The Many, Many Variations of OCD
The following are examples of common OCD themes. This list is not exhaustive, since OCD can be about anything of value to a person. Obsessions may have multiple names that are not mentioned in this article. Individuals may experience more than one type of obsession at the same time.
Contamination
Obsessions: objects, people or places being contaminated, physically or mentally, fear of contaminating others or self
Compulsions: washing objects or self excessively, checking items, mentally reviewing things one has come into contact with, avoiding “contaminated” objects, places or people
Symmetry
Obsessions: things not being aligned or parallel, objects not arranged, sorted or matched correctly, body parts not “even” or feeling “right”
Compulsions: frequent checking, rearranging and mental cataloging of items, moving/ shifting body, tapping
Safety
Obsessions: Windows and doors not locked, electrical appliances not turned off, dangerous/sharp objects not kept safely, disrupted privacy, being watched/stalked, not feeling “safe”
Compulsions: checking for safety, avoiding “unsafe” places, mentally reviewing items, seeking reassurance that loved ones are safe
Harm or Violence to Others
Obsessions: unwanted thoughts and urges to harm loved ones, images of hurting others such as swearing, stabbing, or other acts of violence, having false memories about hurting others
Compulsions: avoiding loved ones, avoiding dangerous objects such as knives, punishing oneself, mentally reviewing one’s intentions and memories, checking if others are hurt
Harm or Violence to Self
Obsessions: fear of hurting oneself by self-injury or suicide, unwanted images and urges of self-harm and suicidal plans/ methods
Compulsions: avoiding dangerous places (eg. ledges, pools), keeping away sharp objects, mentally affirming one’s value of life, safety and self-worth, checking body for injuries
Sexual Orientation
Obsessions: unwanted romantic/ sexual thoughts and urges about a gender that one is not usually attracted to (eg. a gay man having sexual thoughts about a woman)
Compulsions: checking for emotional/ physical responses to a particular gender, viewing erotic content as a form of checking, mentally reviewing past romantic/ sexual experiences
Pedophilia
Obsessions: intrusive sexual thoughts about children, unwanted sexual urges and responses to children
Compulsions: avoiding children, checking for attraction to children, punishing oneself, reviewing past experiences with children, seeking reassurance
Misplaced Sexual Attraction
Obsessions: having unwanted and inappropriate sexual thoughts about family members, friends, coworkers or about someone other than one’s significant other
Compulsions: checking for attraction, mentally reviewing past experiences, punishing oneself, seeking reassurance
Superstition
Obsessions: good or bad outcomes associated with specific numbers, symbols, words, actions or positions
Compulsions: counting rituals, keeping track of symbols and words, repetitive actions to prevent a bad outcome, avoiding “unlucky” objects or places
Relationship
Obsessions: intrusive thoughts about partner’s faithfulness or one’s own faithfulness, whether the partner is the “right” one for the person, whether either party has said or done anything to upset the other person, when the relationship will end
Compulsions: reassurance seeking, reviewing past experiences with partner and other people
Religious Scrupulosity
Obsessions: whether one is entirely faithful to God, whether one has sinned, intrusive blasphemous thoughts and unwanted urges
Compulsions: praying repetitively, excessive confessing, asking for reassurance and forgiveness, mentally “undoing” bad acts, punishing oneself, doing good deeds to make up for sins
Moral Scrupulosity
Obsessions: fear of being “evil”, intrusive thoughts and urges to commit wrongdoings and crimes, fear of having done something bad in the past or doing something bad in the future
Compulsions: reassurance seeking, excessive confessing, punishing oneself, mentally “undoing” bad acts and doing more good deeds
Existential
Obsessions: whether there is a meaning in life, whether there is free will, if reality is just an illusion, if anything can be trusted, and other philosophical issues
Compulsions: reading philosophy with the aim of reducing anxiety, asking for reassurance, doing thought experiments and reality testing, distracting oneself
Somatic
Obsessions: hyper-fixation on a bodily process such as blinking, swallowing, salivating, breathing or heart beating, fear of not being able to stop thinking about the bodily process
Compulsions: distracting oneself, responding to obsessions using the body
Hoarding
Obsessions: feeling incomplete without an object, fearing a bad outcome without an object, requiring a certain number of objects to feel comfortable
Compulsions: Holding on to useless/ unwanted items, accumulating unwanted items, buying and saving unwanted items
Losing Control
Obsessions: fear of going crazy, fear of developing other mental disorders such as psychosis, fear of not being able to stop obsessing, needing to feel in control of one’s thoughts and impulses
Compulsions: thought-stopping, repeated mental checking, reaffirming oneself
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