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OCD is an extremely challenging condition to live with. It’s certainly not a quirk, and it’s not about liking things tidy. It’s like having a smartphone app that’s meant to alert you to important tasks or dangers, but malfunctions and instead sends repetitive notifications, usually for no reason and often with disturbing or irrelevant content. These notifications are like the intrusive thoughts/images that become problematic in OCD.
But it gets worse. Even though you know the app is glitchy, you can’t turn off the
notifications and you can’t ignore them; the more you try, the more notifications come through. Moreover, you feel compelled to check the notifications every time, just in case… This takes time, costs energy, and stops you from getting on with life.
The good news is, the app can be fixed. That’s where CBT (with an emphasis on Exposure and Response Prevention) comes in.
Overview
OCD is usually characterised by persistent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and/or repetitive behaviours (compulsions).
Obsessions are unwanted thoughts, images, or impulses that the person experiencing them finds disturbing. They feel beyond the person's control and, often to their frustration, they are recognised as being unrealistic and at times completely irrational.
Accordingly, they tend to bring about feelings of anxiety characterised by extreme uncertainty about whatever it is that they are preoccupied. For some, the predominant emotional response is disgust rather than anxiety, but either way it is not unusual to eventually experience depressed mood.
Compulsions are the responses people with OCD feel they must do in order to resolve their obsession, though inevitably these compulsive responses tend only to perpetuate their preoccupation.
The vast majority of people with OCD recognise that their obsessions aren't true and that their compulsive behaviours are excessive, but nevertheless they have significant difficulties disengaging from their thoughts and stopping their behaviours.
OCD subtypes
There are several subtypes of OCD, the most common of which are included below:
1. Contamination/washing: characterised by an excessive and unrealistic fear of contamination, which might be from dirt, germs, disease, bodily fluids, disease, toxins, or other sources. People with this type of OCD tend to engage in excessive cleaning, hand washing, and other avoidant behaviours.
2. Sexual obsessions: characterised by unwanted thoughts/images of a sexual nature. These thoughts can become terrifying for the person with OCD, as the content can be to them abhorrent. Common sexual obsessions noted in OCD include fears of sexually harming or having attraction to children, family members, genders not congruent with their genuine sexual preference, animals, or others.
3. Violent obsessions: characterised by unwanted thoughts/images relevant to harming oneself or harming others, and fears of having urges therein. Often people with violent obsessions will avoid objects or situations they feel might put them at risk of these unwanted thoughts/feelings/urges (e.g., cutlery, heights, being alone with others)
4. Responsibility obsessions: characterised by an excessive fear of being responsible for catastrophe, such as fire, break-ins, motor vehicle accidents). This obsession is usually accompanied by excessive checking behaviour (e.g., locks, switches, rearview mirror).
5. Religious obsessions (scrupulosity): characterised by a fear of offending or harming figures of religious significance, usually a god or gods. Typically this involves an excessive concern about blasphemy, and can be accompanied by excessive use of religious practices/rituals in a manner not necessarily in keeping with their beliefs.
6. 'Just Right' or perfectionism related obsessions: characterised by obsessions around precision, evenness, 'correct' performance of activities, and so forth.
7. Relationship obsessions: characterised by excessive and unhealthy preoccupation with the adequacy of their relationship or the qualities of their partner. This usually involves hyperfocus on perceived flaws and damaging reassurance seeking behaviour.
8. The Rest! Unfortunately, OCD can latch itself onto just about anything. Other domains might include existential matters, bodily feelings, and emotional experiences, though this list is not exhaustive.
When It's Time to Reach Out for OCD Treatment in Penrith
Deciding to seek help for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a big step towards reclaiming your peace of mind and joy in daily activities. OCD, with its persistent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and the urge to repeat certain behaviours (compulsions), can feel like an uninvited guest in your life.
