CONTENTS
1. what is OCD? 2. Diagnostic requirements. 3. Types of OCD?
What is OCD?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health disorder characterized by recurring, intrusive thoughts (obsessions) that make individuals feel anxious or worried, and repetitive behaviors (compulsions) that they feel compelled to perform to try to relieve that anxiety. These obsessions and compulsions can be distressing, interfere with daily life, social relationships, and overall functioning, and can manifest in various ways, such as excessive cleaning, checking, or counting. The compulsions can be things like repetitive checking, arranging things in a certain way, or excessive cleaning, and can take up a lot of time and energy. People with OCD might feel like they can't stop thinking about certain things or performing certain rituals, even if they know it doesn't make sense, and it can really interfere with their daily life, accompanied by anxiety, fear, or a sense of responsibility.
Diagnostic requirements
A. Presence of obsessions, compulsions, or both:
Obsessions are defined by (1) and (2):
- Recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images that are experienced, at some time during the disturbance, as intrusive and unwanted, and that in most individuals cause marked anxiety or distress.
- The individual attempts to ignore or suppress such thoughts, urges, or images, or to neutralize them with some other thought or action (i.e., by performing a compulsion).
Compulsions are defined by (1) and (2): - Repetitive behaviors (e.g., hand washing, ordering, checking) or mental acts (e.g., praying, counting, repeating words silently) that the individual feels driven to perform in response to an obsession or according to rules that must be applied rigidly.
- The behaviors or mental acts are aimed at preventing or reducing anxiety or dis¬ tress, or preventing some dreaded event or situation; however, these behaviors or mental acts are not connected in a realistic way with what they are designed to neu¬ tralize or prevent, or are clearly excessive.
Note: Young children may not be able to articulate the aims of these behaviors or mental acts.
B. The obsessions or compulsions are time-consuming (e.g., take more than 1 hour per day) or cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
C. The obsessive-compulsive symptoms are not attributable to the physiological effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication) or another medical condition.
D. The disturbance is not better explained by the symptoms of another mental disorder.
Types of OCD!
currently at 40 listed
- Contamination OCD: Fears of contamination, germs, or illness, leading to excessive cleaning, handwashing, or avoidance of certain situations.
- Symmetry OCD: Preoccupation with symmetry, order, or exactness, resulting in compulsions to arrange objects, count, or perform tasks in a specific way.
- Harm OCD: Fears of causing harm to oneself or others, leading to compulsions to check, confess, or perform certain rituals to prevent harm.
- Sexual OCD: Obsessions related to sexual themes, such as unwanted sexual thoughts or images, leading to compulsions to seek reassurance or engage in rituals to reduce anxiety.
- Religious OCD: Fears of offending a higher power, leading to compulsions to perform rituals, pray, or seek reassurance to reduce guilt or anxiety.
- Hoarding OCD: Difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, leading to clutter and disorganization.
- Dermatillomania OCD: Compulsive skin picking, resulting in skin damage or scarring.
- Rhinotillexomania OCD: Compulsive nose picking, often resulting in physical harm or damage to the nasal passage.
- Pedophile OCD: Obsessions related to pedophilia, leading to compulsions to avoid situations or seek reassurance to reduce anxiety.
- Moral OCD: Fears of violating moral principles or values, leading to compulsions to seek reassurance, confess, or perform rituals to reduce guilt or anxiety.
- Just Right OCD: Preoccupation with getting things "just right," leading to compulsions to repeat tasks, count, or perform rituals to achieve a sense of perfection.
- Sensorimotor OCD: Obsessions related to bodily sensations, such as tingling or itching, leading to compulsions to touch, tap, or perform certain rituals to reduce discomfort.
- Intrusive Thoughts OCD: Recurring, unwanted thoughts that are disturbing or repulsive, leading to anxiety, guilt, or shame.
- Existential OCD: Fears or obsessive thoughts about the meaninglessness or uncertainty of life, leading to compulsions to seek answers or reassurance.
- Superstition OCD: Beliefs in supernatural or magical powers, leading to compulsions to perform rituals or avoid certain actions to prevent perceived harm.
