Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – OCD Myths

What Do You Think OCD Is?

Most people have heard the term ‘OCD’, but the real question is, has it been used in the right context? Many associates ‘OCD’ with traits like being neat, clean and tidy. While these can come as a part of OCD, they’re not what defines it. OCD stands for obsessive compulsive disorder – this is shocking for some who use the term on a regular basis, as they might not realise it is an actual anxiety disorder.

 

What Is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Really?

Obsessive compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder characterised by distressing intrusive thoughts and the compulsions or rituals that someone may perform to reduce their anxiety around these thoughts. Intrusive thoughts can be relating to the cleanliness or tidiness of a room, but there are many kinds of intrusive thoughts that can come with obsessive compulsive disorder, not just these. Sometimes obsessive compulsive disorder Treatments affects people in a way that has nothing to do with this. For example, intrusive thoughts can be worrying you might accidentally harm or kill somebody, unpleasant sexual thoughts, anything that you might not necessarily WANT to think, but that just comes into your head. Intrusive thoughts are something that everyone experiences, but not everyone can just dismiss them. To some, they feel extreme guilt or worry around the intrusive thought and they have to check things, count to a certain number, wash their hands a certain number of times in order to rid themselves of the thought. This is only temporary and often the dependence on the compulsions becomes more severe over time.

What Are Compulsions?

Compulsions can be all sorts of things. One that we would be familiar with from TV shows and films would be obsessive cleaning, and checking things are in place. Other compulsions include ‘neutralising bad thoughts’ by thinking good things to counteract the bad thought, ruminating, hand-washing and many more. One that a lot of people wouldn’t realise is a compulsion is reassurance seeking. This can come through in different ways – checking what people think of something you have said or done, or disguised in a normal conversation which is often guided by the person who needs the reassurance, until they find the reassurance they need. Some may say the same things to lots of different people in the form of ‘oversharing’ to get the reassurance they need over and over again. So obsessive compulsive disorder is not necessarily what the media portrays it as.

OCD Can Be Treated

Obsessive compulsive disorder affects each person differently. How severe it is can also vary, but there is treatment for OCD, usually in the form of talking therapies and exposure response prevention therapy. Exposure response prevention therapy challenges the patient to withstand their anxiety around not performing a compulsion until the anxiety starts to dip. Some may be able to do small exercises at their own home, while others might have OCD so severe that they need supervision and guidance by a professional.

Mental Health Education – What Do We Need?

 

Mental Health – What Is It?

Mental health is something that everybody has. Some people may have good mental health, others may have bad or ill mental health. Either way, it’s extremely important to take care of your mental health. Mental health education is an important part of learning how to take care of it.

 

Why Is Mental Health Education Important?

Mental health is an important part of life. The state of your mental health can be the difference between you struggling or performing well at work, maintaining relationships or struggling to keep them, and more. Mental health education may help people who are struggling to realise the cause, and what they can do to help. For example, somebody who struggles to concentrate at work may not realise that this is due to anxiety or low mood caused by underlying low self-esteem. Self-esteem can be a huge help in navigating life.

 

How Do We Know When Somebody Needs Help?

Signs of ill mental health vary from person to person. Somebody could withdraw from their usual activities and social life, their outlook on life could change to become quite bleak, and they may talk about death. These are quite obvious signs of a negative change in mental health. However, some people mask their emotions and continue as if nothing is wrong. This makes it harder to tell if there is a problem. Their symptoms may be things like lack of concentration and difficulty sleeping – these are things that others may not notice straight away.

 

How Can We Educate Further?

Communication is key when it comes to mental health education. Our workplaces need to have a certain amount of time allocated to education on mental health, in order to ensure employees have somewhere to go when they are struggling, or to help them recognise if they are struggling. Our schools need to also have these resources, so that children can grow up equipped with resilience and coping skills for difficult times. Some may argue that this is too much for a child, but it can help to develop an understanding of mental health problems that I argue would be very beneficial to them.

 

What Mental Health Problems Need To Be Spoken About?

