THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OBESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER AND OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE PERSONALITY DISORDER

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER An anxiety disorder consisting of two symptoms, obsession and compulsion. They are different but they are closely related and often appear in the same individual. An obsession is a persistent and recurrent desire or thought. It is involuntary and is very distressing. Although the patient may try to ignore it, it is difficult to eliminate from the mind. A compulsion is an uncontrollable urge to perform an action that is repetitive and stereotyped. The individual may not know the reason for the action, but not performing it causes increased anxiety. After repeatedly failing to resist the compulsion, the patient may eventually lose the desire to resist it. In o.c. disorder, the patient replaces or deflects the unresolved conflict onto an external object or action as a substitute. The individual is hoping by doing this the conflict and anxiety will magically disappear. The mind represents this so the inner conflict will not become conscious. This is not the same as obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER A personality disorder that is conventional, serious, rigid and stubborn by preoccupation with trivial details, order, organization, schedules and lists to the point that the major point of an activity is lost or task completion is delayed. Reluctance to assign tasks or cooperative when working unless things are done the individual's way and devotion to work all cause serious problems in interpersonal relationships.