One way to recognize OCD is to look for excessive efforts to get reassurance. This can take many forms, and in my experience often comes up as questions asked to a spouse. “Did you check the locks on the door?” “I’m feeling a little ill, do you think I have lupus?”
[Read more…]For people suffering from OCD, it can be hard to find helpful counseling. Being an informed consumer can make all the difference.
It is common for people who think they might have OCD to say, “I’d better see someone,” and go to see a psychotherapist. So far, so good. However, there are different types of therapy for OCD, and evidence suggests that some work better than others. Many people who seek help for obsessions or compulsions with a psychotherapist find that sometimes, after months or years of therapy, their symptoms are still a problem. There can be many possible reasons for this.
[Read more…]
Are you a germophobe? People have phobias of all sorts of things — heights, insects, blood, needles, dogs, you name it. However, people with a fear of germs typically do not have a phobia. Often, this is the contamination subtype of OCD.
This will often manifest in tendencies to avoid people, places, or things that are thought to be contaminated. Sometimes the concern is about a specific disease like HIV or hepatitis, or just general “germs.” Other times the contamination can be more vaguely defined. In its extreme forms, this type of OCD can result in people feeling that their homes are too contaminated to continue living in.
[Read more…]For many sufferers of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and other types of anxiety, deciding to seek help can be a difficult decision to make. Once that decision is made, another choice is required: what kind of OCD treatment is best for me?
[Read more…]