How do I know if I have OCD? A signal can be used to align everything.

Imagine that you are constantly invaded by thoughts that you do not want to have or that you feel the need to do something, that you know that it does not make sense, but that you still do it to relieve anxious feelings? 💭😖

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A Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)works in this way and can interfere with personal life, interpersonal relationships and even work.

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In this blog article, we will explore what Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is, what its causes, signs, how the diagnosis is made and how it is possible to overcome this condition.

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POC: what is it?

A Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), is a disorder of mental health, characterized by obsessions and compulsions.

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🔸Obsessions: are intrusive thoughts, impulses and frequent and persistent mental images.

🔸Compulsions: are repetitive actions, behaviors, or mental acts in response to obsessions.

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People with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder often have these unwanted intrusive thoughts that revolve around fears they cause anxietyand significant distress.

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In response, they try to suppress or ignore them, engaging in rituals or behaviors to alleviate those feelings.

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When we talk about statistical data on POC it is important to mention that:

📊 In the United States, depending on orDSM-5, this disorder arises around two19 years old of age. However, 25% of cases begin by the age of 14.

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📊 In Portugal, according to the National Epidemiological Study of Mental Health,1 in 20 people live with POC - which represents the amount of population in the municipality of Lisbon.

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Often the question arises of”what is the difference between OCD, POC and OCD?”. The answer is that there is no difference. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is the Portuguese term for Portugal, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is the Portuguese term for Brazil and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is the term in English, equally recognized and used in the world!

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⚠️ POC is still quite confused with Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (COPD)because of their similar names but, in fact, they are different. POC involves this cycle of obsessive-compulsions while PPOC revolves around perfectionism and excessive concern with details, order, rules and characterized by professional devotion.

In addition, the interventions are different and in PPOC, Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is recommended (focused on the understanding of feelings and the origin of rigid patterns, often linked to the past, promoting a more flexible change over time).

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What are the causes for POC?

There are no specific causes for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). However, they are confirmed by DSM-5 risk factors for its development. Such as:

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😰 Temperamental Factors - People who since childhood show anxiety, tendency to negative emotions (such as fear or sadness) and who are very shy and withdrawn are more likely to develop this disorder.

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🏠 Environmental Factors - Related to experiences and experiences. Traumatic, negative and very stressful events increase the risk of developing POC.

In some cases, children may develop obsessive-compulsive symptoms due to environmental factors including infectious agents.

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🧬 Genetic and Physiological Factors - The presence of POC in the family increases the risk of development. Dysfunctions in the brain are also involved in the development of the disorder.

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Signs and symptoms of an obsessive-compulsive person

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is manifested by a persistent cycle of obsessions and compulsions that, because they cause anxiety and anguish, interfere significantly with personal, social and professional sphere.

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Obsessions

The obsessions are perceived by the person himselfas excessive or irrational, but still difficult or impossible to control. These excessive worries and fears revolve around:

1 ️ ⃣Contamination concerns.

2 ️ ⃣ Fear of harming others accidentally or intentionally.

3 ️ ⃣ Fear of making a serious mistake.

4 ️ ⃣ Fear of contracting a disease.

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Compulsions

Compulsions arise as a way of responding to obsessions to prevent a feared event or fear. Although they offer temporary relief, these small actions aggravate and reinforce the obsessive-compulsive cycle.

Compulsions consume timeof the day to the point of significant delays or even missing work, school or other commitments and responsibilities. Some people may even develop problems in relation to leaving home.

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So, some of these obligations go through:

🔹Cleansing

From personal hygiene (such as excessive hand washing and number of bathrooms) to cleaning the house.

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🔹Repetition

From simple behaviors such as rewriting or re-reading something (because you didn't do it correctly) or from routine activities such as lifting and sitting repeatedly until you feel comfortable.

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🔹Assessment and verification

In response to doubts and fears (such as checking locks, doors, appliances) or to protect personal or third party well-being (examining injuries, checking that it has not caused an accident, etc.).

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🔹Ordering and organization

Inevitable need to repeatedly sort and organize objects until you feel good about their arrangement/storage.

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🔹Count

Need to count pieces, objects, or repeat an action a certain number of times.

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🔹Rituals

From praying, replacing bad thoughts with good, superstitious behaviors.

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In addition to the signs and symptoms mentioned, people with POC tend to hide their symptoms and often feel guilt and shamefor their behavior.

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How the diagnosis for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is made

The diagnosis of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is performed in a clinical context, by mental health professionals, based on interviews, behavioral observation and criteria defined in international manuals such as the DSM-5or ICD-11.

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In this way, according to data fromDSM-5, it is necessary to verify that:

🔸 The presence of intrusive and unwanted obsessions and/or compulsions that cause anxiety or suffering.

🔸 The person tries to suppress or ignore obsessions with another thought or action (compulsions) with the aim of preventing or reducing anxiety, suffering or avoiding some feared event or situation.

🔸 Obsessions or compulsions consume time (more than an hour a day, for example) and cause significant anguish and suffering damaging other areas of the person's life.

🔸 Obsessive symptoms are not due to physiological effects caused by substances, another medical condition or mental disorders.

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How can we intervene in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?

For the intervention of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, an article published in Cureus highlights the role of some interventions, such as psychotherapy and pharmacological interventions.

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Well NeuroImprove Clinicwe provide compassionate and effective treatment care for people facing POC, tailoring the approach to each individual's unique needs.

