Anxiety and OCD Exposed

OCD: Feeling, Thinking, Doing

By Laura L. Smith, Ph.D.

 


Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involves feelings, thoughts, and behaviors.
 
For the vast majority of people with OCD, the feeling of anxiety is prominent. A man with OCD might have an obsessive thought that a doorknob is contaminated and the thought of touching the doorknob causes him great distress. He takes a spray bottle of disinfectant and sprays the doorknob and his anxiety decreases. That momentary relief feels pretty good, until the next doorknob appears. The pattern repeats-an obsessive thought, an overestimation of danger or risk, increased anxiety, a compulsive action, and then feelings of relief.

 

OCD also involves thoughts. For some people with OCD their obsessions and compulsions are more in their heads than in their guts. Consider a woman who feels a compulsive urge to arrange her canned goods in a “certain, perfect” order. She doesn’t report feeling particularly anxious at all. It’s just that she feels things aren’t “right” if she doesn’t have everything in a just so order.

 

OCD can also show up primarily in behaviors. For example, a man might feel a driven need to go through doorways in a particular manner. Until he gets it “right,” he can’t let himself continue on his way. He can’t come up with any particular thoughts about why he needs to go through doors in this way; he just feels he must.

 

As these examples illustrate, OCD manifests itself in many widely differing forms. The prominent feature(s) may involve anxiety, thoughts, behaviors, urges, or distress. Although OCD is currently considered a type of Anxiety Disorder, many professionals believe it deserves its own separate diagnostic category.

 

The take home message is that this is a fascinating, yet quite complex disorder. If you “think” you may have it, consider seeking professional consultation. This is one problem that you don’t want to self diagnose. The good news is that usually treatments work very well for OCD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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From Psych Central's :
PsychCentral (November 2, 2009)

anxiety and panic disorder (November 26, 2009)

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    Last reviewed: 2 Nov 2009

 

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Laura L. Smith, Ph.D. and Charles H. Elliott, Ph.D. are authors of many books, including Borderline Personality Disorder for Dummies. Pick up the book today!

Recent Comments
  • Laura L. Smith, Ph.D.: Hi Floura, I think you are asking how families can have an effect on impulsivity. One way is...
  • Laura L. Smith, Ph.D.: You are right that OCD tends to run in families. I would read up on OCD and possibly consider...
  • Kelly: I’m not sure how young OCD type behaviors start showing, but my 3 1/2 year old son is starting to...
  • Alli: I think you have a great smile! :) Can’ wait to see the pics!
  • floura: please clarify the effective behavioral family factors in child’s impulsivity. thanks
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