We hear it from our friends: “I’m so OCD about (enter verb here).”

We walk around department stores during the holidays to find “Obsessive Christmas Disorder (OCD)” sweaters hanging on the racks.

We see silly vignettes on the TV about someone turning the light switch on and off multiple times in fear of the oceans drying up.

—and—

While some might consider this a step in the right direction—decreasing the stigma around mental illness—it is not being done in a truthful or effective way.

—simply put—

OCD is largely misunderstood, affecting those who truly suffer.

What is OCD?

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) defines Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) as a mental disorder consisting of “the presence of obsessions, compulsions, or both” for which the obsessions and/or compulsive rituals cause significant dysfunction in an individual’s everyday life (DSM-5, 2013, p. 237). In fact, according to Veale and Roberts (2014),

“The World Health Organization ranks 

obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as

 one of the 10 most handicapping conditions 

by lost income and decreased quality of life.”

And…according to the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF), only about 1 out of 100 adults suffer from the disorder and 1 out of 200 children. Considering this statistic, the likelihood that 5 of your 10 friends “are so OCD” is not very high.

What are obsessions?

While we hear others talking about “being obsessed with” their favorite team, song, or vacation spot, obsessions are quite the opposite—they are not fun, funny, or exhilarating; instead, they are recurring, horribly disturbing, intrusive, unwanted, and many times taboo thoughts or mental images, many of which include themes of violence, sexuality, doubting oneself, and losing control. And while everyone has unwanted, scary, or strange thoughts from time to time, people without the disorder are usually able to identify them as simple thoughts or images that carry no meaning; however, people with OCD view them as very real, distressing and anxiety-provoking threats. In response to this overwhelming feeling of despair, they will take part in compulsions.

What are compulsions?

Compulsions are intentional, repetitive behaviors or thoughts intended to neutralize, counteract, or make the obsession go away (IOCDF, 2020). These acts would not be considered “rational” if the individual with OCD were to explain the reason behind them. Additionally, they may take up hours of the sufferer’s day, as he/she will likely have to redo the behavior/thought until it feels just right—a task that produces intense anxiety. So while much of an individual’s suffering comes from the obsessions, a large part comes from the compulsions as well. Lastly, while compulsions may decrease anxiety temporarily, they inevitably feed into a vicious and disastrous cycle of obsessions and compulsions. 

What is it like to live with OCD?

The severity, frequency, and type of obsessions/compulsions vary from individual to individual. However, below is a scenario that would not be considered out of the ordinary for a sufferer.

Imagine the most threatening, evil bully in your head constantly telling you: “If you don’t do this really irrational thing, something terrible will happen—don’t test me or else!”  Now imagine that the “something terrible” is the image of you grabbing a kitchen knife, losing control, and stabbing your loved one. Your heart starts racing, your breath becomes short, and you begin panicking. You know deep down that this terrible thing probably won’t happen—because why would you want to stab your loved one? But, what if there is a small chance that it is true? The only thing you know for sure, is that you could prevent the terrible thing from happening by doing whatever the monster in your head tells you to do: avoid hanging out with your loved one, lock the knife drawer with a combination that someone else created so that you could not get into it, recheck that the lock is actually working, sleep with your door locked to take extra precaution so that you can’t easily get into the kitchen near the knives, go back to the kitchen to be certain that you locked the drawer and can’t get into it…and so on. Now imagine going through this chaotic ritual…

…hours on end…

every…single…day.

The Take-Away

OCD is not silly or quirky. To help end the spread of misinformation and thus, to help those who truly suffer from the disorder, try steering clear of certain phrases like, “I’m so OCD” or “I’m obsessed” and learn more about the debilitating disease by visiting the International OCD Foundation’s website: https://iocdf.org/

If you, or anyone you know, is suffering from OCD, please feel free to reach out to me for questions and/or help.

Authored by: Elise Rhodes, Intern

(Photo credit: @ocdthoughts)