If you love color-coded closets, spotless counters, and everything in its place, you may jokingly say, “I’m a little OCD.”
Despite how it’s portrayed in pop culture, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) isn’t a quirky behavior or a love of cleanliness. In fact, OCD is a serious mental illness that can take over your life, affecting your thoughts, feelings, and daily routine in a truly distressing way.
At Reviv Functional Psychiatry & TMS Wellness Center, our compassionate psychiatrist, Dr. Hina Sidhu, specializes in diagnosing and treating OCD. We want to set the record straight and debunk some common myths about OCD.
It’s true that some people with OCD clean obsessively. However, it’s not because they enjoy it. Their need for cleaning and organizing is driven by fear and anxiety that centers around germs, illness, or contamination.
While hygiene and cleanliness are good habits for preventing illness, folks with OCD wash and clean because they're consumed with an irrational fear of disease or death and their compulsive behavior is the only way to appease the thought and relieve the anxiety.
Liking things tidy or being detail-oriented doesn’t mean you have OCD. It’s not a character trait or something you can have a little of.
Imaging studies show that people with OCD have measurable differences in brain structure and function, especially in the areas that regulate emotions and behaviors, compared to people without OCD.
OCD is a medical condition that requires better understanding and appropriate treatment.
Many people with OCD don’t show their symptoms. They suffer in silence, battling intrusive thoughts or engaging in mental rituals like counting or praying to relieve anxiety.
Because some symptoms are less visible, you may not realize you have OCD, or you may feel too ashamed to seek help. But internal symptoms are as debilitating as the obvious outward ones.
Calling someone with OCD “controlling” or “overly dramatic” downplays and dismisses the pain they feel. OCD isn’t about getting attention. Instead, it’s about coping with intense, unwanted thoughts that cause severe distress.
Many people may realize their thoughts are illogical, but that doesn’t mean they can simply stop. The urge to act on their thoughts is too overwhelming to resist.
We’ve made significant progress in recognizing the importance of mental wellness, but stigma still exists. Like depression or anxiety, a gratitude journal can’t cure your obsessive and compulsive behaviors.
Effective treatment requires a comprehensive approach that includes psychotherapy to learn about your condition and how to manage it, and sometimes medication to alleviate symptoms. Working with a professional helps you build strategies to challenge intrusive thoughts and resist compulsive behaviors in a safe environment.
OCD is a chronic mental health condition that can take over your life. If you find yourself stuck in a loop of unwanted thoughts and anxiety-driven behaviors, it’s time to reach out for help.
At Reviv Functional Psychiatry & TMS Wellness Center, we offer personalized holistic care that addresses your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Call us today to schedule an appointment. We offer in-office and telemedicine visits.
