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Treatment for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is generally treated with behavioral therapy (BT), cognitive therapy (CT), medications or a combination of these treatments.

There is a technique called exposure and ritual prevention that is used in BT/CBT that you may also hear called exposure and response prevention (ERP). This technique is where you gradually learn to tolerate the element that gives you anxiety responsible for the behavior or performance ritual. An example of this technique would be if a person who was compulsive about germs would touch something that had touched something that was considered a contaminated object. The next time the person would try to touch something that had actually touched the contaminated object. The person would do this touching without washing their hands afterwards. The not washing the hands would be the ritual prevention part and the touching would be the exposure part of the technique.

Medications commonly prescribed for those with Obsessive-compulsive disorder are called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These SSRIs include paroxetine (Paxil, Aropax), sertraline (Zoloft), fluxetine (Prozac), and fluvoxamine (Luvox). Also prescribed are tricyclic antidepressants, which may be clomipramine (Anafranil). Serotonin can help to regulate the excessive anxiety and obsessive-compulsive thoughts. Some cases require the use of both clomipramine and one of the SSRI medications to be effective when one of them has not been effective.

Low doses of antipsychotics have been shown to be beneficial, causion must be taken at higher doses because they have been proven to cause dramatic obsessive-compulsive symptoms even in person who do not have OCD.

Inositol is a naturally occurring sugar and has been found to be an effective treatment for OCD.

There has been some recent research showing that opioids may have a significant ability to reduce OCD symptoms though they are addictive and may stand in the way of being approved for OCD usage.

There is research that has shown that the more effective treatment is when there is a combination of psychotherapy alongside medication therapy in the treatment of OCD.

Treated properly OCD can remain under control. Some individuals with OCD even with treatment can become progressively deteriorating and even disabling. OCD symptoms can be anything from mild to severe. Individuals may experience periods of lessening symptoms followed by more severe symptoms. If not treated OCD is usually chronic. OCD can take a real emotional toll on the individual, his/her family and co-workers. The economic cost to the individual and his/her family and to society can be great.

One organization that is helping to further research into and helping to promote the treatment of OCD is The Obsessive Compulsive Foundation (OCF). This foundation is not-for-profit mental health organization. The OCF has many resources, planned activities, an annual conference and a very informative Website. They offer programs for teens, young adults and training programs for mental health professionals. They have support groups in the U.S.A. and in Canada.

As with any mental illness or disorder it is imperative that everyone receive accurate and current information including family members, physicians and therapists. Without education, myths can run rampart and misunderstanding lead to frustration and increased symptoms for the individual with OCD.