Mental health experts say there’s been an increase in the number of people diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, also known as OCD, since the covid pandemic. OCD is an anxiety disorder marked by fear, that if you don’t engage in a particular action, something awful is going to happen.

Dr. Rafat Omar, psychologist with UPMC says we are using the term ‘OCD’ casually.

“It kind of diminishes the severity of the actual disorder because that in and of itself does not mean you have OCD or maybe you're just particular or maybe you have a certain personality style where you can't see, can't stand seeing things out of order.”

The safety measures during the pandemic shutdown contributed greatly to the rise of OCD symptoms, even for those who did not have a history.

“I mean, it's you know, kind of a breeding ground for OCD type thoughts because we have a specific action tied to a really negative outcome that you can't see or predict, right? We couldn't see or predict when we were catching COVID, you know, obviously because it's an airborne illness. So, you know, just the very nature of how it played out and the restrictions we had to take lined up unfortunately really perfectly with OCD type symptoms.”

There are a couple of treatments available for those dealing with OCD symptoms. Therapy and medication could help reduce those symptoms.

“It is an anxiety disorder. So, we're still targeting the actual anxiety level, but if we want really long -standing relief from it, there's a technique called exposure and response prevention. Basically, we're exposing the person to the thing that makes them anxious but not letting them do the compulsion.”

Mental health experts say there&rsquo;s been an increase in the number of people diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, also known as OCD, since the covid pandemic. OCD is an anxiety disorder marked by fear, that if you don&rsquo;t engage in a particular action, something awful is going to happen.
Dr. Rafat Omar, psychologist with UPMC says we are using the term &lsquo;OCD&rsquo; casually.
&ldquo;It kind of diminishes the severity of the actual disorder because that in and of itself does not mean you have OCD or maybe you're just particular or maybe you have a certain personality style where you can't see, can't stand seeing things out of order.&rdquo;
The safety measures during the pandemic shutdown contributed greatly to the rise of OCD symptoms, even for those who did not have a history.
&ldquo;I mean, it's you know, kind of a breeding ground for OCD type thoughts because we have a specific action tied to a really negative outcome that you can't see or predict, right? We couldn't see or predict when we were catching COVID, you know, obviously because it's an airborne illness. So, you know, just the very nature of how it played out and the restrictions we had to take lined up unfortunately really perfectly with OCD type symptoms.&rdquo;
There are a couple of treatments available for those dealing with OCD symptoms. Therapy and medication could help reduce those symptoms.
&ldquo;It is an anxiety disorder. So, we're still targeting the actual anxiety level, but if we want really long -standing relief from it, there's a technique called exposure and response prevention. Basically, we're exposing the person to the thing that makes them anxious but not letting them do the compulsion.&rdquo;

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from WITF, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at https://witf.org/programs/the-spark.

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from <a href="https://www.witf.org">WITF</a>, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at <a href="https://witf.org/programs/the-spark">https://witf.org/programs/the-spark</a>.

The Spark

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from WITF, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at <a href="https://witf.org/programs/the-spark">https://witf.org/programs/the-spark</a>.

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