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Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Blog

By Owen Kelly, Ph.D., About.com Guide to Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

OCD and Romantic Relationships

Friday October 30, 2009

If you have OCD, you know that your symptoms can often get in the way of establishing and maintaining romantic relationships. Indeed, many individuals with OCD are single and those who are in a relationship or are married often report a significant amount of relationship stress. How has your OCD impacted your romantic relationships? Share your experience

Parenting a Child With OCD

Friday October 23, 2009

Parenting is one of the hardest jobs you'll ever have - especially when your child has a chronic illness like OCD. While it can sometimes feel overwhelming, many parents develop excellent coping strategies for managing both their child's OCD symptoms as well as their own stress levels. If you are the parent of a child with OCD, what coping strategies have you found to be helpful?  Share your experience.

How Many Diagnoses Have You Received?

Saturday October 17, 2009

Although OCD is accepted as an illness with biological roots, it can't be diagnosed using a blood sample, X-ray or other medical test. A mental health professional such as a psychiatrist, psychologist or family doctor or nurse with special training will usually make a diagnosis of OCD using their medical judgment and experience. However, it is not uncommon for people with mental illnesses such as OCD to receive many diagnoses before arriving the right one. How many diagnoses have you received? Share your experience.

Comorbid Anxiety Disorders

Saturday October 10, 2009

It is not uncommon for OCD to occur with other anxiety disorders such as panic disorder or generalized anxiety disorder. These additional disorders can make treatment more complicated and cause additional distress. What other anxiety disorders have you been diagnosed with?  Share your experience.

OCD Symptoms Can Vary

Monday October 5, 2009

There are at least 5 different types of OCD symptoms such as hoarding, obsessive thoughts with no compulsions and symmetry obsessions. What are you symptoms and how do you deal with them? Share Your Experience

Diagnosing OCD

Sunday September 27, 2009

Although OCD is accepted as an illness with biological roots, it can’t be diagnosed using a blood sample, X-ray or other medical test. A mental health professional such as a psychiatrist, psychologist or family doctor or nurse with special training will usually make a diagnosis of OCD using their medical judgment and experience. However, it is not uncommon for people with mental illnesses such as OCD to receive many diagnoses before arriving the right one. How many diagnoses have you received?  Share your  experience.

Workplace Stress - How do You Cope?

Tuesday September 22, 2009

If you have OCD, work -- seeking out, obtaining and maintaining gainful employment -- can be extremely challenging. While symptoms of OCD can get in the way of completing the required duties of a particular job, there is also the significant challenge of stigma, prejudice and discrimination that is associated with mental illness. Have you ever been discriminated against at work because of your OCD? If so, how did you cope with it?  Share your experience.

Dealing With Stigma

Tuesday September 15, 2009

If you have OCD, you know that the stigma attached to mental illness can make it difficult to cope. Even though it is clear that OCD has biological roots, there are people who continue to believe that people challenged with mental illness should be able to “snap out of it.” Have you ever been discriminated against or stigmatized because of your OCD? What happened and how did you cope with it?  Share your experience.

A&E's Hoarders

Tuesday September 8, 2009

On the heels of the success of Obsessed, A&E has launched a show called Hoarders that focuses specifically on compulsive hoarding. Hoarding can be both a symptom of OCD as well as unique illness. When hoarding occurs on its own, it is often characterized as an OCD spectrum disorder.

Online Psychotherapy is Effective

Monday August 31, 2009

A recent study appearing in the prestigious medical journal, The Lancet, found that psychotherapy delivered online in real time was as effective as therapy delivered in person. Although the focus of this study was major depression, this could also be a promising development for the treatment of OCD – for example, treating OCD online could offer new hope to people who live in remote or underserviced areas who have difficulty finding qualified treatment providers locally.

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