OCD Action

Truddles
Member

Food for thought:

The following is frequently mentioned on the forum "OCD should be reclassified as a neurological condition" - speaking as an individual I think that we are entirely missing the point here.

The continual calling for the reclassification of OCD is clouding the issue, the issue being that there needs to be far more research into OCD to promote better understanding of the condition and the causes etc so enabling better targeted treatments to be found. There needs to be more awareness of OCD amongst not only the public but the professionals. In order to do this we need to raise money and we need to make ourselves heard. We can all do our bit to help further the cause of OCD and to get our condition the recognition that it deserves.

For example years ago conditions such as epilepsy were classified as mental illnesses. Gradually it became accepted that it was a neurological condition, but recognising it as a neurological condition changed nothing. The stigma of epilepsy remained. Epilepsy is one of the world’s oldest recognised conditions and yet it’s only in the past thirty or so years that treatments have improved and the stigma slowly removed. Slowly the way that people with epilepsy were treated by both the professionals and the public started to change.

Why? Because people with epilepsy got together with the Epilepsy charities and with some of the professionals involved in the care and treatment of epilepsy and worked tirelessly to change the system and the perception of the condition by raising money for research and by promoting awareness of the condition. They promoted awareness amongst not only the public but also the professionals.

This is precisely what charities such as OCD Action and some of the professionals that treat people with OCD are doing. But they need our help in order to so.

I have often seen it mentioned that OCD doesn’t get the recognition that other conditions get. This is true, but the other conditions only got the recognition that they have by promoting themselves and so we must do the same and act as a united front to promote OCD and OCD awareness. OCD Action is a small but vitally important national charity that works tirelessly to improve the lives of people with OCD, to promote understanding of OCD, to get better treatments and to promote awareness and to provide support to people with OCD.

Going back to reclassifying OCD; many professionals now realise that you cannot separate the organic side of neurology from the workings of the mind and so there is a growing trend for Neurologists to work closely with Psychiatrists. In fact there is now a branch of psychiatry that deals with the mental disorders attributable to neurological conditions such as Epilepsy, Parkinson’s Disease and Multiple Sclerosis etc. It’s now also recognised that many psychiatric conditions have an organic or genetic basis and so despite having split away from each other many years ago, the two disciplines – neurology and psychiatry are now once again starting to work together when dealing with conditions of the nervous system and psychiatric conditions.

Until we know more about what causes the various types of OCD, it doesn’t matter whether it’s labelled as a psychiatric or a neurological condition, because what matters is that we all are able to easily and quickly access the treatment that is appropriate to our particular OCD and that there is more research into the various aspects of the condition including: the possible causes, be they biological, genetic or other, what perpetuates it and why for instance do some people respond to CBT whilst others appear to derive no benefit despite working hard with their therapist. Is it for instance the particular OCD that doesn’t respond to the CBT or another contributing factor that means that they are unable to benefit from CBT? Or is the way that the CBT is given and the quality of the CBT?

By continually stating that it should be reclassified as a neurological condition we are helping to perpetuate the myth that there is a stigma to having a psychiatric condition. There is no shame in having a psychiatric condition. Psychiatric conditions are just as real as physical ones; they just involve the mind rather than the body.

OCD is an anxiety disorder and presents with not only severe anxiety but also behavioural problems such as the compulsions and so people with OCD do need the input and support of mental health professionals such as Psychiatrists and Psychologists and CBT Therapists.

Sat Jun 18 2011 16:41:30 #
sweeteater
Member

Hi
I agree we all need to contribute to OCD being destigmatised and giving it a much higher profile. When I realised that OCD might be a neurological conditon, I actually felt better and more able to accept it. We certainly shouldn't be afraid of admitting we have a psychiatric condition, but to me that term is more ambiguous and mysterious. I agree with you that OCD is very complex, some sufferers respond to treatment, others don't, and that is an important point isn't it? that OCD is not simple, but very complex. Seeing it as a neurological illness that could be treated made it less scary for me, but I don't know what it is or how it is classified. One thing I know, OCD has a poor image in the media and that needs to be addressed

Sat Jun 18 2011 17:40:31 #
Tess
Member

Hi Trudy
My initial reaction to your post is that yes, what you are saying is correct but for me it has made a massive difference and given me huge peace of mind to know that OCD is neurological and that there is a physical cause because it means I am no longer overwhelmed by feelings that maybe I am not trying hard enough, that I am somehow weak minded because I have never managed to get back to how I was before OCD. I saw on todays news that there is new hope for Parkinsons sufferers because the scientists have now discovered that by adding chemicals to skin cells they can change them into brain cells and in time maybe they will be able to actually replace faulty parts of the brain.
I think in the future psychiatry will change and will concentrate less and less on psychological therapies and more towards physical treatments for what we now term mental illnesses and for me, this can't come soon enough.
I cannot understand why you think that by considering OCD as a neurological condition that it will perpetuate stigma, I would have thought it would have the exact opposite effect. As for the stigma of epilepsy remaining unchanged I must be on a different planet because I thought those attitudes were long gone.

Sat Jun 18 2011 17:42:05 #
BT
Member

I don’t feel we are clouding the important issues at all, Truddles.

I completely agree with everything that Tess has written. By the way, I have a close friend who has epilepsy. She has not encountered any stigma. Not so long ago some even regarded epilepsy as the work of the devil. Opinions have changed dramatically and I have found that the realisation that OCD has a biological basis has made people who are aware of this less judgemental and more understanding. Like Tess, I also feel so much better about myself. It has removed so much guilt etc.

Mon Jun 20 2011 12:31:55 #