Obsessive-compulsive disorder, also known as obsessive compulsive disorder, is a mental disorder consisting of various obsessions, compulsions and avoidance behaviors.
Obsessions, also known as compulsions, can be defined as involuntary and repetitive thoughts, images or impulses that cause anxiety, uneasiness or disgust in the child.
The child develops various coping behaviors to reduce the uneasiness, anxiety or disgust that the obsessions cause. Some of these behaviors are called compulsions. In other words, compulsions are various behaviors to eliminate the unpleasant feelings caused by obsessions. An example of a compulsion behavior is a child who touches a place that he/she thinks is dirty with his/her hand and washes his/her hands repeatedly in order to eliminate the feeling of disgust he/she feels in the face of this.
Another method of coping with the unpleasant feelings caused by obsessions is avoidance behaviors. The child tries to comfort and protect himself/herself by avoiding all kinds of triggers that may trigger obsessions and related unpleasant feelings. For example, in order to avoid the obsession of "I got dirty" and the feeling of disgust when touching the place on an excursion, he/she may not participate in excursions or even if he/she does participate, he/she may touch the place with materials such as napkins.
Sometimes natural childhood obsessions such as walking without stepping on lines or counting license plates can be seen in young children and these obsessions may disappear over time. Therefore, when such obsessions or compulsions are observed in children, it should not be immediately concluded that this is a disorder. In obsessive-compulsive disorder at the clinical level, obsessions and compulsions should be of a type that interferes with the child's functioning, have been present for at least 6 months to 1 year, cause serious anxiety in the child and cause avoidance behaviors.
Of course, as with many mental disorders, each child's obsessions and compulsions will be unique to that child. While there are a wide variety of obsessions and compulsions in obsessive-compulsive disorder, there are also obsessions and compulsions that are common in children.
Common Obsessions and Related Behaviors in Childhood Obsessive Compulsive (OCD) Disorder
- Contamination/pollution
- Religion
- Symmetry
- Sexual
- Accumulation/storage
- Aggression
- Cleaning
- Repetitive behaviors
- Controlling
- Counting objects
- Sorting / organizing
In addition to these, obsessive-compulsive disorder, which is frequently observed in children, magical thinking has an important place in obsessive-compulsive disorders.
Magical thinking in obsessive-compulsive disorder is the name given to the child's uncommon causal relationship between certain situations/concepts. An example of magical thinking can be a mental thought that if he/she finishes the work he/she is doing at the moment within a certain second, he/she will get a high score in the exam the next day. Magical thinking is often associated with the desire to control the outside world. Although, according to some scientists, this condition is considered natural until the age of 11-12, its intensity, quality and severity should be evaluated by a specialist.
Considering that the foundations of obsessive-compulsive disorder, obsessive and compulsive disorder seen in adulthood often emerge in childhood, the importance of early diagnosis and treatment is inevitable. If the family observes the above-mentioned conditions/criteria, they should immediately make an appointment with a mental health professional.