- Orientation OCD: Preoccupation with sexual orientation or gender identity, leading to compulsions to seek reassurance or engage in rituals to reduce anxiety.
- Health Anxiety OCD: Excessive concerns about one's health or the health of others, leading to compulsions to seek medical reassurance or engage in excessive health-related behaviors.
- Arithmomania: Preoccupation with numbers, leading to compulsive calculations, counting, or mental math exercises, often accompanied by anxiety or discomfort if the numbers don't "add up" correctly. It can also lead to a preoccupation with number patterns and a belief in significance with certain numbers.
- False Memory OCD: Fears of false memories or unexplained events, leading to compulsions to "recover" or "remember" more details, often accompanied bypass intense emotional distress, guilt, or shame related to the false memories.
- Privacy OCD: Excessive concerns about personal privacy, leading to compulsive behaviors to protect privacy, often accompanied by intense anxiety or fear when privacy is perceived to be compromised.
- Love OCD: Obsessive concerns about one's own feelings or the feelings of others, leading to compulsions to check, reassure, or engage in excessive relationship-related behaviors.
- Emotional Contagion OCD: Fear of catching or absorbing emotions from others, leading to compulsions to avoid certain people, situations, or emotions.
- Virtual OCD: Preoccupation with online presence, social media, or virtual relationships, leading to compulsions to check, reassure, or engage in excessive online behaviors.
- Spatial OCD: Obsessive concerns about one's physical surroundings, leading to compulsions to arrange, organize, or manipulate objects in a specific way.
- Olfactory Reference Syndrome (ORS) OCD: Preoccupation with the idea that one emits a foul or unpleasant body odor, leading to compulsions to check, reassure, or engage in excessive hygiene rituals.
- Hyper-responsibility OCD: Excessive sense of responsibility for the actions of others, leading to compulsions to check, reassure, or take excessive precautions to prevent perceived harm.
- Magic Thinking OCD: Belief that one's thoughts or actions can influence the outcome of external events, leading to compulsions to engage in ritualized behaviors or thoughts to reduce anxiety.
- Somatic OCD: Preoccupation with bodily sensations, such as muscle tension or fatigue, leading to compulsions to check, reassure, or engage in excessive health-related behaviors.
- Mirror Checking OCD: Obsessive concern with one's appearance, leading to compulsive mirror checking or reassurance seeking.
- Musical OCD: Intrusive, recurring melodies or sounds that are disturbing or distracting, leading to compulsions to engage in mental or physical rituals to reduce anxiety.
- Orthorexia OCD: Excessive preoccupation with healthy eating, leading to compulsions to restrict food intake, obsess over nutrition labels, or engage in ritualized eating behaviors.
- Scrupulosity OCD: Extreme moral or religious rigidity, leading to compulsions to engage in excessive prayer, confess, or perform rituals to reduce guilt or anxiety.
- Relationship OCD: Obsessive doubts about relationships, including fears of being unfaithful or not loving one's partner enough, often leading to reassurance seeking or "testing" the relationship.
- Memory Hoarding OCD: Fear of forgetting important memories, leading to compulsive recording, photographing, or mentally reviewing past events.
- Perfectionism OCD: Obsession with flawlessness in tasks or work, leading to excessive checking, rewriting, or repeating actions until they feel "perfect."
- Emotional Contamination OCD: Fear of “contamination” by people, places, or things associated with negative emotions, leading to avoidance or rituals to "cleanse" emotional influence.
- Racism OCD: Intrusive thoughts or fear of being perceived as racist or accidentally using racist behaviors and sayings, leading to an avoidance of potential situations.
- Trichotillomania OCD: Compulsive hair pulling, resulting in noticeable hair loss or bald patches.
- Postpartum OCD: Obsessions and compulsions of fears of the infact getting harmed because of someone else or by the person with ocd, the infant getting lost/kidnapped, the infant getting severely sick, unwanted sexual thoughts about the infant, ect.
- Perinatal OCD. the same as postpartum ocd but refers to when the infact is yet unborn. (obsessions compulsions happen during pregnancy)