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Senin, 13 Januari 2014

What Is OCD.or Obessive Compulsive Disorder ?

Definition

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a disorder of the brain and behavior. OCD causes severe anxiety in those affected. OCD involves both obsessions and compulsions that take a lot of time and get in the way of important activities the person values.

Here is one way to think about what having OCD is like: 


Imagine that your mind got stuck
                on a certain thought or image...

Then this thought or image got replayed in your mind
                  over and
                                   over again
                                                      no matter what you did…

You don’t want these thoughts — it feels like an avalanche…

Along with the thoughts come intense feelings of anxiety…

Anxiety is your brain’s warning system.  When you feel anxious, it feels like you are in danger.  Anxiety is an emotion that tells you to respond, react, protect yourself, DO SOMETHING!

On the one hand, you might recognize that the fear doesn’t make sense, doesn’t seem reasonable, yet it still feels very real, intense, and true…

Why would your brain lie?

Why would you have these feelings if they weren’t true? Feelings don’t lie…  Do they?

Unfortunately, if you have OCD, they do lie.  If you have OCD, the warning system in your brain is not working correctly.  Your brain is telling you that you are in danger when you are not.

When scientists compare pictures of the brains of groups of people with OCD, they can see that some areas of the brain are different than the brains of people who don’t have OCD.

Those tortured with OCD are desperately trying to get away from paralyzing, unending anxiety…

How Is OCD Diagnosed?

Only trained therapists can diagnose OCD.
Therapists will look for three things:
  • The person has obsessions,
  • He or she does compulsive behaviors, and
  • The obsessions and compulsions take a lot of time and get in the way of important activities the person values, such as working, going to school, or spending time with friends.

Obsessions and Compulsions

Obsessions:

  • Thoughts, images, or impulses that occur over and over again and feel out of the person's control.
  • The person does not want to have these ideas.
  • He or she finds them disturbing and unwanted, and usually know that they don't make sense.
  • They come with uncomfortable feelings, such as fear, disgust, doubt, or a feeling that things have to be done in a way that is "just right."
  • They take a lot of time and get in the way of important activities the person values.

What Obsessions Are Not:

  • It is normal to have occasional thoughts about getting sick or about the safety of loved ones.

Click here for a list of some Common Obsessions in OCD.

Compulsions:

  • Repetitive behaviors or thoughts that a person engages in to neutralize, counteract, or make their obsessions go away.
  • People with OCD realize this is only a temporary solution, but without a better way to cope, they rely on the compulsion as a temporary escape.
  • Compulsions can also include avoiding situations that trigger obsessions.
  • Compulsions are time consuming and get in the way of important activities the person values.

What Compulsions Are Not:

  • Not all repetitive behaviors or "rituals" are compulsions.  For example, bedtime routines, religious practices, and learning a new skill involve repeating an activity over and over again, but are a welcome part of daily life.
  • Behaviors depend on the context: Arranging and ordering DVDs for eight hours a day isn't a compulsion if the person works in a video store.

Common Obsessions in OCD1

Contamination
  • Body fluids (examples: urine, feces)
  • Germs/disease (examples: herpes, HIV)
  • Environmental contaminants (examples: asbestos, radiation)
  • Household chemicals (examples: cleaners, solvents)
  • Dirt
Losing Control
 Harm
  • Fear of being responsible for something terrible happening (examples: fire, burglary)
  • Fear of harming others because of not being careful enough (example: dropping something on the ground that might cause someone to slip and hurt him/herself)
Obsessions Related to Perfectionism
  • Concern about evenness or exactness
  • Concern with a need to know or remember
  • Fear of losing or forgetting important information when throwing something out
  • Inability to decide whether to keep or to discard things
  • Fear of losing things
Unwanted Sexual Thoughts
  • Forbidden or perverse sexual thoughts or images
  • Forbidden or perverse sexual impulses about others
  • Obsessions about homosexuality
  • Sexual obsessions that involve children or incest
  • Obsessions about aggressive sexual behavior towards others
 Religious Obsessions (Scrupulosity)
  • Concern with offending God, or concern about blasphemy.
  • Excessive concern with right/wrong or morality.
Other Obsessions
  • Concern with getting a physical illness or disease (not by contamination e.g., cancer)
  • Superstitious ideas about lucky/unlucky numbers, certain colors
   

Common Compulsions in OCD1 

   
Washing and Cleaning
  • Washing hands excessively or in a certain way
  • Excessive showering, bathing, tooth brushing, grooming or toilet routines
  • Cleaning household items or other objects excessively
  • Doing other things to prevent or remove contact with contaminants
Checking
  • Checking that you did not/will not harm others
  • Checking that you did not/will not harm yourself
  • Checking that nothing terrible happened
  • Checking that you did not make a mistake
  • Checking some parts of your physical condition or body
Repeating
  • Rereading or rewriting
  • Repeating routine activities (examples: going in or out doors, getting up or down from chairs)
  • Repeating body movements (example: tapping, touching, blinking)
  • Repeating activities in "multiples" (examples: doing a task three times because three is a "good", "right", "safe" number)
Mental Compulsions

