Osborn blog

After reading "Tormenting Thoughts and Secret Rituals", I gained a better understanding of what it is to have OCD, and also get insight from individuals who suffer themselves. OCD now-a-days is thrown out freely to describe ones heavy interest in someone or something. After reading this, I realized that it is so much deeper than the way most of society describes it to be. For an example, the author who would have tormenting thoughts of his hand being punctured by a needle. Although he knew that it was not like him to have such gory thoughts, the image was inescapable. Similarly, there was Raymond who would have ongoing thoughts of contaminated substances everywhere that he would go. Raymond's obsession with contaminated substances affected his relationship with his family when they acknowledged that his behavior was not normal. There was also Sherry who would constantly get images in her head of doing awful things to her daughter. Even though she knew that she would never do this because she loved her daughter so much, the images were inevitable. There was Jeff who would have voices in his head telling him that he was a homosexual. The voice was of him telling himself that, despite him having been in a relationship. Perverted images would come to his mind when he saw other men. He was not exactly sure why this was happening to him. Lastly, there was Melissa who would do things the way that God would want her to do them. What these individuals all share in common is that they all suffer from Obsessive compulsive disorder. They try to think of counter images to prevent these thoughts from prevailing, but eventually the thoughts come back to taunt them. In earlier years OCD was not acknowledged as a real mental disorder. However, over the past few decades it has been regarded as serious disorder that one can get treatment for. I think it is a great thing that over the past 2 decades more and more has been learned about the disorder. I feel like now that people know that it does exist and that there is a cure, more people would not keep their obsessions to themselves. It is a serious disorder that affects many people. The way the term is used today is completely irrelevant from its actual meaning.