, but specific genes have yet to be identified. OCD may stem from behavior-related habits that you learned over time. Doctors do not know the exact cause of OCD, factors that may play a role include head injury, infections, and abnormal function in certain areas of the brain and family genes seems to play a strong role. Most people who develop OCD it shows the symptoms by age 30. Often the person carries out the behaviors to get rid of the obsessive thoughts, but this only provides temporary relief. Not doing the obsessive rituals can cause great anxiety.
People check things twice, but what if you feel the urge to repeat things ten times. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder that is characterized by obsessions and compulsions. People use obsessions and compulsions to relieve their anxiety. Without treatment obsessions and compulsions can eventually take over a person’s life. These obsessions and compulsions can be treated with medication or therapy making a person’s life more bearable. Dr. Dorothy Grice had said in an interview with Katie Charles, “There’s a wide range of severity, but in the most extreme cases, OCD can be extremely disabling especially when the compulsions become time-consuming and elaborate…”
Always washing your hands? Or perhaps you are always counting things or checking things. Are these actions taking over your life or constantly occupying your mind? Perhaps you have obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). It was once thought that OCD was rare; however, recently it has been found that 2-3% (or 7 million Americans) of people have OCD. People with OCD are usually diagnosed by between the ages of 20 and 30, and about 75% of those who will develop OCD will show symptoms by age 30. (1) This leads to a couple questions that need to be answered: What is OCD? What causes it, and what is the most effective treatment? These questions will be answered throughout the paper.
It was the day of April 13, 2000. I woke up at exactly 12 o’clock because my boyfriend was to pick me up at 1 like we planned the night before. The day looked quite nice, but I was in a fowl mood. I got into a car accident the night before and had a huge argument with my parents about the car. I finally dragged myself into the shower and got ready in half an hour. Then I went downstairs, sat on my couch, and repeatedly told myself the day would hopefully turn out better than last night. At around 1:15, my boyfriend came to pick me up. We took the 5 freeway to the 57 since it was the only way I knew how to get there. As we approached the 134 freeway, my girlfriend veered to the right, taking the 210 which was wrong way and got us lost. So, we exited the freeway and got back on the right track. Then finally, before long, we reached Norton Simon.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder has been classified as a type of anxiety disorder under DSM-5, in which there is a presence of obsessions, compulsions or both. Obsessions are defined as “intrusive and mostly nonsensical thoughts, images, or urges that the individual tries to resist or eliminate,” while compulsion are the thought or actions that accompany these obsessions to try to suppress and provide relief. (TEXTBOOK) The obsessions are categorized into four major types, and each is linked with a certain pattern of compulsive behaviors.
Christmas eve ended with me crying on our living room floor because my mom wanted me to eat just one of her famous sugar cookies. Her cookies had always been one of my favorite Christmas traditions, but this year when I looked at the cookies, all I could see were calories and guilt. They smelled and looked delicious, but just the thought of taking one bite filled me with anxiety and fear. I consider this the moment I realized my eating disorder had completely taken over my life. I had become obsessed with calories and weight as a way to feel in control of my life and gain confidence. In reality, my eating disorder had slowly stripped me of my independence, health, and happiness. After that Christmas, I finally decided to seek help after months of struggling, and at the age of 17, I began an intensive outpatient treatment program.
Using narratives to gain an insight into human experience is becoming an increasingly popular method of exploration. Assuming that people are in essence narrative beings that experience every emotion and state through narrative, the value of exploring these gives us a unique understanding. Narrative is thought to act as instrument to explore how an individual constructs their own identity (Czarniawska, 1997) and explain how each individual makes sense of the world around them (Gabriel, 1998). It may also give us an understanding into individual thought processes in relation to individual decision making practices (O’Connor, 1997). It is evident from studies such as Heider and Simmel (1944), that there appears to be an instinctive nature in people to introduce plots structures and narratives into all situations, with an intention to construct meaning to all aspects of life in its entirety. The value of narrative is that it is a tool that allows us to understand what it means to be human and gives us an insight into a person’s lived experience whilst still acknowledging their cultural and social contexts. Narrative is thought to be significance as it is ‘a fruitful organizing principle to help understand the complex conduct of human beings (p.49)’ (Sarbin, 1990) The construction of a person’s narrative is thought to be dependent on each person’s individual awareness of themselves and the circumstances that surround them. However, a debate to whether a person is able to formulate a valid narrative in the face of a mental illness such as schizophrenia has emerged. Sufferer’s symptoms are often thought to interfere with their abilities to perceive within a level deemed acceptable to their society’s norms and therefore the validity ...
Compulsive hoarding has been universally defined by researchers as a chronic behavioral syndrome that is categorized by three unique qualities: the extreme retention and failure to dispose of an abundant quantity of useless objects, living environments so condensed with clutter that it compromises day-to-day living for its occupants, and finally a significant provocation of anxiety or distress caused by the hoarding (Franks et al. 79). Although the definition of compulsive hoarding is universally accepted, the cau...
Imagine if you couldn’t get your job done because throughout your shift you had to continuously wash your hands. To many people this would be an easy problem but not if you have obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Several little thoughts or rituals irritate a person with OCD daily. There are many factors, symptoms, and treatments regarding OCD.