Exploring Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

As is often common with anything in life, concepts you have little or no exposure to can fly under the radar of your awareness. The same can be said about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder which is more commonly referred to as OCD. Unless you, a family member, or a close friend have direct experience with this disorder, you are most likely limited to that which has been portrayed by the media in countless movies and books. A character in the television show like Tony Shalhoub’s Mr. Monk who goes to great extremes to avoid contact with others to avoid contamination provides us with a possible depiction of what those with OCD experience. But those who suffer with the disorder know that there is so much more to OCD than staying away from germs.

OCD is a real psychological disorder that can frustrate and often debilitate its sufferers and bring anguish to those people who love or support them. Studies show that OCD affects 2-3% of adults and 1-2% of children, but these numbers don’t include those people undiagnosed but still experiencing the symptoms.

There are two key components to OCD; obsessions, which are unwanted thoughts that serve to stir up fear, uncertainty and discomfort; and compulsions, which are the behaviors displayed by the person as they attempt to rid themselves of the distress associated with their obsessional thoughts. Hand in hand these obsessions and compulsions can evolve into a behavioral loop, which left untreated, can result in severe deterioration of a person’s quality of life.

A very common talked about form of OCD is fear of contamination, however, OCD comes in many types of intrusive thoughts and behaviors. Other examples include, having intense anxiety and persistent thoughts that you have been careless or injured someone, preoccupation with exactness, evenness, balance and/or symmetry , unwanted thoughts or images of violent or aggressive acts toward self or others, focused thoughts on sexual preference or topics related to sex, recurring thoughts centered around acting unfaithful or immorally toward God or others, or thoughts suggesting to redo over and again some behavior to ensure the task has been completed ‘just right’.

To help move past these types of thoughts, persons with OCD will then engage in ritualistic behaviors with the attempt to relieve some of the anxiety induced by the mentioned thoughts. Rituals can include things like excessive checking, washing or cleaning, repeating routine actions (ex. rereading, or counting), and ordering or arranging things in particular ways. These unwanted thoughts and counter behaviors result in wasted time and intrusions which impede a person’s quality of life. There are however, treatment strategies that provide OCD suffers with tools to live free of the above mentioned symptoms.

How to Get Help

Cognitive behavior therapy, better know as CBT, is a skills based approach treatment strategy which allows clients the ability to develop an understanding of their problem and then together, working with a therapist, develop a treatment plan that involves learning and practicing healthier ways of thinking, behaving and coping. The therapist is like a coach or teacher who helps the client understand what is occurring. After the client’s fears are identified, the therapist works with the client and provides homework (commonly referred to as exposures) designed to help the client face their fears and learn to live with uncertainty. The therapist serves as guide and mentor teaching the OCD sufferer how to face these unwanted thoughts and behaviors found as part of their OCD.

The good news behind this frightening disorder is that there are treatments that work and provide relief from the sometimes agonizing symptoms, allowing people to get back to living happy and productive lives.

The therapists at ‘A Balanced Approach’ have received extensive training in CBT targeted to help clients with OCD and are available to work with clients needing both clear diagnosis and treatment of the disorder. Please contact us for more details should you or a loved one require help.

A Little Anxiety Can Be OK

6 Tips to Validate your Child’s Feelings Without Reinforcing their Fears

As parents we often feel the need to take on super-hero powers to help our kids manage their anxious feelings. Some may feel like it’s written in the parent job description to do whatever is possible to help children deal with anxious feelings. What parents often miss in this repeatable cycle is that this short term fix can actually reinforce the fear. The child learns that when they voice feelings of anxious distress, someone (the parent) takes it away. For a little while the child feels better, but this is short- lived because the child has not faced their fear. While reassurance in the moment seems appropriate, it is strengthening the fear for the future. So what can a parent do? Here are 6 tips to keep in mind:

1. Develop Coping Skills- A better goal than eliminating your child’s anxiety is to help them develop their own coping strategies to manage it. As parents we don’t enjoy seeing our children unhappy, but teaching them to sit with anxiety and tolerate the feelings, even when they are anxious, is best. Using this approach will result in a decrease or even elimination of the anxiety in the long term.

2. Avoid Avoiding- Sometimes a natural reaction to anxiety is to avoid the things causing the anxious feelings and, in the short term, the child will feel relief. But this avoidance actually reinforces the anxiety in the long term. A child who cries or gets upset in response to anxious feelings, who is then removed from the situation by their parent, has now learned this as a coping strategy and this cycle (anxious = cry = parent removes me) has a high probability of repeating itself.

3. Provide Support - Validating that the fear is present for your child and then providing support which focuses on the child’s strengths is best. “You have done well in the past and I saw you study several extra hours for your Math exam so I am confident that you will be able to manage the anxiety you are feeling about the exam.” This response example allows your child to hear that they are understood, but also focuses on your confidence, that you believe your child has the coping skills needed to face the anxious feelings.

4. Don’t Reinforce the Fears- Children look to their parents for guidance and direction. Being aware of your own fears and being careful not to impose them onto your child is key.

5. Be Aware of Anticipatory Time- The time leading up to a feared situation can work to intensify a child’s fear. There is little benefit to announcing at breakfast, to the child who fears needles, that they will be seeing the doctor that afternoon. Hiding the appointment is not suggested, but shortening the anticipatory time is a positive strategy.

6. Model the Behavior- You are your child’s first teacher. Providing them examples on how you cope with your own anxiety is important. Pretending that you don’t have anxieties is harmful and sends a conflicting message. Pointing out healthy ways you use to tolerate and handle your own stressors allows your child to see that anxiety is manageable and is a normal part of life.