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👉 OR Quantitative electroencephalogram (qEEG)provides an objective assessment of brain activity, helping us to identify specific patterns associated with POC. This information allows us to elaborate customized treatment protocolsand adapted to the brain dynamics of each individual.

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👉 After the qEEG, if there are dysregulations in the pattern of brain activity, it will be advised Neurofeedback, which is a non-invasive technique that helps people self-regulate brain activity. By working on the underlying neural dysregulation, Neurofeedback aims reduce symptoms of POCe improve or general well-being.

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👉 Axe Psychotherapeutic sessionsthey also appear as a pillar of our approach. Here comes the Cognitive-Behavioral Therapywhich helps people identify and modify negative thought patterns and behaviors through validated techniques and tools that result in greater symptom control and promote healthier responses.

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We seek, when necessary, a collaborative approach that involves family and friends as allies in this therapeutic journey. In addition to the personal support network, we collaborate with other health professionals who can complement the treatment.

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How to deal with someone with POC?

Dealing with someone with POC requires above all understanding. Understanding that this is a real and limiting conditionwhich causes suffering and incapacity to the person.

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To support someone suffering from this disorder it is important that:

🔹 Find out more about this condition(to be able to create a greater connection with the person).

🔹 Be empathetic and avoidany kind of judgment or criticism. This type of behavior causes greater anxiety and increases feelings of guilt and shame, usually associated with this diagnosis.

🔹Incentive the search for professional help. It is, of course, a disorder that is difficult to manage and that impacts the well-being and life of the person, so encouraging professional intervention is an important and fundamental step.

🔹 If the diagnosed person asks to help or collaborate with the compulsions, try not to.Participating in these rituals can reinforce and worsen the disturbance. Choose to say something “I understand that this is important to you and that it leaves you anxious, but let's try to avoid doing it for now.”

🔹 Take care of yourself! Helping someone with POC can also be exhausting. You can seek advice from mental health professionals and impose some healthy limits.

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Exposure to the disturbance inevitably causes discomfort to the person. For this reason, adoptrelaxation strategies, as a Diaphragmatic breathing, and body-scan-therapieand progressive muscle relaxation, can be very useful to deal with this discomfort more easily.

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POC and PHDA/Anxiety: is there a relationship?

Scientific studies and international organizations point out that Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (PH.D) we can coexist, and people who have POC in childhood tend to have high rates of PHDA.

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Data fromDSM-5they also mention that PHDA is associated with other disorders, such as POC, but also with:

• Tick Disorder
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Specific Learning Disorderss
• Anxiety
• Depresiyon

(the latter two occur in a smaller percentage), among other disorders.

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Final Considerations

This is a disorder that impacts various aspects of daily life, from interpersonal relationships to work, and affects millions of people. Più di un set di rituali o concerti, è una interluzione complexa di pensazioni e azioni, frequentemente no real connection or logicwhich causes greatloss of quality of life.

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Understanding Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is the first step to effective management and recovery. At NeuroImprove we prioritize creating a supportive environment where people feel heard and understood, promoting a personalized approach that contributes to the optimization of treatment and quality of life.

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Referenzen

Almeida, J & Xavier, Miguel & Cardoso, Graca & Gonçalves Pereira, Manuel & Gusmão, Ricardo & Barahona Correa, Bernardo & Gago, J & Talina, Miguel & Silva, J. (2013). National Epidemiological Study of Mental Health. 1st Report. World Mental Health Surveys Initiative: Lisbon.

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American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5 (5th ed.). Artmed.

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Elsouri, K. N., Heiser, S. E., Cabrera, D., Alqurneh, S., Hawat, J., & Demory, M. L. (2024). Management and Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): A Literature Review. Cureus, 16(5), e60496. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.60496

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Endres, D., Pollak, T. A., Bechter, K., Denzel, D., Pitsch, K., Nickel, K., Runge, K., Pankratz, B., Klatzmann, D., Tamouza, R., Mallet, L., Leboyer, M., Prüss, H., Voderholzer, U., Cunningham, J. L., ECNP Network Immuno-neuropsychiatry, Domschke, K., Tebartz van Elst, L., & Schiele, M. A. (2022). Immunological causes of obsessive-compulsive disorder: is it time for the concept of an “autoimmune OCD” subtype?. Translational psychiatry, 12 (1), 5. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-021-01700-4

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Janardhan Reddy, Y. C., Sundar, A. S., Narayanaswamy, J. C., & Math, S. B. (2017). Clinical practice guidelines for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Indian journal of psychiatry, 59 (Suppl 1), S74—S90. https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.196976

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Norman, L. J., Carlisi, C., Lukito, S., Hart, H., Mataix-Cols, D., Radua, J., & Rubia, K. (2016). Structural and Functional Brain Abnormalities in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Comparative Meta-Analysis. JAMA Psychiatry, 73 (8), 815—825. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2016.0700 

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Pampaloni, I., Marriott, S., Pessina, E., Fisher, C., Govender, A., Mohamed, H., Chandler, A., Tyagi, H., Morris, L., & Pallanti, S. (2022). A global assessment of OCD. Comprehensive psychiatry, 118, 152342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2022.152342

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Pinto, A., Teller, J., & Wheaton, M. (2022). Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder: A Review of Symptomatology, Impact on Functioning, and Treatment.. Focus, 20 4, 389-396. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220058 

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POC Patients and Family. What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. https://www.pocdf.pt/ 

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Portuguese Society of Psychiatry and Mental Health. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. https://www.sppsm.org/informemente/perturbacao-obsessiva-compulsiva/