OCD
People tend to overuse the term “OCD” also known as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. OCD is a mental illness in which people have recurring and uncontrollable thoughts and behaviors.
People with OCD with tend to need to have something organized a certain way; for example, they may order their movies in alphabetical order or by color.
According to NIH, some symptoms of OCD are, fear of germs and contamination, aggressive thoughts toward others or self, the need to have things in perfect or symmetrical order, obsessive clean and or hand-washing, repetitively checking on things, and inability to control thoughts or behaviors.
As Hank Green says, OCD is a type of anxiety disorder but is so complex, it is in a class by itself. Being neat and orderly does not make you OCD. OCD is a lot more complex and intense than that. People with OCD take normal actions like turning of the stove and washing your hands and perform them compulsively.
People with OCD do what they do to relieve and intense and unbearable anxiety. Imagine you have intense unbearable itch, you're going to want to scratch it right? People with OCD have a mental itch and this is their way to relieve it.
OCD is hard to cope with because as Hank Green explains, “it's hard to keep a job, run a house, sit still, or do pretty much anything, if you feel intensely compelled to run to the kitchen 20 times in a hour.”
OCD is driven by fear like you feel as if you don’t go check to make sure the door is locked right this very second then someone will break in and kill your children and family. Even if you previously checked 20 times you still have the fear.
There are treatments that help OCD like certain kinds of psychotherapy and some medicine, but the point is OCD is not an adjective for your aunt who cleans her house twice a week or someone who only uses a green pen.
