Obsessive compulsive disorder more commonly called OCD affects many Americans.
The National Institute of Mental Health provides an overview of the prevalence rate of OCD:
- For US adults aged 18 and up, 1.2% reported having OCD in any given year
- Rates of OCD were found to be higher with women (1.8%) than men (0.5%)
- The lifetime prevalence of OCD among U.S. adults was 2.3%
- Over 50% of adults with OCD reported serious impairment
Additional statistics on OCD prevalence include:
- Early-onset of OCD occurs most frequently with males, with one quarter being diagnosed before 10 years of age
- Most females are diagnosed after 10 years of age
- The average age of onset for OCD is 19.5 years
- Those diagnosed with OCD spend an average of nearly 9 years with the disorder
- 90% of people with OCD have another co-occurring disorder, such as anxiety or a mood disorder
- After the age of 30, new onsets of OCD are rare
How does having OCD affect your daily life?
“How does it feel to live with OCD?”
Mental health awareness counselor asked and received a heart wrenching response,
“Thoughts get stuck, constantly running like a hamster trapped in a cage spinning endlessly on his wheel. OCD interferes with responsible functioning: job, relationships, punctuality, or just being able to live comfortably with themselves and their loved ones.”
Outside of their obsessions and following compulsions, individuals with OCD may also struggle with feelings of guilt, worthlessness, feeling like a burden, suicidal ideation, and problems with concentration and sleep, leading to a series of other health potential health problems, both physical and mental.
Treatment for OCD
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is the most effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder and involves two components:
- Exposure and response prevention
- Cognitive therapy will include exposure and response prevention that requires repeated exposure to the source of your obsession
Examples of common compulsions among people with OCD include:
- Repeatedly checking to make sure that doors and windows are locked or that appliances are turned off; some individuals with OCD have to check their neighborhood to make sure they have not hit someone with their car or assaulted someone
- Excessive cleaning of the house, clothes, and/or body
- Counting objects, letters, words, or actions
- Excessive exercising
- Over eating
- Weight control/ checking weight on multiple occasions daily/counting calories
- Changing around furniture in the house
- Many more…
What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
A type of psychotherapy in which negative patterns of thought about the self and the world are challenged in order to alter unwanted behavior patterns or treat mood disorders such as depression.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, commonly known as CBT, is a form of therapy designed to treat psychiatric problems such as depression and anxiety. The theory was founded by Dr. Aaron T. Beck in the 1960s as a means of treating depression and relies on the basis of what Beck calls automatic thoughts, which are characteristically negative, that sufferers have about themselves, the world around them and the future.
This post was written by Lauren K., and published by Convenient Counseling Services.
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