This week is not so much symptom of the week, but condition of the week as OCD is a condition in itself.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health disorder which many people have as a stand alone condition or alongside other conditions e.g. Tourette Syndrome. In a nutshell OCD is when a person lives in a vicious cycle of getting obsessive thoughts which cause anxiety that leads them to perform compulsive behaviour for short term relief.

For example a person may have obsessive thoughts about contamination which cause them anxiety so they compulsively and repetitively wash and clean to take away those intrusive thoughts. Another example is having obsessive thoughts that make you believe your actions may leave yourself or other people at risk causing you anxiety, so this leads to compulsive behaviour in the form of checking to make sure things are turned off and/or doors are locked.

My experience

For me OCD is a result of two things: my anxiety issues and my Tourette’s. In terms of anxiety I find being an anxious person I worry about a lot of things from worrying about germs to how my actions may affect someone else. Through the years I have built many compulsive behaviours to combat my obsessive thoughts. However this side of my OCD has improved in recent times and whilst I still do compulsive behaviours from time to time, (disinfecting anything in sight or getting out of bed repetitively to check things are turned off), the majority of my OCD now sits with my Tourette’s. My ticking goes hand in hand with my checking of lists and I tic whilst I check and need to tic if I don’t check – I can’t win!

My top tips for Obsessions and Compulsions – as always please check with your doctor/specialist before trying any new tips/ideas.

• Refocus your mind – I know this is really hard when you are in the mist of a obsessive/compulsion cycle, but try to engage your mind on something else. Be it an activity or a happy memory try to distract yourself and move away from your obsessive thoughts.

• Ask your doctor about CBT – CBT Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a psychological therapy which focuses on the here and now. It teaches you how your thoughts have an impact on not only your emotions, but your behaviours too. Many GP surgeries now provide CBT or can inform you of courses in your area.

• Speak to a counsellor – If you believe your OCD stems from a particular reason you may find a series of counselling sessions may help. Getting to the root of your problems may help not only your OCD, but your mental health in general. You can access counselling in a variety of different ways nowadays including face to face, telephone and video calling.

• Get in touch with support groups – Joining a support group or accessing online information will help you to feel that you are not alone. Dealing with obsessive, intrusive thoughts can make you feel very lonely so seeing and hearing about other people’s experiences can help. Charities such as OCD-UK, Rethink and Mind are a great starting tool. To here about my own experiences you can read my article on my anxiety episode with germs here .

• Build up your self-esteem and trust yourself – I find with my OCD a lot of the time I am looking for reassurance from others because I don’t trust my own instincts and therefore my own self. Realising you are capable of things and you can trust yourself as much as anyone else if not more will aid in your quest to combating your obsessions and compulsions.

Tourette’s related OCD

If you find your OCD is significantly related to your tics then you may find seeking help for your Tourette’s is more appropriate. You can find out more information on tics in my last post here . You can also find details of charities that may be able to help you further.