By Anonymous, Thu, April 21, 2011
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a serious mental condition that can cause its sufferers signifcant trauma if not properly treated. As with anything else, getting the right treatment requires getting the appropriate original diagnosis from a doctor or mental health provider.
In order to accurately determine whether or not someone has OCD, the mental health specialist on hand will generally conduct a few vey standard tests. Then, depending on the results of those initial examinations, said specialist will choose the best course of action which can be anything from prescribing treatment options to requesting more tests.
Usually, all OCD examinations start with the most basic check-up around, a physical exam. This features everything from measuring weight and height, to checking heart rate, blood pressure and temperature, to examining the heart and lungs. Then, more often than not, a few laboratory tests follow. These tests could be anything from a complete blood count to checking for alcohol and drugs.
Once the physical stuff is out of the way, the test then moves forward to a psychological evaluation. The physician on hand will discuss what symptoms the potential OCD sufferer has been experiencing, talk about the person’s thoughts and feelings and try to get a general overall feel for the mental health stability of that particular person. Often times, the specialist or physician will seek out family members, friends and associates to get a better overall idea of what the potential OCD sufferer goes through, and to learn anything that the person may have left out in the original conversation.
Finally, all of the results from the examinations will be put together and analyzed. In order to be diagnosed with OCD, a certain criteria, as specified by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, must be met. Among the highlights of these criteria points are: having obsessions or compulsions, said obsessions and compulsions interfering with day-to-day lives of the sufferers, re-occurring stressful thoughts, impulses and images, and countless other symptoms.
While OCD does share many of its symptoms with other mental disorders, it should never be ruled out without getting the proper tests done. Anyone concerned that they, or someone they know may be suffering from the disorder should get the proper examinations done immediately.
