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Unit 22 : Psychotherapy : Dealing with Psychological Disturbance

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Notes

Although the term obsessive-compulsive has become so commonplace, the two words actually carry
specific meanings.
”Obsessive” refers to a thought pattern where the same words or phrases recur, cycling endlessly.
“Compulsive” describes equally repetitious, and often outwardly bizarre, actions. Obsessive-
compulsive personality refers to be hyper- rational individuals (often male) who are so focused on
the logical side to life that they have largely lost touch with the emotional side. When an especially
unacceptable or intolerable emotion such as anger or anxiety threatens to overwhelm them, they
unconsciously try to counteract it by trying to exert greater control over their minds and thoughts.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is one of the anxiety disorder. It almost certainly has a strong biological
component. Persons suffering from OCD experience intense anxiety and develop specific rituals-
sometimes quite bizarre-in order to relieve the anxiety. But an increasing need to perform the
rituals becomes an enormous burden in itself. There is debate about whether the repetitive gestures,
avoidances and rituals have psychological meaning. But there are certainly core psychological issues
involved in OCD such as an excessive need for control, an ability to accurately assess risk, and a
distancing from normal life functions. Psychoanalysis can help with the mind part of what is very
clearly a disorder based on dysfunction of mind, behavior and thought. Additionally psychoanalysis
can help with the impact having such an invasive and pervasive mental problem has on an
individual’s development, relationship and life course.

Panic Disorder
A person having a panic attack experiences a period of intense fear or discomfort while physically
feeling some combination of these symptoms: heart palpitations, feelings of dizziness or
lightheadedness, trembling or shaking. nausea or abdominal distress, chills or hot flushes, shortness
of breath, or a tightness around the chest so extreme that it can feel like a heart attack. Persons
suffering a panic attack can feel as if they’re about to die, to “lose control” or ‘go crazy’. They may
feel as if the world seems unreal, or may feel detached from themselves. When panic attacks recur
and are followed by significant fears of their reappearance and by changes in behavior- such as by
avoiding circumstances that the person is afraid will trigger an attack- the person is diagnosed as
having panic disorder.
A sufferer often feels that the panic attacks are coming out of nowhere, but in psychoanalytic
consultation and treatment, triggers are discerned for the anxiety. Fears about imminent separation
or loss, or about one’s aggression or sexuality, can cause anxiety, as can the fear of loss of personal
control. Often panic attacks manifest themselves in the context of major life changes - graduation, a
new job, a promotion - that have conflicted underlying meaning for the individual.
The psychoanalyst helps the anxious person to regain a sense of emotional control by considering
the meaning of the symptoms in the context of his life and relationships. Because the predisposition
to panic attacks has a biological underpinning, medications may be used in conjunction with
psychoanalytic treatment. But studies have shown that a combination of medication and therapy
works best for this problem.

1. Fill in the Blanks
(i) A person having a panic attack experiences a period of ............. discomfort.
(ii) ............. disorder is one of the anxiety disorder.
(iii) The ............ helps the anxious person to regain a sense of emotional control by considering
the meaning of the symptoms.

What is Bolimia ?

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