Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) therapy
What is Obsessive Compulsive Order (OCD)?
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is where a person has obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours they cannot, or find difficult, to control. For some, symptoms can start as early as puberty but generally symptoms start during early adulthood.
Common causes include:
- Life events: OCD may be more common in people who have been bullied, abused or neglected. OCD may also present after an important life event such as childbirth or a bereavement.
- Personality: Neat, meticulous, and methodical people with high standards may be more likely to develop OCD, as well as those who are generally anxious or have a strong sense of responsibility for themselves and others.
- Brain activity: Some people with OCD have areas of unusually high activity in their brain or low levels of serotonin.
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What do we mean by ‘obsessive’ and ‘compulsive’?
An obsession is an unwanted and unpleasant thought, image or urge that repeatedly enters your mind, causing feelings of anxiety, disgust or unease.
A compulsion is a repetitive behaviour or mental act that you feel like you need to do to temporarily relieve the unpleasant feelings caused by obsessive thought.
You may have OCD if you:
- Fear of contamination or dirt
- Arrange and re-arrange objects in an orderly and symmetrical way
- Check and re-check thoughts and activities
- Follow a strict routine
- Repeat behaviours
- Avoid certain people, activities, places, numbers
- Have thoughts of harm coming to people
- Have obsessive fears
What do these symptoms look like?
- Washing and cleaning of self and possessions
- Checking repeatedly that doors are locked
- Counting in patterns and repeating behaviours
- Checking an appliance, such as the oven, is turned off
- Hoarding
- Repeating thoughts and words in the mind, and out loud
- Using special numbers
- Nail-biting
- Hair-pulling
- Thumb-sucking
- Scratching
Client success stories
How we help
OCD now over: A case study on our OCD therapy
At 14, Sarah began to seriously worry about germs, her health, and the safety of those around her. She also found that she needed things to be perfect such as her house, hair, and homework. This became a real strain on her and her family.
After her mother persuaded her to see her GP at the age of 18, Sarah was referred for cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) with Pinnacle as her life was getting extremely complicated and more frightening.
The therapy process we used with Sarah was:
Thought Records – Sarah initially found it difficult to know what she was thinking since she reacted mostly to the way she was feeling. By taking the time to record any thoughts associated with the feelings of discomfort, Sarah was able to recognise thoughts and thinking patterns that were generating or maintaining her anxiety.
Session and Homework: Exposure and Response Prevention – Sarah exposed herself to situations that caused her anxiety such as touching a light switch. Instead of immediately washing her hands after, she would have to experience the anxiety without responding. Sarah learnt to cope with her anxiety as it would eventually subside. She also realised that something terrible would not happen if she did not wash her hands.
Sarah had 9 hours of CBT in total, including some follow-up appointments. Six months after therapy ended, Sarah felt she had overcome her OCD, was generally less anxious, and felt “free”. After this, Sarah applied to go to university, which had seemed unimaginable before the therapy.
How we provide it
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