  • Mental review of events to prevent harm (to oneself, others, to prevent terrible consequences)
  • Praying to prevent harm (to oneself, others, to prevent terrible consequences)
  • Counting while performing a task to end on a "good", "right", or "safe" number
  • "Cancelling" or "Undoing" (example: replacing a "bad" word with a "good" word to cancel it out)
Other Compulsions
  • Collecting items which results in significant clutter in the home (also called hoarding)
  • Putting things in order or arranging things until it "feels right"
  • Telling, asking, or confessing to get reassurance
  • Avoiding situations that might trigger your obsessions

How Many People Have OCD?

OCD affects men, women and children of all races and backgrounds equally.


Adults


Our best estimates are that about 1 in 100 adults – or between 2 to 3 million adults in the United States – currently have OCD.1,2    
This is roughly the same number of people living in the city of Houston, Texas. 

Children 

How-Many-Children


There are also at least 1 in 200 – or 500,000 – kids and teens that have OCD.  This is about the same number of kids who have diabetes.   

That means four or five kids with OCD are likely to be enrolled in any average size elementary school.  In a medium to large high school, there could be 20 students struggling with the challenges caused by OCD.3

1 National Institute of Mental Health

2 Ruscio AM, Stein DJ, Chiu WT, Kessler RC. “The epidemiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication.” Molecular Psychiatry. 2008 Aug 26.
3 March, J. & Benton, C. (2007). Talking Back to OCD. (pp.10-11). The Guilford Press.

At What Age Does OCD Begin?



OCD can start at any time from preschool to adulthood.

Although OCD does occur at earlier ages, there are generally two age ranges when OCD first appears:
  • Between ages 8 and 12
  • Between the late teens and early adulthood
3 March, J. & Benton, C. (2007). Talking Back to OCD. (pp.10-11). The Guilford Press.

What Causes OCD?

Unfortunately we still do not know the exact cause or causes of OCD. However, research suggests that differences in the brain and genes of those affected may play a role.

Is OCD a Brain Disorder?

Research suggests that OCD involves problems in communication between the front part of the brain and deeper structures. These brain structures use a chemical messenger called serotonin. Pictures of the brain at work also show that in some people, the brain circuits involved in OCD become more normal with either serotonin medicines or cognitive behavior therapy (CBT).

Is OCD Inherited?

Research shows that OCD does run in families and that genes likely play a role in the development of the disorder. Genes appear to be only partly responsible for causing the disorder though. No one really knows what other factors might be involved, perhaps an illness or even ordinary life stresses that may induce the activity of genes associated with the symptoms of OCD.
Some experts think that OCD that begins in childhood may be different from the OCD that begins in adults. For example, a recent review of twin studies1 has shown that genes play a larger role when OCD starts in childhood (45-65%) compared to when it starts in adulthood (27-47%).

What About PANDAS?

PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal infections)
is a proposed kind of OCD that occurs in childhood following the body’s reaction to infection.
For more information on PANDAS, including diagnosis and treatment, download our PANDAS Fact Sheet.

Future Research

1 March, J. & Benton, C. (2007). Talking Back to OCD. (pp.10-11). The Guilford Press.

Treatment of OCD

On average, it takes 14-17 years from the time OCD begins for people to get the right treatment. 
Obstacles to Treatment
  • Hiding symptoms. Some people choose to hide their symptoms, often in fear of embarrassment or stigma. This causes many people with OCD to not seek the help of a mental health professional until many years after the onset of symptoms.
  • Less public awareness of OCD. Until recently, many people did not know there was even a name for their illness and with no name, they assumed there was no treatment.
  • Lack of proper training in health professionals. People with OCD often get the wrong diagnosis from health professionals and need to see several doctors and spend several years in the incorrect treatment before getting the right diagnosis.
  • Difficulty finding local therapists who can effectively treat OCD.
  • Not being able to afford proper treatment.
What Are the First-Line Treatments for OCD and OC Related Disorders?
The best treatment for most people with OCD should include one or more of the following:

If the Above Treatments Don't Work, What Are My Options?
What About PANDAS?

PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal infections)
is a proposed kind of OCD that occurs in childhood following the body’s reaction to infection.
PANDAS should be managed with early antibiotic treatment for strep infections. Continued symptoms can be treated with standard OCD treatments (cognitive behavior therapy and/or SSRI medicine). Closely watching a child's reaction to SSRIs is important as they can cause severe behavioral problems, including suicidal thoughts.
For more information on PANDAS, including diagnosis and treatment, download our PANDAS Fact Sheet.


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