About Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a chronic disorder characterized by patients experiencing uncontrollable, recurring thoughts (obsessions) and behaviors (compulsions) that they feel the urge to repeat. Signs of obsessions, compulsions, or both may manifest and interfere with aspects of daily life, such as your work, school, personal relationships and more. Obsessions are thoughts, mental images or urges that recur in the mind and trigger anxiety. Common obsessions include: • Fear of contamination or germs • Taboo or prohibited thoughts on sex, religion, and harm • Hostile thoughts towards self or others • A desire for objects to be in a perfect or symmetrical order Compulsions are behaviors carried out in response to obsessive thoughts. Common compulsions include: • Excessive cleaning and hand-washing • Arranging objects in an organized or symmetrical manner • Checking things repeatedly, like whether the door is locked or if the oven is off • Compulsive counting