Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

According to the DSM-IV, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is characterized by recurrent obsessions or compulsions that are severe enough to be time consuming (Ie., they take more than 1 hour a day) or cause marked distress or significant interference with functioning. At some point during the course of the disorder, the person MAY have recognized the obsessions or compulsions to be excessive or unreasonable. If another Axis I disorder is present, At some point the person has recognized that behaviors are excessive or unrealistic Obsessions and compulsions cause distress, are time consuming, and significantly interfere with functioning. The content of obsessions and compulsions cannot be accounted for by another disorder.

Obsessions are:

• Recurrent thoughts, images, or impulses experienced as intrusive and inappropriate, causing marked anxiety or distress
• Not simply excessive worries about real life problems
• Accompanied by efforts to ignore, suppress, or neutralize intrusive thoughts
• Sometimes recognized as the product of one's own mind; however, poor insight does not rule out the presence of OCD.

Compulsions are:

• Repetitive behaviors and mental acts that the person feels driven to perform in response to an obsession or according to rigid rules
• Aimed at preventing or reducing distress or preventing some dreaded event or situation clearly excessive or not realistically connected to the obsessive fear

Treatment

The Institute treats obsessive compulsive disorder using Dr. Edna Foa's Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy as a behavioral protocol, as well as cognitive components through talk therapy and extensive writing exercises. Our program emphasizes the need to identify and target fear structures, to return our patients to their best possible functioning in daily life. Most of our patients have around a 70% improvement, one of the highest success rates in the United States.

Source: Page 456, DSM-IV, Year 2005, American Psychiatric Association