Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is one of the most common and most publicly misunderstood mental disorders, often being whittled down to having certain cleaning or organization quirks. As such, it’s not recognized as a serious disorder—one that can detrimentally affect a person’s everyday life. We see the harmful effects caused by the normalization and spread of this misinformation, as it can take up to 17 years for a person to seek treatment. This is the reason why OCD Awareness Week (October 12th-18th) exists, hoping to provide education, dispel myths, and give a platform to those with OCD to share their stories, and encourage others to access effective treatment. 

What is OCD?

OCD is mostly an anxiety-based disorder, and there are two main parts: obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are thought-based and are intrusive, unwanted thoughts that trigger intense emotional distress. Compulsions are action-based and are the ritualistic behaviors or actions performed in response to that distress. While OCD is often publicly linked only to obsessions over cleanliness, there are actually many types of avenues OCD can take, like obsessions over safety, symmetry, relationships, perfectionism, and more. 

It is not uncommon for a person to occasionally have obsessions and/or compulsions, but for a diagnosis of OCD, these obsessions and compulsions must be a constant cycle that alters a person’s everyday quality of life. Maybe these compulsions take hours out of their day, prevent them from doing activities they usually would want to do, harm close relationships, or cause episodes of intense emotional distress. It is unwanted and uncontrolled by the individual, and is much different than just wanting to keep clean and tidy. 

Seeking Help

For a disorder like OCD, it’s important to seek out a professional for help. Both psychotherapy (talk therapy) and medicinal treatment can be effective for OCD and are dependent on the individual. Typical psychotherapy treatments include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and exposure and response prevention (ERP), which are long-term but highly effective in minimizing the symptoms of OCD. On the other hand, there’s a range of medicines often prescribed to manage OCD, usually beginning with antidepressants. For both of these treatment types, a professional is needed. 

If you or someone you know has OCD and is not being treated, encourage them to take the steps needed to manage their symptoms. It is important to be empathetic and understanding about their situation, but not to accommodate or reassure their OCD, as it can reaffirm their obsessions, and reassurance-seeking is often, in fact, a compulsion in itself. Instead, tell them politely that you do not want to make their OCD worse by providing any reassurance and point them to healthily challenging their compulsions. 

The Importance of Awareness

OCD controls a person’s life and can often be a source of shame, confusion, or embarrassment for those who have it. These very feelings are why so many either wait or never receive the help they need, which may be detrimental to their relationships with both themselves and those around them. Instead, it is important for us to know what OCD really is, the different forms it can take, and establish it as something that can be worked on and improved. Spreading awareness, reducing stigmas, clearing up misinformation, and teaching others how to give empathy and understanding to those with OCD may also help encourage them to seek professional help and improve the quality of life for everyone involved.

The International OCD Foundation provides some prompts and other ways in which you can participate in OCD Awareness Week or #TogetherAgainstOCD:

“How you can take part: 

People with lived experience: Share your story, join the online conversation, connect with others.

Supporters & families: Listen, share what you’ve learned, invite others to learn more.

Clinicians & health pros: Highlight evidence-based care, share resources, engage your networks.

Researchers: Share findings, explain impact, connect science to community needs

Everyone: Learn, challenge myths, share accurate info, and amplify support.”

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is complex, both as much of a disorder and as a public sentiment. This is why we desperately need to spread proper awareness more than ever, by minimizing misinformation and stereotypes of the disorder that has run rampant. I encourage you to speak up and speak truth, working together towards a more educated, more empathetic public.