Press Releases
University Institute offers hope to OCD sufferers
Release Date : 02 February 2010
Have you ever worried about the germs on a door handle or checked repeatedly that you turned the cooker off? All of us will occasionally experience examples of these, but for sufferers of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) it can take over their daily life.
However, psychologists at the University of Reading offer hope to OCD sufferers through both their research work and treatment of people with the condition. Those who have suffered with OCD for years can be cured, according to Professor Roz Shafran, Co-Director of the Charlie Waller Institute of Evidence-Based Psychological Treatment at the University.
"We encourage people to be realistic about their thoughts," said Professor Shafran. "We give them alternative ways of reacting to them and help change the behaviours that are keeping the problem going."
"We have very good outcomes and the good news is that OCD can be cured."
Next week (6-13 February) is OCD Week, which aims to raise awareness of the condition, which affects around two people in every 100. It is listed among the top 10 most debilitating illnesses by the World Health Organisation in terms of loss of income and decreased quality of life.
The Charlie Waller Institute is at the forefront of research into OCD. It is the first in the UK to train clinicians exclusively in proven psychological treatments recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) - those commonly used in treating people not only with anxiety problems such as OCD, but also other problems such as depression, psychosis and eating disorders.
The Institute is also researching treatments for people who have a particular form of OCD - mental contamination fears. This is where sufferers feel contaminated by their own thoughts - for example the very thought of dog mess could make a person feel that they have to wash their hands.
Professor Shafran said: "We all tend to have unwanted and intrusive thoughts but we don't pay any attention to them. However, OCD sufferers can't stop thinking about them - they tend to interpret these thoughts in a catastrophic manner, leading to all sorts of actions to deal with these thoughts. This can include repeating acts over and over again, excessive washing or cleaning or hoarding objects that other people would throw away."
On average, sufferers wait years before seeking treatment. The best form of ‘talking treatment' for OCD is cognitive behaviour therapy - which Professor Shafran and her colleagues offer to people referred to the Institute with mental contamination fears.
"Cognitive behaviour therapy can help people change their beliefs and behaviours about things they find distressing," said Professor Shafran. "They can get on with their lives again."