SYMPTOMS & QUICK FACTS: OCD

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is when someone has consistent and unwanted thoughts known as obsessions which make them feel anxious or uncomfortable. To avoid the distress, they do repetitive actions called compulsions such as checking, cleaning, or counting. This often gets in the way of everyday life and activities.

See Symptoms

Symptoms

Small clues, big meaning.

What You Might Feel:

Extreme cleanliness
Need for order, symmetry, or perfection
Fear of making a mistake
Washing hands continuously
Number rituals
Same compulsions everyday

What You Might Notice Emotionally:

Anxiety
Fear
Disgust
Overwhelmed feeling
Frustration
helplessness

People with OCD can feel anxiety because their obsessions highlight things that feel dangerous, dirty, or wrong, even when they are not. These thoughts can feel intense and uncontrollable causing a person to feel overwhelmed, frustrated, or helpless. They perform repetitive actions (compulsions) to try to feel better.

Did You Know?

OCD Quick Facts

1 in 40 adults and 1 in 100 children are affected by OCD
researchers are now able to see physical differences in brain function of people with OCD
Effective treatment for OCD includes cognitive behavioral therapy
OCD can be influenced by genetics and the environment
In some cases, people with OCD have insight that their thoughts are illogical
obsessions and compulsions of OCD are ego-dystonic which means they differ from ones real thoughts

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