The sooner obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is treated, the better. The moment you suspect you have OCD, or suspect someone in your family does, it is best to seek professional help. Because depression and suicidal tendencies often accompany OCD, waiting is not a good idea. Psychologists have developed a test for people who think they may have OCD called the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS). It does not replace a thorough evaluation by a physician or mental health specialist, but a “yes” on any one of these questions would be a signal you might want to get help: - Do you often have repetitive, intrusive, unwanted thoughts that upset you or make you anxious, ones you can't get out of your mind no matter how much you try?
- Do you worry excessively about speaking or acting in a manner that you think is harmful, violent, sexually inappropriate, immoral or sacrilegious?
- Do you repeatedly chew over unwanted thoughts in an effort to prove to yourself that you will not act in a manner that you think is harmful, violent, sexually inappropriate, immoral or sacrilegious?
- Do you often recite prayers or repeat certain phrases in an effort to rid yourself of unwanted thoughts or to ensure that nothing bad happens?
- Do you often repeat routine, daily activities to ensure that you did not harm someone (such as driving back to a certain place in the road to reassure yourself that you did not run over a pedestrian)?
- Do you wash your hands or shower more often or for longer periods than most other people?
- Do you excessively clean objects (clothes, towels, bed sheets, household items, your car interior, furniture, etc.)?
- Do you repeatedly visually check to be sure that you have properly performed a just-completed task (for instance, looking to be sure you have signed a check, re-opening a mailbox to be sure you have deposited a letter)?
- Do you often repeat routine behaviors (locking doors, turning off light switches) because you are not sure you have done these behaviors or done them "just right"?
- Do you frequently need reassurance that tasks have been properly completed ("Did I lock the door?" or "Did I turn off the oven?")?
- Do you repeatedly need reassurance that you have not done something "wrong," "bad" or harmful?
- Do you unnecessarily arrange, order or tidy the contents of your desk, closets, cabinets, refrigerator, bookshelves, etc., in an effort to make them symmetrical or "just right"?
- Do you unnecessarily straighten common household objects such as window blinds or rugs in an effort to make them symmetrical or "just right"?
- Do you repeatedly count mundane items that do not really merit counting (ceiling tiles, floor tiles, books, records, clothes, light poles, cars,)?
- Do you have great difficulty discarding things that have no practical value and that most other people would consider trash (e.g., old newspapers or magazines, receipts, useless papers, clothing you have not worn in years)?
Your family physician is a good start. You probably will be referred to a psychiatrist, psychologist, social worker or a counselor. Last Updated: 3/17/2003
The Johns Hopkins University 1996-2003. All rights reserved. This information is not intended to provide advice on personal medical matters, nor is it intended to be a substitute for consultation. |
