What Are the Main Causes of OCD?

Experts aren’t sure of the exact cause of OCD. Genetics, brain abnormalities, and the environment are thought to play a role. It often starts in teens or early adulthood. But, it can also begin in childhood. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by unreasonable thoughts and fears (obsessions) that lead to compulsive behaviors.
OCD often centers on themes such as a fear of germs or the need to arrange objects in a specific manner. Symptoms usually begin gradually and vary throughout life.

OCD can manifest in four main ways: contamination/washing, doubt/checking, ordering/arranging, and unacceptable/taboo thoughts. Obsessions and compulsions that revolve around contamination and germs are the most common type of OCD, but OCD can cover a wide range of topics.

OCD is most commonly triggered in older teens or young adults. Studies indicate that late adolescence is a period of increased vulnerability for the development of OCD. Boys are more likely to experience the onset of OCD before puberty and those who have a family member with OCD or Tourette Syndrome are most at risk.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can be treated. The treatment recommended will depend on how much it’s affecting your life. The 2 main treatments are psychological therapy – usually, a type of therapy that helps you face your fears and obsessive thoughts without “putting them right” with compulsions.

While there is no specific blood test practitioners use to check for OCD, your healthcare provider may order lab work to rule out any underlying medical issues that may be contributing to your symptoms or that may interfere with treatment.

At its most severe, however, OCD can impact someone’s ability to work, go to school, run errands, or even care for themselves. People with severe OCD have obsessions with cleanliness and germs — washing their hands, taking showers, or cleaning their homes for hours a day.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness that causes repeated unwanted thoughts or sensations (obsessions) or the urge to do something over and over again (compulsions). Some people can have both obsessions and compulsions.

Individuals with OCD often have certain chemical imbalances present in the brain. Changes in the neurochemicals serotonin, dopamine, and glutamate are normally present in OCD cases.

Is OCD part of mental illness?

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common mental health condition where a person has obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors. OCD can affect men, women,, and children.

So in the end, the “cure” for OCD is to understand that there is no such thing as a cure for OCD. There is nothing to be cured. There are thoughts, feelings, and sensations, and by being a student of them instead of a victim of them, you can change your relationship with them and live a joyful, mostly unimpaired life.

These include the obsessive preoccupations and repetitive behaviors found in body dysmorphic disorder, hypochondriasis, Tourette syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, catatonia, autism, and in some individuals with eating disorders (eg, anorexia nervosa).

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a serious psychiatric disorder that affects approximately 2% of the population of children and adults. Family aggregation studies have demonstrated that OCD is familial, and results from twin studies demonstrate that the familiality is due in part to genetic factors.

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