Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

A person may be diagnosed if the symptoms take at least an hour per day and interfere with daily life.

Obsession: obsessing over inappropriate thoughts is the classic symptom. Obsessing means having a recurring thought or impulse that takes over and causes anxiety.

Some common obsessions:

• Thoughts and fears of dirt or unclean things.
• Doubts and fears about turning off the coffee maker, iron, stove, etc.
• Need for extreme orderliness (ordering the cans in the cupboard, ordering your clothes by color in your closet, ordering in the refrigerator) and becoming upset if things are not exactly the way you put them.
• Aggressive impulses like the desire to yell out in a crowded place.

Compulsions: the need to do things over and over or the need for rituals in order to combat the feelings of anxiety. The ritual may not be directly associated with the obsession. For instance, washing hands repeatedly to control aggressive thoughts.

Some common compulsions:

• Cleaning, washing hands, or vacuuming continuously.
• Repeating an action over and over.
• Checking numerous times if the iron or coffee maker is turned off.
• Spending hours organizing and arranging objects (like clothes in the closet or cans in the cupboard).
• Hoarding items that should be thrown away like old appliances, newspapers, junk mail.

OCD generally begins gradually and manifests symptoms in adolescence or early adult years.