Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Awareness Week

25 November 2024

What does OCD mean

In 2009 the International OCD Foundation (https://iocdf.org/) launched OCD Awareness Week to support people’s understanding and awareness of OCD and how it can impact people’s lives.

Before reading it is important to understand, if you or somebody you know is experiencing any types of distressing thoughts, please do reach out for support to Wiltshire Children and Young People Emotional Wellbeing Team, on 0300 247 0090 option 4 or wiltshire.cypewteam@hcrgcaregroup.com.

It may be helpful to share this with a trusted adult to help them understand what you are feeling, please use this link for further information:  Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) | Parent Guide | YoungMinds

The first steps to getting support is by talking about it and reaching out, as young people often feel embarrassed that they are experiencing these thoughts. It is really important to not self-diagnose and to speak to a trained heath care professional for them to understand what you are experiencing and get the right support. Remember everybody is different.

A helpful link:

A quick guide to OCD in young people | Resources | YoungMinds

What is OCD?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OCD can make every day life really tough, affecting your friendships, things you enjoy and school.

The OCD Cycle

A person with OCD experiences repetitive, intrusive thoughts, feelings, images, or sounds (obsessions). An intrusive thought is automatic– it pops into our head without us wanting it to.

Everyone experiences automatic thoughts each day, around 50,000 in fact! If you have OCD, you may have a particular worry about something, and when automatic thoughts appear that fit in with this worry, you are likely to fixate on it.

This first stage of the cycle is called ‘obsession’. It becomes obsessive when you cannot let the thought pass until you feel like it has been ‘dealt’ with. In this step, a person may feel anxious and distressed.

Most often, to ‘resolve’ the repetitive and intrusive experience, people with OCD may often repeat the same action again and again until the thought is gone, or they feel it is safe to move on. This action is compulsion, the second stage of the cycle.

This can help to relieve some anxiety and fixation of the obsession. The person will continue with the compulsive activity until they’ve repeated it a specific number of times, or until it feels ‘just right’. There isn’t always a time limit on this.

For a person with OCD, this cycle can continuously repeat itself. In severe cases of OCD, this can make it difficult for the person to do anything else.

There are lots of different obsessions and compulsions, and it can look different for each individual. If you think you might be struggling with an obsession or compulsion, talk to somebody and reach out for support.

Why do we need to raise awareness?

OCD is often misunderstood. Have you ever heard people say “a bit OCD”? Some people believe that OCD is not that serious and that people that suffer with is may just wash their hands a bit more than is expected. It’s not that all these people are trying to belittle those that suffer with OCD, most of the time they don’t understand the severity of OCD, the anxiety it causes and the huge impact it can have on someone’s life.

I or someone I know struggles with OCD, what support is there?

With the right help you can get support for obsessional thoughts and compulsive behaviours.

The first step is recognising what you are experiencing, and the impact it is having on you, remember to talk to a trusted person who can support you to reach out to a health care professional, many young people find it helpful to talk to other young people, you may be that friend listening.

It is important to know what to do Obsessive Compulsive Disorder | OCD Symptoms & Support | YoungMinds

Strategies that can help you, or somebody you know

Different things work for different people, so don’t worry if the first thing you try doesn’t help. It is also worth remembering that it might take time for some of these strategies to really start to work, especially if you have been struggling with OCD for a while.

Relaxation Techniques
OCD is driven by anxiety, and turning on your relaxation response can help calm the anxiety and reduce the intensity or duration of your thoughts and obsessions. There are lots of different ways to relax, here are some ideas and resources:

Use of an App: Calm, 7:11 Breathing, STOPP

Videos:

‘Helpful Thinking’ about your OCD Differently

“I started to think of OCD as a friend. I even gave them a name – Steve. Then, whenever intrusive thoughts popped into my head, I just told myself it was Steve, my friend who won’t stop talking and who I can ignore. It was helpful to have some things to distract myself from Steve when he won’t stop talking. Relaxation techniques helped, so did talking to a family member or friend, and doing an activity I enjoy. I started to notice that sometimes, I would tell Steve to shut up! And I was able to do more of what mattered to me, and less of what Steve thought I should be doing.”

“I found it helpful to think of OCD as a bully. I thought about how I would deal with a bully in real life and used those strategies to help me take control of my life again.”

Whether you find it helpful to think of OCD as a friend or as a bully, it is important to show the OCD that it can quiet down without doing a compulsion. You might need to sit with it for a little while before it goes away, and that can feel really scary. It can get better, and it is ok to need professional help too.

You might also find it helpful to look at these videos for more information about OCD:

OCD Action Helpline: 0300 636 5478

Please do look at our website for other helpful tips and support out there.

Remember you are not alone in this – there are many other Young people that experience this and you can reach out for help and support at any time.

OCD and stigma