Like other mental health disorders, mental health organizations set aside a week to increase public education about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (also known as OCD) and raise OCD awareness. OCD Awareness Week will be celebrated from October 12 – October 18, 2025. It is a week-long series of events during which various mental health organizations and advocates host events, distribute educational resources, and share personal stories in support of the OCD community.
OCD is a recognized mental health disorder that is characterized by persistent but unwanted fearful thoughts, or obsessions. The compulsive part consists of repetitive behaviors that are repeated, often a certain number of times, to counteract the anxiety caused by the obsessive behaviors. These repetitions are called a ritual. The obsessive thoughts and repetitive behaviors intrude into the patient’s daily activities, and sufferers feel powerless to control them.
Some Common Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Myths
The general population harbors several misconceptions about OCD and, by extension, myths about the motives of OCD sufferers. The following are five common Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder myths:
- OCD is all about cleanliness and order. False. OCD is a combination of obsessions that include fears of germs or contamination, violent thoughts, and a compulsion for uniformity. The cleanliness outsiders see is part of the compulsive reaction to the obsessions.
- OCD is all about personality quirks. False. OCD is a recognized, serious mental health disorder that disrupts everyday life for sufferers.
- You can easily spot OCD sufferers. False. Many people who suffer from OCD use mental compulsions, which are invisible to the casual observer. That makes OCD compulsions secretive rather than easily observed.
- OCD is a superpower. False. OCD makes people deal with racing thoughts, uncontrolled thoughts that significantly impair the person’s ability to function in everyday life. These unwanted obsessions, combined with uncontrollable compulsive actions, cause people to spend time and energy on behaviors that interfere with everyday life.
- OCD is not serious. False. OCD is ranked in the top 10 debilitating mental illnesses and often seriously impacts everyday life and thereby disabling sufferers. OCD can also co-occur with depression and anxiety.
Coping with OCD requires communities to improve the public’s education about OCD. It also requires communities to increase public support, encourage compassionate responses, and increase empathy for OCD sufferers. Professional help can help a person with OCD develop coping skills and improve their quality of life.
What OCD Really Is
What OCD really is (it bears repeating) is a recognized mental health disorder. It is not a personality oddity. It is not a strong preference to stay clean, a misconception stemming from some OCD sufferers’ obsession with repetitive hand washing. To get a diagnosis of OCD, a person must exhibit a pattern in which obsessions and compulsions are so severe that they cause emotional distress and interfere with the functioning of activities of everyday life. To qualify, such obsessions/compulsions must eat up at least one hour every day. That is what OCD really is.
Four key characteristics distinguish OCD from other behaviors. They are:
- Intrusive thoughts – Distressing thoughts, images, or urges that the sufferer knows are irrational but cannot control.
- Compulsive behavior – Physical or mental acts that the sufferer feels compelled to repeat as a response to the obsession. These compulsive behaviors offer a brief respite from anxiety but eventually make the disorder worse. Ritual activities include hand washing, counting, and checking on things.
- Significant interference with activities of daily life – OCD behaviors disrupt school life, work life, social relationships, and important activities of daily living (dressing, eating, mobility, showering, bathing, grooming, and toileting).
- Biologically and Neurologically Based – Research shows that OCD sufferers have differences in their brain structure and in neurological function, especially when it comes to mood and behavior. In some cases, there is a genetic component, too, making OCD often run in families.
The World Health Organization (WHO) lists OCD in the top 20 causes of illness-based disabilities among people aged 15-44, globally. That puts the numbers to show OCD’s significant interference with everyday life.
OCD Symptoms
Mental health professionals have identified common symptoms for both the obsession component and the compulsion component of OCD. Since every person is unique, the symptoms may also uniquely apply to each case. In other words, not every person with OCD will exhibit all the noted behaviors. OCD symptoms include the following common obsessions:
- Fear of contracting germs by touching people or things in the environment and then bringing the contamination to the home or other people
- Distressing sexual thoughts or images
- Blasphemous thoughts or fears
- Fear of harming oneself or others
- Extreme worrying that something is not completed
- Extreme worry about order, symmetry, or exactness
- Fear of losing or throwing away something important (as in hoarding)
- Meaningless repetitive music, thoughts, words, images, and sounds.
