Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is commonly characterized by a preoccupation with perfectionism, orderliness, and mental as well as interpersonal control, at the expense of openness, flexibility, and efficiency.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms often contain both obsessions and compulsions. However, it is also possible to have only obsession symptoms or only compulsion symptoms. It is estimated that 1/3 of people with OCD also have a disorder that contains sudden, intermittent, brief movements or sounds.

So, what are the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder? Read on this article to discover top most common signs of OCD – collected by VKool.com!

Symptoms Of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – What Are Common Signs Of OCD?

1. Hand-Washing

Compulsive hand sanitizer use or hand-washing is prevalent in OCD that “washers” has become a widely accepted category of OCD sufferer. The fear of germs, which is seemed as the most common obsession seen in OCD, is also could be rooted in the fear of getting other people sick or of being immoral or impure.

So, if you think about germs continually, even after washing your own hands, or have irrational fears about illness or disease, then it can be a symptom that your hand-washing is compulsive. Another warning sign of OCD is to go for elaborate hand-washing routines – washing 5 times and getting the soap under every nail.

2. Overzealous Cleaning

Those OCD patients who fall in “washers” category are also prone to cleaning compulsively. Similar to hand-washing, housecleaning is usually a manner of easing germaphobia or fears of impurity. Though cleaning could help chase the obsessive thoughts away, the result does not last for a long time, and the urge of cleaning is usually even stronger afterwards.

If you spend many hours each day on cleaning, then it can be a warning sign of OCD. However, it could be harder to know if you are suffering from OCD or not just through the urge of cleaning. For more sure, if you do not clean, you will feel terribly fearful and anxious.

3. Checking Behavior

When it comes to symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder, checking-behaviors is common. If you return 3, 4 or even 10 times to warrant that the house is locked or the oven is off, then you might have troubling dealing with OCD. This symptom is said to be associated with approximately 30% of people with OCD. Similar to other compulsive behaviors, the urge of checking could be driven by various obsessions, ranging from a fear of being hurt to extreme feelings of irresponsibility.

Though it is normal for you to double-check something, if the urge of checking interferes with your everyday life, or becomes a daily ritual that you could not live without, then it can be a symptom of OCD.

4. Counting

Some individuals with OCD do tasks according to a certain numeric pattern or do counting when they do daily things, like cleaning or climbing stairs. These behaviors might be driven by superstitions. For example, a belief that the number nine is great might lead a person to feel that they will hurt themselves or someone else if they do not take nine steps in a certain situation.

Counting could be a good distraction when you climb the stairs to your office or walk to your own vehicle. If it does not bother you or anyone else, you are fine. If you cannot get the numbers out of your head, then you need to seek help.

Check out: tips to boost mind energy

5. Organization

Those OCD sufferers could take daily organizing to the higher level of perfectionism. It has to look right, feel right, be symmetrical, and be the right items or number. That fussiness is usually driven by obsessions about symmetry and order.

Some people just simply love tidy desk because they feel it helpful but for those with OCD, they might not necessarily want to organize their own desk but feel they must. Just by that way, they can relieve their anxiety.

6. The Fears Of Violence

Nowadays, it can be normal that people have fleeting thoughts about the risk of being affected by misfortunes or violence. However, it can be a sign of OCD. That case, the more you try to avoid those negative thoughts, the more they pop into your head. Those with OCD could try harder to suppress those thoughts or they might react much more intensely to those thoughts as they deem them as unacceptable.

It is crucial for you to recognize that we all have occasional dark thoughts. However, it can be a symptom of obsessive compulsive disorder if the thoughts of being violated make you avoid the crowded or the park, for instance.

Recommend reading: how to get rid of fear of space

7. Unwanted Sexual Thoughts

Similar to violent thoughts, the reoccurrence of unwanted sexual thoughts frequently happen in those with OCD. Sufferers might imagine that they will grope their colleague or molest a child, or wonder if they are less (gay) instead of straight, and vice versa.

If you have OCD, such type of thoughts might appear in your mind. As a result, you tend to change your behaviors – avoiding a colleague or gay friends you have thought about sexual situations, for example.

8. Dwelling On The Relationships

Those with OCD are claimed to obsessively dissect the relationship with their friends, colleagues, family members or romantic partners. For instance, they might dwell at length whether a tiny misunderstanding damaged a romantic relationship. That mind-set tends to reflect an exaggerated sense of difficulty in accepting uncertainty and responsibility.

The fact is, breaking up with a boyfriend or girlfriend could make a person obsess, no matter they have OCD or not. Nevertheless, it might be a signal of OCD if the thoughts like it get stuck in your own head and snowball into the excessive self-doubt or the fears of being a bad person.

Above are 7 symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder which are reflected to be most common. Remember that there is a difference between being a perfectionist and suffering from OCD. OCD thoughts are not simply excessive worries about real issues in life. Yet, if your obsessions and compulsions are negatively affecting your quality of life, then you should see your doctor or mental health provider.

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