Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Symptoms and Treatment for Contamination OCD
What is Contamination OCD?
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common mental health disorder that affects about 1-3% of the population. It is characterized by recurring intrusive thoughts and the physical actions that follow these anxiety-inducing thoughts.
Contamination OCD is a common subtype of OCD, and it is more than just being overly clean. People with Contamination OCD have a complete fear of germs or contracting an illness in general. It is estimated that over 40% of people struggling with OCD have this subtype.
OCD looks different for everyone, but there is one common thread linking all forms of OCD together. Obsessions and compulsions are the hallmarks of this disorder. Obsessions are intrusive thoughts, which are then followed by compulsions, which are ritualistic behaviors aimed at quelling anxiety. Contamination OCD is driven by obsessive thoughts about cleanliness or contamination fears, which then result in compulsions to reduce the thoughts and associated feelings.
Contamination OCD is very treatable, with over 80% of clients in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) achieving positive changes in their anxiety as well as the way that they handle their fears of contamination.
Understanding Symptoms: Obsessions and Compulsions
Symptoms of Contamination OCD: Obsessions
Understanding the symptoms of this disorder is key to knowing how to treat it. Obsessions drive compulsions, so looking at these ways of thinking can help you gain more insight into why compulsions follow them. Typical contamination obsessions seen in this type of OCD include:
Fear of germs and dirt: This disorder is characterized by a strong fear of germs and contaminants. Typically, this fear is connected to the fear of getting an illness.
Fear of bodily fluids: Contamination can also extend to bodily fluids. Direct contact with a bodily fluid isn't necessary– being near it would be enough to trigger fear of getting a disease. For example, someone with this type of disorder may think that being in the same room as one drop of blood will give them a virus such as HIV.
Fear of spreading illness to others: Someone with this kind of disorder regularly thinks that they are contaminated. The guilt and fear of spreading it to others becomes a recurrent thought pattern.
Fear of going out in public: People with this disorder have a very specific, even rigid idea of what is comfortable for them. Being outside of their comfort zone, like being in public, can lead to obsessive thoughts about contamination.
These persistent thoughts can come on at any moment and cause significant distress. Over time, they can become habitual. When these thoughts occur, they can be very graphic in detail and create significant distress.
Symptoms of Contamination OCD: Compulsions
To stop the anxiety brought on by these thoughts, people with OCD engage in repetitive physical. These ritualistic actions, known as compulsions, make up the second half of symptoms. These are repetitious behaviors that are normally performed physically but can also be performed mentally. The relief brought by engaging in compulsions is temporary– meaning once the anxiety stops after compulsions diminish, the anxiety from obsessive thoughts comes back. The cyclical nature of OCD, especially the physical compulsions, can be emotionally and physically draining. Compulsions in contamination OCD include:
Excessive hand washing or showering: This is typically thought to be the most common compulsion with this disorder. Left feeling dirty from the obsessive thoughts, people may feel an excessive need to wash their hands. This can leave skin rubbed raw or chapped. In severe cases, hand washing and showering can take hours every day. Some people may even use harsh chemical products, like bleach or Clorox on their skin.
Over-disinfection or sterilization: Someone with Contamination OCD may spend hours a day cleaning their space repetitively until it feels clean enough for them to exist in.
Throwing away items: If something has come in contact with something else that is thought to be contaminated, then a person might just throw that item away out of fear of becoming contaminated.
Changing clothes often: Clothes are like a second layer of skin. If clothing encounters something that is contaminated, people with contamination OCD might have to change clothes immediately. Some people wear extra clothing layers or change clothes each time after using the bathroom.
Creation of “off-limit zones”: People with this kind of OCD tend to create a safe space for themselves where they are not scared of germs. This inner world is different from the outer world, where everything is perceived to be contaminated. This safe space can induce highly restrictive behaviors.
Living with Contamination OCD Symptoms
Contamination OCD affects people's quality of life greatly. For many, their entire day is dedicated to fearing contracting an illness or spreading germs. Living in constant fear of your surroundings can make living exhausting.
