Obsessive-compulsive Disorder Essay, Research Paper

Psychology 101

Psych. Disorder Paper

10/21/99

Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual defines compulsions and irresistible impulses as follows ;

Compulsions are relentless thoughts, ideas, urges, or images that are experienced as intrusive and inappropriate and that cause marked anxiousness or hurt. Compulsions are insistent behaviours ( e.g. , manus lavation, telling, look intoing ) or mental Acts of the Apostless ( e.g. , praying, numeration, reiterating words mutely ) the end of which is to forestall or cut down anxiousness or hurt, non to supply pleasance or satisfaction.

Diagnostic Symptoms:

There are several by and large accepted subdivisions of OC & # 8217 ; s. Amongst them are Washers, Checkers, Cleaners, Hoarders, Repeaters, Orderers, and Pure Obsessives.

Washers are those OC & # 8217 ; s that by and large have a fright of sources, soil, or taint from substances like bodily fluids, soil, dust, bacterium, viruses, eliminations, and the similar. Washers that are compulsive can pass hours rinsing themselves, or parts of their organic structure, to the exclusion of all else, seeking to free themselves of & # 8220 ; taint & # 8221 ; . They may besides avoid contact with things to avoid being & # 8220 ; contaminated & # 8221 ; .

Cleanerss are those OC & # 8217 ; s that feel that other things are contaminated or dirty, and pass much clip cleaning their milieus. For case, a cleansing agent might pass hours dusting their place, and so travel back and get down once more every bit shortly as they have finished, because dust has settled in the interim.

Checkerss have a job memory or being certain that they have or have non done something, and hence travel back to look into whether they have or non. For case, a adult female may acquire up 10 to 15 times a dark to do certain all Windowss and doors are still locked, although they were every other clip.

Hoarders collect things & # 8230 ; about anything. They normally can non even stand to throw off refuse, and frequently will allow it merely sit around them. An inability to acquire rid of things is the important symptom of this category of OC.

Repeaters are OC & # 8217 ; s that feel compelled to make things a & # 8220 ; right & # 8221 ; figure of times. This may function to protect them from some imagined danger, or prevent possible injury to themselves. Repeaters by and large fear that if they do non make things the & # 8220 ; right & # 8221 ; figure of times, something bad will go on, although some may merely hold to make things & # 8220 ; merely right & # 8221 ; for no evident ground.

Orderers have to hold things organized perfectly & # 8220 ; the right manner & # 8221 ; . An orderer might be loath to allow anyone touch their ownerships, lest they be misarranged. Orderers might pass hours merely alining a piece of paper on a desktop, or unbending a bookshelf.

The last type is the Pure Obsessive, which is besides the most hard OC to handle. These OC & # 8217 ; s suffer from obsessional ideas of a distressing nature, by and large. An illustration might be a individual who invariably obsesses over whether they will ache their kid, even though they know

they wouldn’t…they can’t halt worrying that they might.

Case Study:

Subjects Name: Ian Foss

Age: 13

Ian appears as a really intelligent immature adult male to me. He merely can & # 8217 ; t seem to maintain on undertaking. He doesn & # 8217 ; t look to be lazy in the least. He tells me that his ground for his inability to remain focused is because his head supports stating him he has to make all sorts of brainsick things such as ; how he has to number how many breaths he takes, or how many stairss he has taken recently. Besides that he has to keep his breath every clip he passes a cabinet when the figure on the forepart of it is divisible by five. He complains that he is terrified by doorhandle, H2O spigots, light switches, or air blowholes because of the sources they may possess. If he touches a doorhandle, H2O spigot, or light switch, he instantly has to rinse his custodies seven times ; he claims seven is his charming figure. He says he feels better everytime he washes his custodies, but he is non wholly satisfied because there are so many sources out at that place. A large fright he has is the 1 that he may catch AIDS merely by doing contact with one of the above objects. He claims to recognize that no 1 else seems to worry about the things he does and he knows that sometimes the things he does make non do sense, but he merely can & # 8217 ; t agitate these compulsions.

Prevalence:

Approximately 2.3 % of the U.S. population ( 3.3 million Americans ) has OCD in a given twelvemonth. OCD affects work forces and adult females every bit. OCD typically begins during adolescence or early childhood ; at least one-third of these instances of grownup OCD began in childhood.

Treatment Options:

Treatments for OCD have been developed through research supported by the NIMH and other research establishments. These interventions, which combine medicines and behavioural therapy, are frequently effectual. Several medicines have been proven effectual in assisting people with OCD such as, clomipramine, Prozac, fluvoxamine, and paroxetine. A figure of other medicines are presently being studied.

A type of behavioural therapy known as & # 8220 ; exposure and response bar & # 8221 ; is really utile for handling OCD.

Treatment proven most effectual:

The intervention I found to be most effectual, after reading all the surveies I read was the behavioural therapy. In this attack, a individual is intentionally and voluntarily exposed to whatever triggers the obsessional ideas and so, is taught techniques to avoid acting, the compulsive undertakings and to cover with the compulsions. Surveies of behavioural therapy for OCD have found it to be really effectual intervention to those who complete it. For the intervention to be successful, it is of import that the healer be to the full trained to supply this specific signifier of therapy. It is besides helpful that the patient be extremely motivated, be positive and have a determined attitude.

Mentions:

& # 183 ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual ( 300.3 Obsessive-compulsive Disorder )

& # 183 ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.fairlite.com/ocd/defs/dsmocd.shtml

& # 183 ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ocfoundation.org/