Currently, there is a very generalised approach to mental health education for the general public, with a big focus on depression and anxiety. This is because the symptoms of depression and anxiety are much easier to relate to than symptoms that may come with other mental health problems. Most people can understand low mood and feeling anxious, because both of those things are things that everybody experiences to varying degrees.  Although knowing the signs and symptoms of depression and anxiety and knowing what you can do about those things is important, it’s also vital that we speak about other mental health problems that have more stigma and less understanding attached to them. Examples of these mental health problems would be eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder (now more often known as emotionally unstable personality disorder), post-natal depression, post-partum psychosis, and dissociative identity disorder. Here at Mental Health TV, we create content on not just depression and anxiety, but other more stigmatised mental health problems like the ones listed above.

Pyschopharmacology Treatment – An Important Part Of Psychiatric Treatment

 What Is Psychopharmacology?

Psychopharmacology is the study of the effect that drugs have on peoples’ minds and behaviour. Without psychopharmacology, we wouldn’t have anti-anxiety medications, anti-psychotic medications or anti-depressants. Thanks to psychopharmacology, many lives have been changed for the better, and many find that their mental health problems are now manageable. However, this can’t be said for everybody, as the mind is a complicated thing, and everybody is different.

 

Why Do Psychotropic Medications Have A Bad Reputation?

Medications used to treat mental health problems have a lot of stigma attached to them. We’ve all heard people say things like, “They turn you into a different person,”, and, “They make you feel numb to everything.” Although exercising regularly, having a healthy diet and taking time for your own hobbies and relaxation all have a good effect on mental health, for some, this is not enough. Medication affects every person differently. Some people benefit greatly from mental health medication. They might find that anti-depressants take the edge off of their lows, allowing them to continue with their therapy, their routine or their work. They can make things more manageable. Like all medication, there is the possibility of side effects. Possible side effects are what the medication is supposed to prevent. To minimise risk, doctors insist on monitoring patients who are new to anti-depressants to make sure that they start to have the right effect.

 

Why Is Psychopharmacology Important?

For many, psychopharmacology treatment is life-saving. For those people, the ‘cure’ to their depression isn’t simply going on more walks in nature, or taking more time to relax. They need more. Unfortunately, many people that take medication for their mental health are judged for their decision to take medication. People sharing their negative beliefs with those who take medication for their mental health don’t realise that sometimes they’re acting as a saboteur to that person’s mental health.

 

Side Effects

Like any treatment requiring medication, psychopharmacology treatment has side effects. Side effects are a little less predictable with certain psychoactive medications. Some side effects may be weight gain and difficulty sleeping, difficulty concentrating or difficulty staying awake. Some may prefer their life without the side effects, and life may be more manageable without the medication. However, for some who need medications like anti-psychotics, weight gain or insomnia may be favourable to the alternative, which could be psychosis, paranoia, delusions, hallucinations and anything else that could put them or others at risk.

 

What About Addiction?

Some substances used to help treat mental health problems have a bad reputation because they are addictive. This is true, but sometimes it is the best option for somebody who is suffering. Also, most   medications have some kind of withdrawal effect. Newer versions of anti-depressants are said to have less severe withdrawal than older ones. These are known as SSRIs (serotonin sensitive reuptake inhibitors). It’s important to be guided through treatment and monitored regularly by a psychiatrist or your GP to ensure things are under control.

Bereavement In Obstetrics – Could Abortion Be Seen As A Bereavement?

 Bereavement In Obstetrics

Bereavement in obstetrics is a difficult topic to cover. Due to recent news about the change to abortion laws in Texas, I think we should think about bereavement in obstetrics in relation to abortion. Although abortion is a choice, it can still come with guilt and grief that need to be processed.

What Is A Miscarriage? 

A bereavement in obstetrics can be anything from a miscarriage to stillbirth. Miscarriages are most likely to happen in the first 3 months of pregnancy and usually happen through no fault of the pregnant person. However, they bring a lot of grief and guilt to the mother, who may feel like it is their fault. Miscarriages can happen later in pregnancy. Any loss up until 24 weeks of pregnancy is considered a miscarriage, and anything after that is considered a stillbirth. 

