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... g something horrible such as harming, offending, or embarrassing you or someone else (Summers, 1999). Of course, there are many more obsessions, and some are less common than others. Other obsessions are religious, sexual, or somatic obsessions, and others involve a need for order and symmetry (Summers, 1999). The important thing to remember is that although "As Good As It Gets" is a comedy, there is not a one funny thing about obsessions.
To someone who has OCD, obsessions are intrusions into their consciousness, and are intense, absurd, and even frightening (Rapoport, 1989). Perhaps obsessions are things that people who do not have OCD see as odd and abstract, but to the people with OCD, they are very real. The other half of the disorder is made up of compulsions. Compulsions are the response to the anxiety created by obsessions; they are the actual things or thoughts that a person with OCD does or thinks ritualistically in order to stop or prevent their anxiety (DSM, 1994).
The compulsions that most people are familiar with are cleaning and checking compulsions. The compulsion to clean or wash or wash is that of Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth, and it involves cleaning ones self or inanimate objects excessively, usually following a set routine (Summers, 1999). This severely inhibits a person with OCD who must work or go to school because it may take hours for that person to get ready in the morning and go to bed at night. Some checking compulsions are compulsions to check locks, appliance, or to check that you have not made and will not make a mistake (Summers, 1999). This can also consume a large part of a person's life. Some people with OCD need to check things up to one hundred times before they are finished (Rapoport, 1989).
As with obsessions, there are many other compulsions that people are not as familiar with. Some other compulsions are repeating certain rituals, arranging things in a certain way, or hoarding objects (Summers, 1999). People with OCD know their compulsions are absurd. At some point they realize that what they are doing is unnecessary, but they can not stop (DSM, 1994).
That is why OCD is so serious to those who have it as well as their friends and family. As bleak as the life of someone with OCD may sound, there is hope. While there is no cure for OCD or a way to prevent it, there are treatments for the symptoms. As with all mental illnesses, if you have OCD, the first step in treating it is learning about it and helping to teach your family and friends about what you are going through (OCF, 2000). It is important to have a group of people who will support you and understand. Within the last twenty years, scientists and psychologists have developed two successful treatments for OCD.
These two treatments are cognitive-behavioral therapy (or CBT) and a medication that has a serotonin reuptake inhibitor, or SRI (OCF, 2000). When both are done together, the symptoms can almost completely vanish. Psychosurgery can also be done, but it is only done as an extreme last resort. Although it seems like it would be incredibly stressful, the first method has a high success rate with patients of all ages. Basically, CBT is psychotherapy to help correct the thoughts that trigger compulsions (OCF, 2000). While this is very difficult and causes much anxiety for the patient, there are two very good things about CBT.
Those who complete treatment (twelve to twenty sessions) report a fifty to eighty percent loss of symptoms, and aside from anxiety, there are relatively no side effects (OCF, 2000). If the sufferer can get through it, CBT is a successful and side effect free way to tame the symptoms of OCD. Along with psychotherapy, medication is usually recommended, and it helps quite a bit. Without CBT however, fewer than twenty percent of OCD patients who are taking medication (an SRI) alone report no OCD symptoms, so its best to combine both methods (OCF, 2000). A SRI alone however, does work a little bit, but not much. Also, about twenty percent of people who take a SRI do not see improvement and need to try a different SRI (OCF, 2000).
Luckily, there are many Sri's available, and most people are able to find one that works well for them. There are six well-known Sri's, five of which are available in the United States. Their commercial names are Luvox, Anafranil, Zoloft, Celexa, Paxil, and Prozac (OCF, 2000). Given the right treatment, the quality of life of someone with OCD can be greatly improved. By only knowing this brief background about Obsessive-Compulsive disorder, it is easy to see how difficult is for someone who suffers from it. While society has become more accepting over the past fifteen years, it has not always been that way, and it could still be a lot better.
If everyone could understand what Dance was going through each time she left her house, then they might not have taunted her at school. The life of someone with OCD must be terrifying, but at least today, there is treatment available that helps, and enough acceptance in society that someone who has OCD can take comfort in knowing that they are not alone. Annotated Bibliography Hollander, E. (1999). Foreword. In M. Summers, Everything in its Place: My Trials and Triumphs with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. (pp XIII - XXI).
New York: Penguin. (This is the foreword written in Marc Summers' Book about him growing up with OCD. It provided me with some beneficial historical information on OCD. ) Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation: How is OCD Treated? [On-line]. Available: web (2000, December 6). (This source gave me information on some of the treatments for OCD. It also gave me the list of prescription drugs used to treat OCD. ) (1994). Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. In the DSM-IV (pp 417 - 423).
Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association. (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) helped in defining what OCD is, and it also gave clear explanations of obsessions and compulsions. ) Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation: What is OCD? [On-line]. Available web (2000, December 6). (This is a different part of the OCF website. This page was also helpful in defining exactly what OCD is. ) Summers, M. (1999). Everything in its Place: My Trials and Triumphs with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
New York: Penguin (A very interesting book written by Marc Summers. This gave me insight on what It is like to live with OCD. It also made me understand that OCD can run in the family. ) Rapoport, J. L. (1989). The Boy Who Couldn't Stop Washing. New York: Penguin. (A book written by psychologist Judith Rapoport about some of the patients she treated that had OCD.
She helped me understand how OCD can ruin not only the lives of the people who suffer from it, but also their family and friends. )
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