Edited by lo_la at 15-1-2019 11:29 PM
I think sometime within these 10 years, there are some common misconceptions about OCD, lagi2 dengan advanced nya social media where people are relating it to being organized, particular about a thing or something, neat freak and etc.
So upon googling, memang ada common myths about OCD. This is what I've found.
Here are 4 common myths about OCD and the facts that prove them wrong.
1. MYTH: People with OCD love keeping things neat and organized. Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard someone playfully say,“I’m so OCD,” while organizing a desk or cleaning a room. In many ways, this is the equivalent of saying, “I’m such a cancer patient,” because you feel like staying in bed all day or, “I’m so anorexic,” because you choose to avoid dessert after dinner.
OCD is a serious mental illness marked by high levels of anxiety and emotional distress. People with OCD might have cleanliness rituals,but they don’t enjoy them. They keep things clean and organized because otherwise they will experience crushing anxiety.
Then again, it’s also important to remember that not everyone with OCD has compulsions related to cleanliness.
2. MYTH: OCD is just about cleaning, hand-washing and being a “germaphobe.” OCD is a heterogeneous disorder — in other words, it manifests differently in different people. In fact, only a portion of individuals with OCD are afraid of germs or have compulsions related to keeping themselves (and their world) clean.
Common fears, or obsessions, in people with OCD include:
- Fear of germs or contamination - Fear of committing a sin - Fear of harming themselves or others - Fear of a loved one dying - Fear of certain numbers, colors, words, etc. - Fear of becoming a sexual predator
People with OCD perform rituals to mitigate the anxiety associated with their obsessions. These are known as compulsions. Common compulsions in people with OCD include:
- Counting - Repeating certain movements - Hand-washing - Praying - Cleaning excessively - Ordering or arranging things in the “right” way - Hoarding - Tapping or touching objects
These symptoms vary from individual to individual and can even change over the course of a person’s lifetime.
3. MYTH: When a person has OCD, it’s obvious. Although it may be hard to believe, you’ve likely encountered many individuals with OCD and haven’t realized it. People with OCD are often able to hide or suppress their symptoms in public, especially if they’re receiving proper treatment.
There is also a contingent of patients with OCD who demonstrate no visible compulsions, even when they’re alone. Pure obsessional OCD, also known as Pure-O, is a subtype of OCD that involves compulsions that are largely performed inside the patient’s head. People with Pure-O often don’t even recognize that they have OCD, since their symptoms don’t resemble the more traditional depictions of the disorder.
4. MYTH: People with OCD are weak-willed and just need to relax. For a healthy individual, the symptoms associated with OCD might seem absurd or even comical. (No one likes it when their life-threatening illness is seen as a joke.) The solution seems obvious:
“Just stop washing your hands.” “Calm down! Nothing bad will happen.” “The stove is off. You don’t need to check it again.” “Why can’t you throw away all this useless junk?” “Can’t you just be realistic?”
OCD isn’t a personality quirk — it’s a disease. If curing a chronic illness were as simple as just “calming down,” no one in the world would be sick. People with OCD have brain regions that are literally malfunctioning, making it difficult — if not outright impossible – to fight their disorder without treatment. Certain antidepressants can be used to recalibrate the brain and soothe some of the symptoms, and exposure and response prevention (ERP) can help patients train their brains to respond less severely to their anxieties. Despite all of this, OCD is still a chronic condition that can follow a person for his or her entire life.
The next time you hear someone bring up one of these common OCD myths, tell the person the facts instead. Don’t let this misinformation continue to harm the very real people struggling with this condition.
Source: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-truisms-wellness/201605/4-myths-about-ocd
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