Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a condition related to your mental health. People with OCD often suffer from intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and perform repetitive behaviour (compulsions) which affects the normal activities of their daily life. If you have OCD, you will feel stressed if you don’t give in to the obsessions and compulsions.
OCD cannot be cured with medications or with therapy. It requires a multifaceted approach where you should take medicines along with other psychological methods to control OCD.
Before we discuss the methods to manage OCD, you should understand it thoroughly. It’s not just about being overly tidy or organised. It’s a complex and rooted cycle of a person’s obsessions and compulsions.
While obsessions are intrusive thoughts and images that cause distress, compulsions are the repetitive behaviour to alleviate the anxiety caused by obsessions. Though it’s a temporary relief, the root problem is not solved and the cycle continues again.
So, to make you well aware of the concept, in this blog, we will explore how you can manage and treat OCD and give you effective strategies to control it.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a promising effort to gain control over OCD. While it takes effort and practice from your end, the positive results will make you enjoy your life better.
Here, there is a procedure called CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) where you are exposed to the feared object or obsession. Usually, you would give in to the fear and perform certain compulsions, however, in therapy, there will be ways to control the compulsive rituals and eventually, you will gain control over your actions and thoughts.
With time and effort, you will better handle your obsessions and compulsions so that you can lead a normal and quality life.
Medicines
Alongside therapy, you can also take medicines prescribed by a professional doctor. Most of these medicines are antidepressants approved by the FDA and are prescribed to OCD patients.
Some of the medicine names to mention are Prozac, Luvox, Paxil, Zoloft, and Anafranil. These are the medications that are generally safe and effective. However, before you take these, it’s important to consult a doctor.
What to Consider While Taking Medication
Medicine dosage is prescribed minimal at first to see how your body is reacting to the symptoms. A high dosage is given if you are still having intense symptoms. You will also be given two or three medications to know which is suiting you better. It could take weeks to months to identify the right medicine that’s acting positively in your system.
You should know that there are possible side effects that come with antidepressants. You should tell those to your doctor so that a proper analysis is done for your treatment.
Also, you should tell any other medication you are taking to the doctor so that you will know whether it’s safe or unsafe to have multiple medications. Sometimes the other prescribed medicines will hinder the functionality of antidepressants and you may not reap full benefits.
Don’t stop taking antidepressants suddenly or when you are feeling better. You should continue the course and tell your doctor to decrease the dosage so that you won’t face any withdrawal symptoms. Or else you may have to face discontinuation syndrome and have a relapse of OCD symptoms.
Outpatient and Residential Treatment
Depending on the seriousness of symptoms, OCD patients may also be recommended intense treatment programs. These programs generally last for a few weeks and they are Deep Brain Simulation (DBS) and Transcranial Magnetic Simulation (TMS).
These are recommended for people over 18. In DBS, electrodes are placed over your brain that produce impulses inside your brain that aren’t typical.
In TMS, magnetic fields are used to stimulate nerve cells to make symptoms of OCD better. While these treatments are effective, they are used only when traditional methods fail to work.
OCD is a mental disorder that can ruin your daily routines, making your life harder and difficult to maintain your relationships with people. Identifying and treating the symptoms will allow you to gain control over your life and lead a normal life. Consult with an OCD specialist to discuss the depth of symptoms and take proper treatments and medications. You will eventually gain control over OCD and can lead the life you want.
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