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Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder. OCD is manifested in a variety of forms, but is most commonly characterized by a subject's obsessive drive to perform a particular task or set of tasks, compulsions commonly termed rituals.
OCD should be distinguished from the similarly named but notably different obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, which psychiatric guidelines define as a personality characteristic rather than an anxiety disorder.
The phrase "obsessive-compulsive" has worked its way into the wider American lexicon, and is often used in an offhanded sense to describe someone who is meticulous or absorbed in a cause. Such casual references obviously should not be conflated with clinical diagnoses of obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is also important to distinguish OCD from other types of anxiety, including the routine tension and stress that appear throughout life. A person who shows signs of infatuation or fixation with a subject, or displays traits such as perfectionism, is not necessarily stricken with OCD, a specific and well-defined disorder.
Modern research has revealed that OCD is much more common than previously thought. An estimated two to three percent of the population is thought to have OCD or display OCD-like symptoms. Because of the condition's personal nature and the lingering stigma that surrounds it, there may be many unaccounted OCD sufferers, and the above percentages could be even higher.
The typical OCD sufferer performs tasks (or compulsions) to seek relief from obsessions. To others, these tasks may appear simple and unnecessary. But for the sufferer, such tasks can feel critically important, and must be performed in particular ways for fear of dire consequences. Examples of these tasks: repeatedly checking that one's parked car has been locked before leaving it; turning lights on and off a set number of times before exiting a room; repeatedly washing hands at regular intervals throughout the day.
OCD rituals are often bound up with intricate detail -- detail that may seem arbitrary to outsiders. A smoker with OCD, for instance, may argue with himself that quitting cigarettes is possible only on the 13th or 27th of a month, and only when in the possession of four cigarettes at noon.
Most with OCD are aware that such thoughts and behavior are not rational, but feel bound to comply with them to fend off fears of panic or dread. Because sufferers are consciously aware of this irrationality but feel helpless to push it away, OCD is often regarded as one of the most vexing and frustrating of the major anxiety disorders.
Obsessions are thoughts and ideas that the sufferer cannot stop thinking about. Common OCD obsessions include fears of acquiring disease, getting hurt or causing harm to someone. Obsessions are typically automatic, frequent, distressing, and difficult to control or get rid of.
Compulsions refer to actions that the person performs, usually repeatedly, in an attempt to make the obsession go away. For an OCD sufferer who obsesses about germs or contamination, for example, these compulsions often involve repeated cleansing or meticulous avoidance of trash and mess. Common compulsions include excessive washing and cleaning; checking; hoarding; repetitive actions such as touching, counting, arranging and ordering; and other ritualistic behaviors that the person feels will lessen the chances of provoking an obsession. Compulsions can be observable -- washing, for instance -- but they can also be mental rituals such as repeating words or phrases, or counting.
Not all OCD sufferers engage in compulsive behavior. Recent years have seen increased diagnoses of Pure Obsessional OCD, or "Pure O." This form of OCD is manifested entirely within the mind, and involves obsessive ruminations triggered by certain thoughts. These mental "snags" can be debilitating, often tying up a sufferer for hours at a time. At this writing (2004), Pure O is considered the trickiest form of OCD to treat, though headway continues to be made by specialists such as Dr. Steven Phillipson[1].
OCD differs from behaviors such as gambling addiction and overeating. People with these disorders typically experience at least a slight pleasure from their activity; OCD sufferers do not actively want to perform their compulsive tasks, and experience no tangible pleasure in doing so.
OCD is placed in the anxiety class of mental illness, but like many chronic stress disorders it can lead over time to depression. The condition's constant drumbeat of stress can cause sufferers to develop a deadening of spirit, a numbing frustration or sense of hopelessness. And OCD's effects on day-to-day life -- particularly its substantial consumption of time -- can produce difficulties with work, finances and relationships.
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