Complications With Miscarriage

Miscarriage can be extremely challenging physically, as well as mentally. Miscarriages in the first trimester tend to have fewer complications, though it is possible that complications may arise. Sometimes, miscarriages are incomplete. This means that some tissue does not come away and is left in the womb. When this happens, bleeding and cramping can last longer than the expected amount of time. Although incomplete miscarriages can resolve on their own, occasionally further treatment is required to clear the womb. There is also a higher risk of infection. It is possible to have these kinds of complications with abortion as well.

Abortion Laws

Recently, in Texas, abortion laws became very strict. Abortions after 6 weeks of pregnancy are now banned. There is up to a $10,000 reward for people who report illegal abortions. Having an abortion is not an easy choice to make and comes with a lot of guilt. A person may know that they want a child at some point in their life, but at the point in time that they become pregnant, they may be living in difficult circumstances. This can make the decision to have an abortion devastating. For some, contraception fails and they choose abortion because the pregnancy was something that they never wanted to happen. Most people who have abortions feel guilt about their decision, even if it was the right decision for them. Sadly, this law may put a lot of vulnerable people in danger. If someone is desperate for an abortion, they will find a way – and often it will be a higher risk than visiting an abortion clinic.

Bereavement In Obstetrics And Emotional Support

Some might ask if abortion counts as bereavement in obstetrics. I think it’s extremely important that anybody who has experienced a bereavement in obstetrics, including abortion, receive emotional support. I also think it’s important that the benefits of emotional support and possible counseling or therapy be explained to them, as some people might feel that they’re fine as they are. I also think it’s important that there is emotional support provided for both parents. Education on what causes miscarriages, that it isn’t always something in your control, and complications of miscarriages could also really help others in the future. I think that regardless of the fact that abortion is a choice, it still can and should be seen as  bereavement in obstetrics because there is still a huge amount of emotional and physical change that follows. 

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – Misconceptions About OCD

 What Do You Think OCD Is?

Most people have heard the term ‘OCD’, but the real question is, has it been used in the right context? Many associate ‘OCD’ with traits like being neat, clean, and tidy. While these can come as a part of OCD, they’re not what defines it. OCD stands for obsessive-compulsive disorder – this is shocking for some who use the term on a regular basis, as they might not realize it is an actual anxiety disorder. 

What Is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Really?

Obsessive compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by distressing intrusive thoughts and the compulsions or rituals that someone may perform to reduce their anxiety around these thoughts. Intrusive thoughts can be relating to the cleanliness or tidiness of a room, but there are many kinds of intrusive thoughts that can come with obsessive-compulsive disorder, not just these. Sometimes obsessive-compulsive disorder affects people in a way that has nothing to do with this. For example, intrusive thoughts can be worrying you might accidentally harm or kill somebody, unpleasant sexual thoughts, anything that you might not necessarily WANT to think, but that just comes into your head. Intrusive thoughts are something that everyone experiences, but not everyone can just dismiss them. To some, they feel extreme guilt or worry around the intrusive thought and they have to check things, count to a certain number, wash their hands a certain number of times in order to rid themselves of the thought. This is only temporary and often the dependence on the compulsions becomes more severe over time.

What Are Compulsions?

Compulsions can be all sorts of things. One that we would be familiar with from TV shows and films would be obsessive cleaning, and checking things are in place. Other compulsions include ‘neutralizing bad thoughts’ by thinking good things to counteract the bad thought, ruminating, hand-washing and many more. One that a lot of people wouldn’t realize is a compulsion is reassurance seeking. This can come through in different ways – checking what people think of something you have said or done, or disguised in a normal conversation which is often guided by the person who needs the reassurance until they find the reassurance they need. Some may say the same things to lots of different people in the form of ‘oversharing’ to get the reassurance they need over and over again. So obsessive-compulsive disorder is not necessarily what the media portrays it as. 

