Hello hello it's your friendly neighborhood OCD Advocate who actually got 8 hours of sleep! If you have ever been in charge of a toddler you'll know that's quite the feat. Suffice to say I'm feeling amazing today.
Something I've noticed here are a lot of posts inquiring about feeling like someone has "become OCD" due to increased hand washing, cleaning, or general concern about illness due to the pandemic.
So, I did a little digging and asking around and found out that what a lot of us, those with OCD *and* without it, are experiencing is known as Health Anxiety. I pulled the information together from the OCD Stories episode #191 with Dr. Josh Spitalnick . Dr. Spitalnick is a national expert on Health Anxiety.
Health Anxiety (A brief overview)
-The pathology, symptoms and treatment of Health Anxiety are identical to OCD, but the DSM does not classify it as part of OCD. It's on the spectrums of Somatic Symptom Disorder or Illness Anxiety Disorder.
-Illness Anxiety Disorder: Sufferers have either no discernible or very mild symptoms, but are concerned they'll become seriously or fatally ill.
-Somatic Symptom Disorder-Sufferers have mild/benign symptoms, but are concerned with the potentiality of a serious medical illness. Their beliefs of how serious the illness is are out of balance with the actual symptoms or what medical professionals have reported.
-Like OCD, the main features of Health Anxiety are fears (obsessions) which lead to safety behaviors (compulsions) intended to alleviate distress/anxiety. In reality, the safety behaviors only offer temporary relief and fuel the cycle of anxiety.
-Common triggers: Physiological sensations, unusual/new bodily symptoms, hearing about health/illness in the media, upcoming doctor's appointments, having a friend/loved one become ill and waiting for medical test results.
-Common compulsions: Doctor shopping, calling the doctor's office repeatedly, researching online, checking vitals/symptoms excessively, seeking reassurance and avoiding going to the doctor.
-Just like OCD, Exposure and Response Prevention is an extremely effective treatment for Health Anxiety. Through ERP, a Health Anxiety sufferer can learn to identify and reduce their rituals and safety behaviors while confronting their fears and accepting uncertainty. These tools can help empower them to break the cycle of Health Anxiety and get their life back.
I hope this helps!
Alex
#wellnesswednesday
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