Essay on Mental Illness OCD

Submitted By ipraishim63
Words: 985
Pages: 4
Open Document
Mental Illness OCD
Olivia Brown
HCA 240
Professor Erika Delamar

Obsessive –Compulsive Disorder –OCD It is normal for everyone to double check things. Check to make sure the stove has been turned off or that the iron is unplugged before leaving the house. People with OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) check things repeatedly, perform rituals over and over again, or have certain thoughts. These thoughts cause distress and prevent people with OCD from living a normal productive life. The frequent thoughts are call obsessions. A person will feel an overwhelming urge to repeat behaviors known as compulsions. OCD patients can’t control their obsessions and compulsions. For example, a person with germs may have a compulsion to wash their hands repeatedly until their skin becomes raw. Healthy people also perform certain rituals such as washing their hand to prevent the speed of germs. The difference is patients with OCD perform their behaviors even though it interrupts their everyday life, and it becomes distressing. OCD symptoms include obsessions, and compulsions, and about one third of people with OCD also have brief, sudden intermittent sounds or movements (tics). The symptoms of obsessions are persistent, repeated, and urges that cause anxiety. People try to avoid these urges by performing a compulsion, the obsessions typically interrupts when the person is trying to think of other things. Some obsession themes are fear of germs, or dirt, arranging thins symmetrically or orderly, thoughts about harming others, or yourself, undesired thoughts, including aggression, sexual or religious objects. Examples of obsession signs and symptoms include; fear of being contaminated by shaking hands or touching other objects other have touched, doubts that you have locked the door or turned off the oven, intense stress when objects are not in order or facing a certain direction, images of hurting others, or yourself, thoughts about shouting profanity, or acting inappropriately, avoiding situations that can trigger obsessions such as shaking hands, distress about unpleasant sexual images repeating in your mind. OCD Compulsions are the repeated behaviors that a person feels driven to perform. The behaviors are used to reduce anxiety or relax the obsession. A person feels the compulsion brings relief from the anxiety. Just like obsession compulsion themes include: washing and cleaning, checking, demanding assurances, strict routines, and orderliness. Compulsions signs and symptoms include hand washing until the skin becomes raw, checking door repeatedly, counting certain patterns, silently repeating a pray, word or phrase, arranging canned goods to face the same direction. Symptoms begin to become worse when a person experiences stress. OVD is considered a time consuming, and disabling mental disorder. OCD symptoms vary and the symptoms may come and go. OCD can prevent a person from performing normal activates, or working. The diagnosis of OCD can be difficult because the symptoms are often similar to those of anxiety disorders, depression, schizophrenia and other mental diseases. OCD affects about 2.2 million Americans adults. OCD treatment may not produce a cure, but it can assist with bringing symptoms under control. Treatments are psychotherapy and medications, or a combination of both. Therapy called exposure and response prevention is the most effective treatment. It involves exposing the patient to a feared obsession or object, such as dirt, and showing a patient how to deal with their anxiety. Exposures therapy takes practice and effort. This therapy can help the patient enjoy a better quality of life and manage their compulsion and obsessions. Psychiatric medications help control the compulsion and obsessions. Your doctor may prescribe antidepressants approved by the FDA, such as Prozac, Juvox, Pexeva, and Zoloft. It is not unusual to try several medications before
Show More

Related Documents: Essay on Mental Illness OCD

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

OCD Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), is a mental illness. OCD is a common anxiety disorder that affects a person to repeat thoughts, actions, or rituals repetitively. What a person may repeat is usually very unusual and bizarre. This illness ranges from not affecting a person a whole lot, to being so severe that they spend the majority of the day dealing with their compulsive actions. This illness does not go away by itself but can be treated. OCD is usually centered around themes. Such…

Words 456 - Pages 2

Obsessive Compulsive Disorders Essay

obsessive compulsive disorder. It gives a closer look into the illness and how it has become known to society. It will cover the prevalence of this disorder as well as its causes. This paper will also give a description of the disorder and common forms of treatment. Many of us occasionally have to go back and double-check that an iron is unplugged or the car door is locked. But for those that suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors become so excessive…

Words 2595 - Pages 11

Normal Nuts Essay example

A common misconception in society is that someone with a mental illness cannot function normally in society and needs to be locked up in an institution. It is often forgotten that mental illnesses are in fact, actual medical conditions and not just a word used to label crazy people. Some mental illnesses that people have stigmas about are Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and Schizophrenia. In actuality people with mental illnesses can hold jobs, have families, and lead productively…

Words 987 - Pages 4

Ocd Research Paper

disorder. It makes them a perfectionist. When the pencil’s disarray triggers mental distress, the streaks on the glass give way to anxiety, and the signature is erased and rewritten five to six times, it is safe to say OCD is the culprit. Many people do not understand what OCD is. It is a complex mental illness with a wide range of symptoms that can completely derail an individual’s life. A surprising amount of people suffer from OCD, and unfortunately, the causes are unclear. Fortunately, there are treatments…

Words 1814 - Pages 8

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Essay

In the United States of America, approximately 1 in 40 adults and 1 in 100 children have OCD (beyondocd.org). Obsessive compulsive disorder is anxiety disorder characterized by persistent intrusive ideas, thoughts, impulses or images which often result in performing compulsive rituals over and over again (cmha.ca). According to the World Health Organization, OCD is one of the top 20 causes of illness-related disability for individuals between 15 and 44 years of age (beyondocd.org). Obsessive compulsive…

Words 978 - Pages 4

Causes Of Obsessive-Compulsive Disor

In the scholarly journal, “Illness perception, help-seeking attitudes, and knowledge related to obsessive–a compulsive disorder across different ethnic groups: community survey”, the authors does a study on the different ethnicity groups in the South-East London (Fernández et al., 2015). In the journal, the study was done on White British, Black African, Black Caribbean, and Indian population. The people were anonymously tested to see if they showed any signs of OCD or if they have seen it in their…

Words 1060 - Pages 5

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder in which people have unwanted and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions), and behaviors that drive them to do something over and over (compulsions). Often the person carries out the behaviors to get rid of the obsessive thoughts. But this only provides short-term relief. Not doing the obsessive rituals can cause great anxiety and distress. Causes Health care providers do not know the exact cause of OCD. Factors that may play…

Words 555 - Pages 3

The Man Who Couldn T Stop Analysis

The Man who Couldn’t Stop: OCD And The True Story Of A Life Lost In Thought In a two-page reflection/response, answer the following questions using specific passages and concepts from the text: Describe the spectrum of Obsessive Compulsive Disorders presented in the text. OCD is believed to has its own spectrum, there are mainly five OCD spectrum in this text which are as followed: Firstly, autism, which can feature a need to observe rigid routines and rituals, and some autistic patients report both…

Words 980 - Pages 4

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

There are many illnesses and disorders that affect million of people lives. One such disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, is an illness that affects thoughts and actions. It is a mental disorder characterized by recurrent, persistent thoughts and images and ritualistic behaviors that interfere with a person’s daily life and relationships. Obsessions and compulsions are the two main components of this disorder. Obsessions are described as repetitious thoughts, images, fears, urges, and a need…

Words 787 - Pages 4

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Essay

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Abstract Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, OCD, is an anxiety disorder that causes unwanted and intrusive thoughts or feelings that cause an individual to feel driven to do something. OCD affects one in every 50 individuals in the United States. Often times, OCD begins in childhood or adolescence and if untreated, will continue into adulthood. This research paper will address the symptoms of OCD and the current counseling techniques used to treat it. Keywords: obsessive…

Words 1579 - Pages 7