I was pleasantly surprised when I opened my Time Magazine this evening and found a writeup on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. I devoured the article quickly and finished it somewhat unsatisfied. I was happy to receive some new information, but the presentation was lacking some information as well.
The article did broaden my definition of OCD. The article outlined the most common expressions of OCD and listed two that I was unfamiliar with: Relationship Substantiation and Obsessive Hypochondria. (Time Magazine left out "checking" as a common expression of OCD, however.) Time indicates that Relationship Substantiation is "A compulsive search for tiny but disqualifying flaws in a partner or spouse." Also, Time writes that Obsessive Hypochondria goes beyond ordinary hypochondria in that the sufferers will have "what-if" worries about a doctor's misdiagnosis or other medical errors.
Time's discussion of managing OCD seemed to be heavily weighted on Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy. Other than trying this myself, I've never had any therapist even mention this type of therapy. I don't know if this is an oversight on my therapists' part or on Time's part.
Time also mentioned some up-and-coming biological approaches to combating OCD such as new drugs that decrease secretion of glutamate (a brain chemical that stimulates signalling among neurons) and more invasive treatments with brain-embedded electrodes.
Even though the article was a bit lacking in information, it was worth the read and was a great jumping-off point for more personal research.
Showing posts with label medication. Show all posts
Showing posts with label medication. Show all posts
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Morphing Obsessions and Getting Needed Help
Even though OCD can be nauseatingly repetitive, it can also throw a few curve balls. The obsessions and compulsions are somewhat akin to mutating viruses...once the original virus/obsession becomes manageable it will morph into something completely new.
In my last post, I covered in depth the ritual I developed with checking locks and alarm clocks. Over the years, these obsessions and compulsions changed to include checking my parking brake, reopening and checking sealed letters, reopening and checking e-mails, checking to make sure that I hadn't run over someone with my car, going over past conversations to make sure that I hadn't said anything offensive, mentally repeating phrases, obsessing about events and decisions at work, the list goes on and on. I won't even go into intrusive thoughts at this time.
I was able to live with these things, even though I didn't know that my problem was OCD at the time. Eventually, however, my obsessions and compulsions became so pronounced and disturbing that they took over my life. I stopped eating and sleeping and ceased to function in a normal sense. At that point, I finally decided to seek help from a professional.
My first therapist visits were free through a corporate mental health program. This therapist felt that I had generalized anxiety and panic issues. He felt that in my case, medication would be helpful and pointed me toward a psychiatrist. My psychiatrist indicated that I had OCD and finally the pieces of my jigsaw life began to fall into place.
My medication (Paxil at the time) and cognitive therapy did wonders to help me learn to manage my issues. I will go into both medication and cognitive therapy in future posts.
I want to end with this post with two of the many important things that I learned about OCD from my psychiatrist.
1. OCD is like pressurized water that will seek out a crack (stress or anxiety) and leak through.
2. Traditional anxiety and depression medications (Paxil, Zoloft, Prozac) can and will be used to treat OCD, but often in higher dosages.
And now...the moral of the story: If you feel that you may have OCD, please seek professional help even if it is not causing unmanageable distress. Tame the cat when it is still a kitten and before it becomes a full-grown lion.
In my last post, I covered in depth the ritual I developed with checking locks and alarm clocks. Over the years, these obsessions and compulsions changed to include checking my parking brake, reopening and checking sealed letters, reopening and checking e-mails, checking to make sure that I hadn't run over someone with my car, going over past conversations to make sure that I hadn't said anything offensive, mentally repeating phrases, obsessing about events and decisions at work, the list goes on and on. I won't even go into intrusive thoughts at this time.
I was able to live with these things, even though I didn't know that my problem was OCD at the time. Eventually, however, my obsessions and compulsions became so pronounced and disturbing that they took over my life. I stopped eating and sleeping and ceased to function in a normal sense. At that point, I finally decided to seek help from a professional.
My first therapist visits were free through a corporate mental health program. This therapist felt that I had generalized anxiety and panic issues. He felt that in my case, medication would be helpful and pointed me toward a psychiatrist. My psychiatrist indicated that I had OCD and finally the pieces of my jigsaw life began to fall into place.
My medication (Paxil at the time) and cognitive therapy did wonders to help me learn to manage my issues. I will go into both medication and cognitive therapy in future posts.
I want to end with this post with two of the many important things that I learned about OCD from my psychiatrist.
1. OCD is like pressurized water that will seek out a crack (stress or anxiety) and leak through.
2. Traditional anxiety and depression medications (Paxil, Zoloft, Prozac) can and will be used to treat OCD, but often in higher dosages.
And now...the moral of the story: If you feel that you may have OCD, please seek professional help even if it is not causing unmanageable distress. Tame the cat when it is still a kitten and before it becomes a full-grown lion.
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