SD3 - Jan 2012

Since the debut is out, a number of people asked me about the name of this column. In fact, SD3 stands for standard deviation 3. Applying what we have learnt in research, in the assumed normal distribution population, about 68% of the population falls within SD1 while 95% falls in SD2. So, SD3 practically means the people in extreme or in some circumstances, being abnormal. This column indeed focuses on the area of abnormal psychology, introducing different kinds of disorder and analyzing strange behaviors. Hope you will like it!

記住記住記住, 洗手洗手洗手 (quote from董太 , the wife of ex-CE of HKSAR)

Have you ever watched the movie “The Aviator” acted by Leonardo Dicaprio? Or, have you ever met people who cannot help washing hands or counting subjects? If your answers to these questions are “yes”, then you may have some clues on what I am going to write on in this issue. Yes you are right, the topic for this issue is OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder).

Obviously, OCD comes from two parts – obsessive and compulsive. The word “obsessive” typically elicits the mind, while “compulsive” explains the behavior and action. It all starts with the mind, which is a thought that you cannot resist. After your mind is stuck with that thought, some strange behaviors come out and you cannot stop that but keep doing it more and more frequently. Some obsessive thoughts include disgust with dirt, fear of unfortunate and unlucky numbers, while compulsive behaviors include counting, checking, cleaning and avoidance.

In the film “The Aviator”, the actor cleaned his hands thoroughly again and again, and he had to put everything in absolute order. When he was stuck, he kept repeating an important phrase. Even others noticed his weird behaviors, he could not stop. Maybe the most critical reason for the occurrence of OCD was the teaching from his mother. His mother implanted a belief that everything in the outside world was dirty and disgusting. As time goes by, his symptoms declined further.

OCD is different from addiction in a sense that the patient is unhappy. For addicts, the more they are obsessed, the happier they are. They just too enjoy completing the addicted task or taking the addicted substance. However, the case is totally different for OCD. Sufferers of OCD know exactly that they should not continue the wrongdoings, but they just cannot help. Therefore, OCD sufferers are unhappy and they feel horrible all the time.

On the other hand, OCD also differentiates from schizophrenia because the sufferers realize the real world. Schizophrenics are drunk in the virtual world they imagine, losing the ability to recognize the truth. Yet, OCD patients can sense the world. They know that others feel odd with their compulsive behavior. Maybe, knowing the truth is the most suffocating part for them.

On treating the disorder, aversive therapy is inappropriate, as it will only make the situation declines faster. Instead, CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is a better choice. It can help them to face the source of fear and anxiety and help preventing the behavior from happening. It is useless to tell them the behavior is wrong. So, if you meet people with OCD, try not to judge them, try to sympathize with them.

Venus Lai

References: 
Carlson, N. (2010). Physiology of Behavior. Hong Kong: Pearson Education. 
Pinel, J. (2009). Biopsychology. Hong Kong: Pearson Education. 
The Art of Clean Up (Picture Gallery) (2011). Retrieved December 31, 2011 from http://dailypicksandflicks.com/2011/08/29/the-art-of-clean-up-picture-gallery/