Here are some signs that seeking treatment can benefit you:
Your Routine Feels Hijacked
If rituals and routines tied to your obsessions and compulsions are eating up a lot of your day, disrupting work or study, and getting in the way of spending time with loved ones, then reaching out for OCD Treatment in Penrith can help you take back control.
Stress and Worry Are Constant Companions
The intrusive thoughts and behaviours in OCD can bring about overwhelming feelings of anxiety, guilt or shame. These feelings are common in OCD, but you don’t have to navigate them alone. Our OCD treatment service will provide you with strategies to manage these emotions, reducing their impact on your well-being.
You're Playing a Game of Avoidance
Dodging places or situations to prevent triggering your OCD symptoms can make your world feel smaller — remember, it's okay to ask for help. Seeking OCD Treatment in Penrith can help you face these fears head-on, opening up your world again.
Solo Efforts Just Aren’t Cutting It
Trying to manage OCD on your own can feel like being lost in a maze. If self-help strategies aren’t leading you to the exit, it’s time to consider professional guidance. Our OCD treatment service can provide the map and support you need to navigate your way out.
Your Body's Sending SOS Signals
The stress from OCD doesn’t just impact your mind; it can affect your body, too — from sleep troubles to appetite changes to general agitation. If your physical health is starting to bear the brunt, it’s an important sign to seek help from our team.
OCD Treatment
The gold standard treatment for OCD is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), with an emphasis on Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) strategies. For some people, medication will be an important part of treatment, in conjunction with CBT.
Exposure and Response Prevention
Chances are that you are on this page because you might have googled ERP - please be assured that our Penrith Clinical Psychologists have significant experience in applying ERP, and we are comfortable tailoring it to each individual's presenting needs.
Exposure in ERP involves gradually facing the thoughts/images (and items/situations relevant to those thoughts/images) that provoke obsessions.
Response Prevention involves choosing to refrain from engaging in a compulsive behaviour once the obsession has been confronted.
How does it work?
To some, the idea of deliberately exposing themselves to things they know are going to provoke their anxiety sounds too hard, or at the very least a little odd. Usually people report that they have encountered or confronted the content of their obsession and it resulted simply in them becoming more anxious.
The truth is that ERP can be quite challenging. But when it is done correctly and under the guidance of a Clinical Psychologist experienced in its appropriate delivery, it can bring about immense positive change.
Usually what happens upon commencing ERP is that anxiety will increase. But upon staying with the intrusive thoughts/images rather than escaping or engaging in unhelpful compulsive responses, evidence becomes available that the thoughts/images and associated feelings have no other effect. That is, they bring about anxiety, but there are no other consequences – they can't harm you.
Upon this, and a decision to eliminate efforts to resist the obsessions and associated anxiety, the discomfort begins to reduce. We call this habituation, and Exposure continues until this is achieved. Almost without fail, people habituate far more rapidly than they anticipate. With repeated ERP, they not only become less troubled by thoughts/images, but they also become more able to reengage in a healthy, balanced life.
This process will be undertaken following a detailed assessment to ensure that the ERP program is relevant specifically to your needs. Usually a 'hierarchy' of exposure targets will be collaborated upon, so you can build confidence by initially targeting relatively lower level obsessional thoughts/images.
Contact Us for OCD Treatment in Penrith
Realising you need help and reaching out for it is incredibly brave. If you see yourself in these situations, let this be the gentle push you need. Our OCD treatment service is here and ready, waiting to support you with compassion and personalised care. Boyce & Dale Anxiety and Mood Disorders Clinic believes in an evidence-based treatment approach that will help you to understand the thoughts and behaviours that OCD brings into your life, and then empower you to take back control.
We understand that mental health is multifaceted, and you might be looking for support in other areas as well. Whether you're navigating the challenges of anxiety, depression, stress management or seeking strategies for improved emotional regulation, we're here to help. Boyce & Dale Anxiety and Mood Disorders Clinic offers a wide range of anxiety and mood disorder services designed to support your journey towards mental wellness.