Treatment Helps Overcome Disease of Doubt, Fear
An immense fear of germs and a powerful need for order and control led billionaire Howard Hughes to live the last years of his life as an eccentric recluse, a prisoner of his own biochemistry.
The film "The Aviator" shows how obsessive-compulsive disorder, a mental illness that affects two to three percent of Americans, can devastate lives. However, with a comprehensive hospital treatment program like the one available at The Menninger Clinic, an affiliate of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Obsessive-compulsive disorder patients with severe symptoms are successfully managing their disease.
"Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder causes anxiety provoking thoughts or urges, known as obsessions," said Dr. Joyce Davidson, medical director of the Menninger Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Treatment Program. "These thoughts compel individuals to perform time-consuming rituals, known as compulsions, in an attempt to ease the anxiety."
According to Davidson, common obsessions and compulsions include:
A fear of contamination that leads to excessive hand washing.
A fear of causing harm that leads to repetitive checking.
A need for symmetry that leads to habitual arranging of objects.
Excessive doubt that leads to unrelenting requests for reassurance.
Resisting these thoughts and rituals is not easy and can actually intensify symptoms. Avoiding activities that spur obsessions doesn't work either, says Davidson, and has led some Obsessive-compulsive disorder sufferers to become homebound.
Although Menninger's Obsessive-compulsive disorder Treatment Program uses a variety of research-proven techniques to help fight the disease, one approach, known as Exposure and Response Prevention, is very effective. This intensive behavior therapy allows patients to confront their obsessions head on while overcoming the urge to perform rituals.
"If patients are reluctant to touch door knobs due to a fear of germs, we have them hold a door knob until their anxiety habituates," said Davidson, who is also an associate professor of psychiatry at BCM. "The other important step, `response prevention,' is executed when patients are not permitted to wash their hands afterward."
The cause of Obsessive-compulsive disorder is somewhat mysterious, though research proves that chemical imbalances in the brain are responsible. Davidson said Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms often improve when patients take Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, drugs commonly used to treat depression.
"Individuals with OCD show the most improvement when these medications are used in addition to behavior therapy," said Davidson.
Beyond comprehensive behavior therapy, the program's treatment also includes:
Individual counseling
Group therapy sessions
Family education and support
Medication management
Treatment for coexisting disorders such as depression
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