It can also put a strain on relationships. When thoughts and fears of person-to-person contact develop, those close to a person struggling with this disorder can be affected. If a family member is thought to be "dirty," then the person struggling might isolate from those they love. Moreover, isolation can extend further than just loved ones. The fear of being anywhere that is contaminated can make people completely recede from public life and avoid crowded spaces, which significantly impacts all facets of life. Before the consequences of this disorder start to become serious, it is important to seek treatment to overcome Contamination OCD.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as Treatment for Contamination OCD Symptoms
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the number one choice of effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder. With evidence-based research at its core, CBT is specifically designed to help establish that sense of control that was drowned out by intrusive thoughts. The effects of CBT treatment are long-lasting, meaning that what you learn with a therapist in the office will extend to outside the office long after therapy ends. CBT can greatly improve the quality of life once diminished by the effects of this disorder.
Is Contamination OCD Treatable?
OCD is highly treatable using CBT techniques, including Contamination OCD. There are many scientifically backed treatment options within CBT that help with the treatment of OCD. A primary characteristic of CBT is to stop the compulsions. Rewiring the response to use compulsions allows the person to learn healthier coping skills to help with their anxiety. Here are some commonly used techniques in treating OCD with CBT:
Exposure and Response Prevention: Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP) is consistently found to be the best psychotherapy treatment in reducing OCD symptoms. Breaking the link between obsessions and compulsions is key to stopping the cycle from continuing. ERP with a trained CBT therapist is a collaborative effort.
Creating a ranked list of fearful situations, and learning to confront the fears confidently while using coping skills is the first step in ERP. Alongside a therapist, you will work from the least daunting situation to the most challenging. The more exposure there is to something scary, the less scary it becomes. While being exposed to the situations, you and your therapist work on how to approach these challenges without engaging in compulsive rituals. Soon enough, the most daunting situation becomes doable, and you are to overcome contamination fears.
Cognitive Restructuring: It all starts with thoughts—especially negative ones. Cognitive restructuring is one of a number of CBT exercises in which people learn to develop more balanced ways of thinking. In someone with OCD, the negative loop of thoughts can be especially harmful because it intensifies their anxiety, which leads to more frightening thoughts. If you change the way that you think, behaviors will follow. So, in the treatment of Contamination OCD, changing negative thinking patterns into positive ones has the potential to reduce the onset of compulsive behaviors.
Mindfulness: With OCD comes a great deal of distress. Your system is always on high alert, wary of any potential triggers in the surrounding environment. Dealing with stress can be a great way of reducing anxiety. Mindfulness, or the practice of being aware of the present moment, is a constructive mode of reducing stress.
Instead of trying to control the thoughts as most people with OCD do, mindfulness therapy helps you experience those thoughts. By sitting still with these thoughts, it is possible to deem them solely mental events, not threats or triggers. Combined with other CBT techniques like ERP, mindfulness can be crucial in providing respite from negative thinking patterns.
Treatment of Contamination OCD at Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles
Expert Treatment for OCD
Our therapists at CBT Los Angeles are proficient in applying CBT treatment to those in need. All of the therapists here at Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles hold doctoral degrees, and some are professors at esteemed universities, teaching CBT at the PhD level. Our therapists are well-informed on the most recent research to ensure that everyone who walks in our doors gets state-of-the-art care, personalized to their needs.
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The therapists here at CBT Los Angeles are ready to treat you whenever you want, wherever you want. With multiple locations of outpatient treatment, our therapists are easily accessible to you. Whether you live in West Los Angeles or the East Side, our clinicians are ready to help. Because we want our mental health services to be accessible to everyone, all our clinicians provide Telehealth treatment programs as well. You can get high-quality care from the privacy and comfort of your home, no matter where you live in California.
Take the First Step Today in OCD Treatment
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Contamination OCD can wreak havoc in your life, but our clinicians can help you take back the life that’s rightfully yours. Contact Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles today to learn more about the services we offer and to seek treatment with one of our clinicians.