Compulsions are actions designed to offset the obsessions that can potentially cause harm if the person tries to ignore the obsessions. OCD symptoms include the following common compulsions (or rituals):
- Hand-washing or showering rituals
- Repetitive cleaning of household objects, such as dusting
- Repetitive ordering or rearranging objects in a certain pattern
- Repeatedly checking locks, doors, switches, and appliances
- Repetitive seeking approval or reassurance
Rituals often relate to numbers, such as washing hands or counting things a certain number of times to avoid harm.
OCD Treatment Options
The good news is that mental health professionals have several treatment options available to manage OCD symptoms and permit sufferers to return to a more manageable lifestyle. The following are common treatment options:
- ERP Therapy – Exposure and Response Therapy is a form of Cognitive Behavior Therapy. Under this type of therapy, the therapist exposes a person with OCD to the obsessions that plague them without resorting to rituals to resolve the obsessions. Gradually, the person learns to cut back on the number of times they must perform the ritual before they move on to other activities.
- Medications – A class of drugs known as selective serotonin-reuptake Inhibitors (or SSRI) has turned out to be more effective than other medications in controlling OCD behaviors. Some of the names may be recognizable to U.S. residents, such as Zoloft, Prozac, and Lexapro. Another drug, Anafranil, is an SRI class drug, not an SSRI, and is also effective for OCD patients. Most people taking SSRIs do not suffer side effects or have limited side effects that improve over time. SSRIs are non-habit-forming, too, another plus.
- Neuromodulation – Mental health professionals have had some success with a procedure called transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS.TMS uses magnetic fields to stimulate the brain’s nerve cells. Experience has shown that patients tolerate the procedure well, and it is non-invasive.
OCD Related Disorders
Therapists identify OCD related disorders based on similar obsession/compulsive behaviors. Several OCD related disorders include:
- Hoarding Disorder – ongoing problems discarding or parting with personal possessions that eventually lead to clutter
- Body Dysmorphia – characterized by excessive focus on the body’s flaws in appearance and leading to distress and impairment of daily functions
- Hair Pulling Disorder (Trichotillomania) – an impulse control disorder, characterized by the urge to pull out body hair from eyebrows, eyelashes, and scalp, leading to substantial hair loss
- Skin-Picking Disorder – an impulse control disorder characterized by the urge to pick at one’s skin, leading to physical injury and anxiety
- Olfactory Reference Disorder – characterized by the belief that one’s body is foul-smelling, even though not perceived so by others.
All the above disorders have the obsessive-compulsive components recognized with OCD.
Moving On with OCD Is Possible
It may not seem possible, but moving forward after an OCD diagnosis is not only possible. It is necessary because sufferers want to live a full life, free of anxiety and compulsions.
If you or someone you care about struggles with OCD, please contact us today. Schedule an appointment for a consultation with one of our experienced counselors. Your therapist will review your current mental health status, talk to you about your needs and goals. Then, the two of you will decide the best possible treatment path for you.
Refinery Counseling Services is happy to provide either an individual or group psychotherapy treatment session for you, based on your personal goals and needs. Our mission is to empower you while you travel on your mental health journey. We promise to provide compassionate care of the body, mind, and soul.
We believe you have a great capacity to grow and heal yourself. We promise to provide the resources and support that you need on your journey. Begin that journey today by calling for a free, confidential consultation.. Remember: The sooner you begin your therapy counseling sessions; the sooner you will feel the recovery begin.
We stand ready to help you and look forward to hearing from you today.
For More Information
If you feel overwhelmed by OCD’s obsessive/compulsive behaviors, we invite you to read the September 22, 2025, article entitled “Coping with Emotional Overwhelm: Simple Practices to Regain Stability. “
You may also enjoy the August 18, 2025, article entitled “Seasonal Transitions and Mental Health: What You Might Be Feeling (and Why).”
