Effects of OCD in one's life.

Movies and TV shows often portray people with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) as quirky and comical individuals. From the famous Howard Hughes to Adrian Monk to Sylvester Dodd, all of them seem ‘cool’ when they are going about their OCD driven rituals. The reality is however far from that; where people suffering from OCD face numerous problems and daily challenges. Thinking you're crazy – when you keep having obsessive thoughts that intrude on your everyday life, coupled with strong urges to perform certain behaviors and rituals – you may begin to think you're crazy if you don't understand the condition. Isolation – Isolation represents one of the most disheartening effects of OCD on relationships. The person with OCD is under an immense amount of pressure to complete their rituals and the time taken to complete them is often exhausting. The pressure coupled with the exhaustion makes interactions with people a herculean task which ultimately results in isolation and loneliness. The feeling of loneliness intensifies when you become afraid of leaving home due to fear of your OCD being triggered at social gatherings. Depression and low self-esteem – the longer you suffer from the effects of OCD without help, the more you'll feel powerless and out of control. Feeling this way leads to depression and a degraded self- esteem. Recipient of anger and annoyance– it's common for the person with OCD to experience anger and annoyance from his/her family members due to their intricate rituals or habits. Often the family criticises the person with OCD for their behaviour as if it were a choice. Resentment – family members often bear resentment toward the person with OCD because they feel they must isolate themselves from friends to avoid embarrassment because of their child's or spouse's compulsive behavior. This need to hide the illness fosters the resentment. In popular culture, OCD is mistakenly portrayed as a positive trait and personality quirk, but the reality is that it has a devastating impact on the people suffering from OCD.