More Than Just Habits: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding and Treating OCD in Melbourne
- Dr Daniel Shaw
- Oct 15
- 4 min read
"I'm so OCD about my desk."
"She's a bit OCD with her cleaning."
In everyday language, we often use the term "OCD" to describe someone neat, organised, or particular. But this casual use masks the reality of a debilitating and deeply misunderstood mental health condition. For those who truly live with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), it is not a personality quirk; it is a relentless cycle of intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviours that can consume their life.
If you are trapped in this cycle, you may feel exhausted, isolated, and ashamed, wondering why you can't just "stop" the thoughts or rituals. Please know this: OCD is a brain-based, neurobiological condition. It is not a sign of weakness, and with the right, specialised treatment, you can break free from its grip.
At Shaw Psychology, our Melbourne clinical psychologists provide evidence-based, compassionate care for OCD. This guide will demystify the condition and outline the path to recovery.
What Exactly is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder characterised by two core components: obsessions and compulsions. It involves a recurring loop where unwanted, intrusive thoughts (obsessions) cause intense distress, which the person then tries to relieve by performing a specific action or ritual (a compulsion).
This cycle is far more than just double-checking a lock or enjoying a clean house. OCD consumes significant amounts of time (often more than an hour a day), causes profound emotional distress, and significantly interferes with a person's daily life, work, and relationships.
The Two Parts of the OCD Trap: Obsessions and Compulsions
To understand OCD, it's crucial to separate its two parts.
1. Obsessions: The Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts. Obsessions are not just worries; they are persistent, unwanted, and often disturbing thoughts, images, or urges that enter your mind against your will. They create intense feelings of anxiety, disgust, or a sense that something is "not right." Common themes for obsessions include:
Contamination: Fear of germs, dirt, or becoming sick.
Harm: Fear of accidentally or intentionally harming yourself or someone else.
Symmetry and Order: An intense need for things to be perfectly aligned, even, or "just right."
Religious or Moral Scruples: Fear of being blasphemous or immoral.
Unwanted Sexual Thoughts: Intrusive thoughts or images that are disturbing and contrary to one's values.
2. Compulsions: The Rituals that Promise Relief. Compulsions are the repetitive behaviours or mental acts that a person feels driven to perform in response to an obsession. The goal of the compulsion is to reduce the anxiety caused by the obsession or to prevent a dreaded event from happening. Common compulsions include:
Washing and Cleaning: Excessive hand washing, showering, or cleaning of objects.
Checking: Repeatedly checking that doors are locked, appliances are off, or that you haven't harmed someone.
Counting and Repeating: Performing an action a specific number of times or repeating a phrase.
Ordering and Arranging: Needing to arrange objects in a precise way.
Mental Rituals: Silently praying, counting, or "cancelling out" an evil thought with a good one.
The relief provided by a compulsion is only temporary. Very quickly, the obsession returns, and the cycle begins again, often stronger than before.
An example:
David, a university student in Melbourne, was plagued by an intrusive thought that he might accidentally push someone onto the train tracks. This obsession did not mean he was a violent person; in fact, the thought horrified him. To neutralise the intense anxiety, he developed a compulsion: he had to tap his pockets three times and count to ten backwards every time a train passed. The ritual provided a fleeting moment of relief, but soon it wasn't enough. He started avoiding Flinders Street Station, then all train stations, until his world had shrunk so much he could barely leave his suburb. The compulsion, which started as a solution, had become his prison.
(Please note: This is a fictional vignette created for illustrative purposes only.)
A First Step You Can Take Today: Externalise and Label the OCD
Recovery begins with separating yourself from your condition. You are not your OCD. It is a disorder that is happening to you. A decisive first step is to give it a name.
Choose a Name: Think of a name for your OCD. It could be "The Bully," "The Dictator," "The Glitch," or anything that represents it as a separate, external force.
Label it in the Moment: The next time an obsessive thought appears, instead of getting caught in its content, try to say to yourself, "That's not me, that's 'The Bully' talking," or "Ah, 'The Glitch' is acting up again."
Create Separation: This simple act of labelling creates a small but crucial mental space between you and the obsessive thought. It shifts you from being a participant in the thought to being an observer of a symptom. This is the first step in taking back your power.
The Gold Standard Treatment: How Therapy Breaks the Cycle
While general talk therapy can be helpful, the most effective, evidence-based treatment for OCD is a specific form of CBT called Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP).
In ERP, a therapist gently and collaboratively guides you to gradually confront the thoughts, objects, and situations that trigger your obsessions (Exposure) without performing your usual compulsive ritual (Response Prevention). This process retrains your brain to learn that the anxiety will decrease on its own, without the need for the compulsion. You learn that you can tolerate the distress and that your feared outcomes do not happen. It is a courageous and empowering process that systematically dismantles the OCD cycle.
Contact us today on (03) 9969 2190 to learn more about our specialised OCD treatment programs, or book an initial consultation online here: https://bit.ly/bookshawpsychology.
