All About Obsessive Compulsive Disorder & How To Overcome it with CBT, Therapy & Counselling in Wolverhampton & West Midlands

What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

Obsessive Compulsive Disorders are more frequently referred to as OCD.

OCD is a diagnosis widely used within the medical health profession although we prefer to think of the problem as being a behaviour and NOT a medical illness.

This problem most commonly involves routines and protocols, either physical or cognitive, which are intended to provide reassurance that things are correct, in order or under control.

Routines may involve things like counting to certain numbers, arranging objects into patterns that have meanings and so on.

Frequently, when a particular “routine” or “obsessive thought” fails to provide any kind of relief, the sufferer will conclude that they must carry our longer or more complex repetitions in order to achieve relief.

These “ever-growing” cycles of behaviour or thinking can become “paralysing” and without the appropriate help can lead to an almost complete inability to “function normally”.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Symptoms

The most common symptoms of OCD are very similar to those associated with anxiety and can include:

• Increased heart rate
• An impending sense of fear or dread
• Feeling like you’re going to faint or pass out
• Feelings of dizziness
• Palpitations
• Fatigued Muscles
• Dry or Sticky mouth
• Sweating excessively
• Breathlessness
• Cramps in the Stomach
• Migraines and Headaches
• Sleep patterns becoming interrupted

You may have some or all of these symptoms, but it is important to remember that you may experience them in different ways to other people because of the subjective nature of our experiences.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can be Cognitive or Behavioural

Obsessive thoughts and behaviours can range from simple everyday behaviours such as tidiness (e.g. placing all food tins in the cupboard with the label facing outwards) to counting numbers or doing sums in their head to the point that they can think of nothing else.

With all OCD thoughts and behaviours, it is the degree to which the issue is preoccupying your time and/or limiting your life that is important.

For example, someone who worries about dirt or contamination may simply wash their hands carefully, maybe try and avoid using public toilets, or perhaps ensure they do not touch doors or handles in public toilets even if this means waiting a long time for someone else to open the door so they can nip through ‘untouched’.

However, place this same person under stress and they may begin to wash their hands obsessively and for some people this may become ritualistic to the point that their hands are never clean enough to leave their house.

Therapy & Counselling for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

We offer a number of different types of therapy and counselling for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and anxiety-related problems.

Choosing the most suitable therapy depends on a number of different considerations including factors such as:

• How long you have had the problem.
• Your personal preferences.
• How your problem is affecting you today.

You can read more about the different types of therapy for OCD on the following links:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Self-help CBT course for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Counselling for OCD

Although all therapies use slightly different approaches, the one thing they all have in common is the relationship that is formed between the client and therapist.

Furthermore, research also suggests that therapy relationship may be the most important factor in achieving a good therapy outcome.

Free Initial Consultations for Obsessive Compulsive Disorders

We offer all prospective clients a FREE initial consultation to discuss your OCD prior to commencing any treatment plans.

The consultation is free and lasts around 50 minutes.

During this consultation we will discuss the various therapy options that are available to you and make a considered recommendation based on your individual personal circumstances.

Initial consultations are also available as part of our online therapy service.

At Tranceform Psychology we recognise the importance of the therapeutic relationship in helping people to bring about effective change, so its important to be able to ‘meet’ to discuss any therapy treatments BEFORE proceeding.

Our policy is to help people make a fully balanced & considered decision about undertaking work with us, including both the financial and personal implications.