OCD

Everyone has daily patterns in there life; you wake up, brush your teeth, take a shower, eat, and get dressed. Then the next day you do the same, and you might even switch the order in which these tasks are accomplished, but they don’t get in the way of doing anything important and living your life. Here’s were OCD comes in, people with OCD have no choice, they can’t focus and concentrate until that urged to touch or repeat or clean and wash is satisfied. OCD is an illness, a mental illness, and some may think those who suffer have the will to stop this, when in reality they don’t. Treatment for OCD is a long and tiring process, but to even begin to understand what OCD is we have to understand it in its totality.

What is OCD?

OCD is the manifestation of anxiety at high levels, and these high levels of anxiety occur because the brain can’t properly deal with worry and doubt. OCD causes unwanted thoughts and the need to repeat certain behaviors. Those who suffer from OCD know that there compulsions and obsession don’t make any sense, and that they don’t need to be done, But that’s what makes OCD such a complex illness. Those who suffer from it, can distinguish what OCD is doing to them, how much it makes them suffer, but there own mind won’t allow them to stop. Thoughts of there own senseless rituals and compulsions will haunt them until they comply to there own mind.

OCD Is divided into two different manifestations obsessions and compulsions. Now a person who suffers from OCD and manifest through obsession will get random thoughts and images in there mind, that they can’t avoid. They will constantly be thinking about the thing they are obsessing about. Theses images and impulses will run through there mind over and over again. These thoughts can range from every once in a while, to almost all the time. This however varies on the anxiety and stress levels of the person.
Now compulsions are the actions brought on by these obsessive thoughts and high levels of anxiety. These compulsion are run by the rule of each individual, it may consist of counting to five every single time before you walk through a door, to turning counter clockwise every time you’re turning a corner. These compulsion are managed by there anxiety, and performing them only makes that anxiety go away for a few second to minutes, maybe a few hours, but once they return so will the compulsions, these compulsion are what make having a normal life and OCD so difficult because they are time consuming activities which can take away from the person.

Common Obsessions

-Fear of aging.
-Fear of dirt and germs.
-Fear of harming and hurting others.
-Concentrating on repeating certain numbers and touching things a number of times.


Common Compulsions.

-Washing your hands excessively.
-Ordering and organizing in strange ways.
-Checking door, locks, etc.
-touching things while looking a certain way.

What Causes OCD

OCD, was thought to be a rare mental illness and impossible to treat, But studies have shown that almost 3.3 million Americans from ages 18-54, and this study was only conducted in the US, it doesn’t include other countries and there statistics.
Now OCD is said to be caused by low levels of serotonin. Now serotonin is a chemical in the brain that prevents people from repeating things. It carries the message that an action has been performed, those who suffer from OCD don’t have enough serotonin so it is said that this is why they repeat things because there brain never gets the order that the action has been performed. This is why medicines that can reduce OCD symptoms have high levels of serotonin; however these pills do not permanently remove OCD. Only reduce the symptoms.

Treatment.

The most effective treatment for OCD to this day is cognitive response therapy and behavioral therapy or exposure therapy. In these therapy’s those that suffer from OCD are constantly exposed to there fear and obsession and must fight the urge to proceed with there rituals. They must withstand there anxiety until they feel comfortable with it, but this procedure only works when the person has the full will and mind power to recover. Those that can’t successfully remove there OCD will eventually go back to there starting point of worse. That is why therapist recommends that when starting cognitive response therapy or behavioral therapy they must be 100% committed. Of course they always have the option of taking prescribed drugs, however keep in mind that these only reduce the symptoms and not cure OCD completely.

Brain Chemistry of OCD.

Studies have shown that OCD occurs because of low serotonin level in the brain. However new studies have shown that OCD may also be hereditary, there isn’t much information on the possibilities of OCD actually being hereditary or what genes may cause it, but genes can be a cause of how the brain is influenced and if it may be able to or at risk of developing OCD. However many people with high risks genetically of getting OCD have not. Doctors are curious as to why this may happen, so some studies where conducted between families and patients. Those that did not have a history of OCD and where not a risk, Healthy relatives of those with a history of OCD, and those that had OCD and there relative didn’t. These are the results.

However doctors still don’t know what to make of it. There still wondering why those with a history have not developed OCD, and those without a history have, so further studies are being conducted by the University of Cambridge and Psychiatrics.

• Famous people who have had OCD.

Nikola Tesla may be famous for his Tesla Coil. However he is also believed to have suffered from OCD. With his obsession with the number three, his fear of germs and peoples hair.

Howard Hughes may be famous as an aviation pioneer and as a movie director. However he too is believed to have suffered from OCD. With his fear of germs and his compulsion to rearrange objects and constantly re-watch movies. In the end he completely isolated himself.

Donald trump famous for his catch phrase “You’re Fired” among other things. Has openly admitted to suffering from OCD. He fears shaking peoples hands and having contact with germs, He especially hates shaking teachers hands.

David Beckham Famous for his talent in soccer and his dashing good looks. He is also a sufferer of OCD. He has to have everything in complete order, and everything must be in pairs. If there are three things on a stand one must be removed or added.

Among others are Cameron Diaz, Jessica Alba, Leonardo DiCaprio, Howard stern, Charlie Sheen, Albert Einstein, Michael Angelo, and Beethoven.


References

http://www.disabled-world.com/artman/publish/famous-ocd.shtml

http://www.ocdonline.com/

http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/mentalhealth/anxiety/133.html

http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/emotion/ocd.html#a_What%20Is%20OCD?

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080717140456.htm

http://obsessive-compulsive-disorder.suite101.com/article.cfm/famous_people_with_ocd