Mental Health Education – What Are We Contributing?

 About Us

At Mental Health TV, we provide mental health education to the general public, as well as medical students, or professionals looking for CPD. We believe mental health education is extremely important for those dealing with mental health problems, but also a key to becoming more aware of when there really is a problem. Mental Health TV was founded by Dr Andrew Macaulay, MD, MSc., MRCPsych. He has been a practising Psychiatrist for over 30 years and is passionate about mental health education.

Our Programmes

We make lots of different programmes, ranging from Insights on Depression, to The Medicated Misadventures of Sarah Tonin. The Medicated Misadventures of Sarah Tonin is an animated short series that we are working on to show how serotonin, adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine work together to affect our moods. The aim of this programme is to provide mental health education to a broad audience and simply explain the way these neurotransmitters can work. This will help with awareness on how SSRI anti-depressants work as well.

The Medicated Misadventures Of Sarah Tonin

What we are aiming to achieve with this programme is mental health education that is eye-catching and interesting. Many sources of mental health education, while good, are in the familiar format of talking heads. We decided to change serotonin into a character called Sarah and demonstrate simply what her tasks were when it came to regulating mood. The catecholamines (noradrenaline, adrenaline, and dopamine), we turned into cats named Nora, Addy and Dopey. They all live in the brain of a 20-something party animal. Nora is fitness obsessed and keeps the body ready to move, Addy is always on the watch for things that make Mac anxious, and Dopey encourages Mac to do the things that he enjoys – though this isn’t always helpful. Sarah sends messages to the nerve cells every day, but if she slacks, Mac’s mood can dip as things go out of balance. The second episode will demonstrate the function of SSRI anti-depressants. This is important, as there are a lot of misconceptions about anti-depressants and sometimes this prevents people from seeking treatment for their mental health problems.

Matters Of The Mind

Matters of the Mind is a YouTube series that we regularly update. It’s bite-size mental health education, covering a variety of topics, with our most recent one being caffeine and mental health. We’ve also covered schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, trichotillomania and more. These are short and snappy, in the hope they can appeal to a broader audience. 

Stress And Depression In The Workplace – How Can It Be Tackled?

What Are Symptoms Of Stress And Depression?

Stress is something that all of us experience. It is normal to go through stressful times in our lives. However, too much stress can affect mental and physical health in a negative way. Stress can cause someone to experience mood swings, agitation, the feeling of being overwhelmed, difficulty relaxing, low self-esteem and feelings of worthlessness. These are just the emotional symptoms of stress. Physical symptoms include fatigue, tension headaches, IBS symptoms, muscle tension, palpitations, difficulty sleeping, lack of libido and more. It can make it hard for somebody to concentrate, and they might be less organised than usual. Having listed just some of the symptoms of stress, it’s easy to see why it is in an employer’s best interests to tackle stress in the workplace. Symptoms of chronic stress and depression do overlap. Depression affects motivation, sleep, appetite, anxiety levels, and more. Too much stress can lead to depression.

How Can We Reduce Stress And Depression In The Workplace?

It’s important for employers to be approachable about these issues, so that they can try and make a difference. This isn’t always the case, but many large companies do have policies in place to help employees who are stressed or struggling with mental health problems. Many will be able to try and negotiate more comfortable hours or ask what can be done to reduce stress during every day tasks. However, sometimes these changes are not made, or if they are, they aren’t enough. In this case, employees should be allowed the time that they need to visit their doctor and see if there could be further treatment for their stress. Sometimes the stressors come from outside the workplace and make it difficult for employees to work, with examples being divorce or bereavement. In these times, employees should be given the time they need to recover or navigate their stressful situation. When they wish to return to work, they should have a return to work interview to discuss how to make coming back to work as smooth for them as possible. The focus should always be on the employee, and not the effect that it has on the workplace here. Employees struggling with stress, depression, or both, may also feel a lot of guilt about a lack of productivity in the workplace. It’s important that they are made to feel supported and not worse.