Have you ever been imprisoned and restricted in your life by recurring and persistent thoughts, impulses that make you realize their existence even though you don't want it, pictures, images, mental images that have a hard time disappearing from your eyes? Or have you become a slave to your involuntary behaviors?, or have you spent most of the day or even the whole of the day? What if these are severe enough to waste a lot of time, spoil relationships, and affect the quality and productivity of your life? While evaluating "I can't stop thinking about it"; On the other hand, the process of being exposed to restlessness and intense distress as emotional states can push you into obsession. Since restlessness and intense distress are emotional states that the mind does not want, the person feels the need to perform routines immediately by listing repetitive mental and behavioral activities to get rid of this situation. The obsession and compulsion pattern fosters a state of excessive responsibility in the person. These people act by feeling responsible for any thought they think. They think that they are responsible because they think about the disaster that may happen to them in the near future as a result of this responsibility if they do not take action that will immediately eliminate the responsibility brought by the thought. In other words, they are at the center of thoughts such as "If I have an impact on the outcome, of course I am responsible for this outcome", and "If I cannot prevent the disaster that will happen to us, or if I do not make an effort to prevent it, this is the same as causing harm". Some people may think this way, and you may even observe very successful economists or businessmen who think this way. Taking all kinds of precautions and acting cautiously can bring success to such people. The anxiety felt during this process is normal. However, “If I don't wash my hands 4 times, the dirt on my hands will not go away; Feelings like "If I don't jump 5 times, I won't pass this course, if I hide the knives at home, I won't hurt my children", etc. When various neutral behaviors begin to be performed to eliminate discomfort, symptoms of the disease begin to appear. At this point, the individual even has a risk of 1 in a million; He sees it 100% and acts as if that thing were going to happen and stays with that feeling. In some cases, the conflict between unwanted thoughts and opposing thoughts may cause doubt. An example of this is that a mother who shows excessive interest and love to her child has doubts that she will harm her child.
“If I tell you that the brakes of this car are broken, if you drive, you will inevitably have an accident” Would you get in that car? Or what would you do if I tried to force you into that car?
Being able to react to a thought as just a thought is very important for mental health. Taking precautions against your thoughts, which you consider very valuable, very important, very sensitive, as if they were "real"; Sometimes it may cause you to depend on people and sometimes it may cause you to not be able to go beyond your home. Here, giving importance to "those" thoughts according to their "place", being able to minimally intervene in the risk caused by "those" thoughts, and not taking intense precautions for "those" thoughts will also help reduce anxiety.
COMING FROM YOU
Common obsession expressions:
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If I go to the market, I will get dirt or germs on me.
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If I have knives and other cutting tools in my home, I will harm my children and family with them.
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To not accept the projects that the workplace gives me to carry out. I create lies, what if I take the project and make a mistake.
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I don't touch door handles or animals; I never shake hands with people. They are a source of contamination. I definitely made a mistake (I left it open, I didn't close it, you didn't lock it)
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While praying, "Thoughts of cursing God" come to my mind.
Common Compulsive Expressions
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If a thought comes to my mind that my daughter will have a car accident, I should immediately recite the accident prayer 5 times, otherwise my daughter will have an accident.
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Something foreign If I touched the house, I should wash my hands until my skin becomes irritated
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I check repeatedly whether the doors are locked every time I leave the house
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Bad news I have to knock on the board when I hear it.
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I am a librarian, if I do not place the books on the shelves in a certain order, from large to small, from thick to thin, I feel uneasy. It affects a large part of my daily work. At this rate. I will be dismissed from my job. >
If I don't say "good luck" 4 times when sending my child to school in the morning, something bad will happen to him.
Obsessive Compulsive Personality Characteristics
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They think excessively about being in control, which is why they show very sensitive and normative behavior. They experience anger and anxiety in situations where they cannot control.
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Excessive formalism and stubbornness may cause difficulties in communication.
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They make mistakes both in themselves and in others. They cannot tolerate it.
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They are strict, stubborn and stingy in their social lives.
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Uncertainty can cause the greatest fears.
TREATMENT METHODS
Although biological factors are more prominent when looking at the causes of OCD, behavioral methods as well as drug-based methods are necessary in its treatment. Whether drug treatment, behavioral therapy or a combined method will be used in the treatment options is determined and applied according to the characteristics of the client. In addition, depending on the course of the disorder, the specialist may request support from methods such as cognitive therapies, humanistic therapy, psychoanalytical-based psychotherapies, and electroshock therapy.
What I Expect You to Think About: "Isn't it time to be released from your inner prison?"
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