However, there are several strategies that you can use to manage and reduce the intensity of an OCD attack. Practice relaxation techniques: Deep breathing, meditation, and mindfulness can help reduce anxiety and calm the mind.
When it comes to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a common mental health disorder in which a person has reoccurring thoughts and behaviors they continually repeat, avoidance is often used as a coping mechanism.
OCD causes intense urges to complete a task or perform a ritual. For those who have the condition, obsessions and compulsions can begin to rule their life. Some common rituals might include repeated hand washing, checking (and rechecking) that doors are locked, or uncontrollably repeating a phrase or prayer.
You might have periods of little to no symptoms mixed with times of increased or new symptoms. You might have a flare-up of OCD in some of the following situations: Unexpected life changes, like losing your job, moving, or a breakup. Drug and alcohol abuse could worsen your symptoms.
Many things can trigger an increase in OCD symptoms whether that's hormones (puberty, pregnancy, post-partum, menopause), increased stress and pressure to perform (in college, at a new school, in a new job) or something entirely different.
The best way to put an end to the cycle is to practice exposure and response prevention. This means you “accept” the thoughts, live with the uncertainty, and refrain from engaging in compulsions.
OCD symptoms can worsen if left untreated. Likewise, stress and other mental health symptoms like trauma, anxiety, and themes of perfectionism, can aggravate OCD. Sometimes, symptoms may worsen dramatically and suddenly, but it's more likely for them to escalate gradually.
OCD can also worsen from traumatic events, such as death, severe injury, or sexual violence. Most people are not at their best when they don't feel well. Whether it is from a serious illness or a common cold, OCD symptoms can worsen when someone is sick.
Compulsions are repetitive behaviors that a person with OCD feels the urge to do in response to an obsessive thought. Common compulsions include: Excessive cleaning and/or handwashing. Ordering and arranging things in a particular, precise way.
Magnesium plays a key role in balancing mood and relaxation, and its deficiencies are linked with depression. Thanks to its calming effect, magnesium is nicknamed nature's tranquilizer. This is also the reason magnesium supplements can help those with OCD manage the condition.
Unfortunately, OCD doesn't just go away. There is no “cure” for the condition. Thoughts are intrusive by nature, and it's not possible to eliminate them entirely. However, people with OCD can learn to acknowledge their obsessions and find relief without acting on their compulsions.
Symptoms fluctuate in severity from time to time, and this fluctuation may be related to the occurrence of stressful events. Because symptoms usually worsen with age, people may have difficulty remembering when OCD began, but can sometimes recall when they first noticed that the symptoms were disrupting their lives.
Specific Personality Traits That Are Prevalent in OCD
Perfectionism: A need to have situations and objects exactly right. Indecisiveness: An inability to make decisions or needing a lot of time to decide. Impulsivity: An inclination to do what feels good at the moment without thinking about future consequences.
Primarily obsessional OCD has been called "one of the most distressing and challenging forms of OCD." People with this form of OCD have "distressing and unwanted thoughts pop into [their] head frequently," and the thoughts "typically center on a fear that you may do something totally uncharacteristic of yourself, ...
At its most severe, OCD can lead to suicidal ideation or action. This can happen when the symptoms of OCD have fully taken a hold on a person and their entire life revolves around responding to OCD obsessions and compulsions.
It's what is called “pure-O” OCD, in that there are no observable ritualistic behaviors such as checking or hand washing. The most common horrific thought is that of impulsively harming someone. Sufferers may be afraid that they will stab or shoot someone, commit suicide, or molest a child.
One of the most common complaints from my patients was boredom. They just didn't have enough to do. When someone with OCD has too little stimulation in their lives, OCD typically spikes. OCD also spikes when there is too much stress.