Taboo Topics in OCD: It’s More Common Than You Think

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health disorder where someone experiences an unwanted, intrusive, and distressing thought, image, or impulse known as an obsession. These obsessions then drive mental acts or repetitive behaviors known as compulsions aimed to reduce the anxiety or prevent the feared outcome. While OCD is becoming more recognized, there are many aspects of OCD that remain secret or taboo. These are specific areas where it is essential for a therapist to directly ask if someone is experiencing these types of obsessions as it can feel very stigmatized for someone to say out loud. In this blog, we will dive into the less-talked-about and often misunderstood subtypes of OCD.

Harm OCD

Misunderstanding Harm OCD can lead to unnecessary hospitalizations, inappropriate treatment, and extended suffering. Harm OCD involves having a fear that someone will harm themselves or someone else without any desire to actually cause harm. This includes violent intrusive thoughts of ways in which someone could hurt themselves or someone else. While the thoughts are not inherently dangerous, the level of distress felt due to the aggressive nature of the obsessions can be overwhelming. This can lead to excessive checking of the environment for safety, avoiding knives or sharp objects, avoiding people that we think we could harm, avoiding heights, mood tracking to assess if someone is feeling any depression or anger.

Pedophilia OCD

Pedophilia OCD is focused on the fear of doing something inappropriate to a child. These obsessions can become so real that someone may actually believe they are a pedophile because they made eye contact with a child or bumped into a child in a store. Obsessions can make it challenging for someone to go where children are commonly present such as parks, beaches, shopping malls, grocery stores, or community events. It is important to understand that someone with Pedophilia OCD has no intent to harm a child, and the opposite is actually true. There is such a fear that they might hurt children so they adjust their lives to avoid taking such risks. It is common for those with Pedophilia OCD to excessively check their arousal level in public or when around children to ensure they are not being inappropriate.

Incest OCD

Incest OCD is a suptype that specifically focuses on unwanted, intrusive obsessions involving sexual contact with a family member. This also includes for new parents having a fear of inappropriately touching their newborns or young children, becoming sexually aroused when around children, fears of being attracted to a family member, or intrusive images of sex with a family member. Often times someone with Incest OCD will avoid contact with their child or family member to avoid the risk of inappropriate contact, avoid family events, or check for sexual arousal. Checking arousal consists of scanning for both emotional arousal as well as physical arousal near the genitals.

Homosexual OCD

Homosexual OCD is based upon the fear of being attracted to the same gender. This is different from someone who is in fact attracted to the same gender. Homosexual OCD involves a fear of becoming sexually aroused by someone of the same gender or a fear of becoming attracted to the same gender.  Someone with homosexual OCD may feel the need to overly communicate their attraction to the opposite gender, avoid activities that involve physical contact with those of the same gender, excessive pornography to reassure oneself they are attracted to the opposite gender, and seeking assurance from others.

Scrupulosity OCD

Scrupulosity OCD involves excessive concern about moral, ethical, or religious issues. People with this subtype are tormented by thoughts they have done something morally wrong or that they are inherently bad people. It is important to recognize that these concerns are driven by OCD and not a reflection of an individual’s true character. Someone with Scrupulosity OCD can feel driven to always check if their actions align with their values, ritually read scripture or attend religious services, scan thoughts to ensure all thoughts align with values, and seek assurance from others that someone is a good person. Those struggling with scrupulosity may also avoid religion altogether because of the distress the obsessions cause.

Magical Thinking OCD

Magical Thinking OCD involves ongoing intrusive thoughts that someone needs to do, say, or think about in order to prevent something bad from happening. These thoughts could be for a specific horrible thing to happen, such as having a family member die in a car accident, or more generalized and undefined. The compulsions seen with Magical Thinking OCD often become a ritualized part of someone’s day to avoid the bad things from happening, and symptoms can especially be heightened after learning of a tragedy.

CalmOCD

Seeking effective treatment for OCD is crucial to decrease the suffering experienced in those with OCD, and this is especially true when it comes to taboo subtypes. Experiencing symptoms associated with the subtypes discussed can lead to even higher levels of guilt and shame, and it is critical to work with a clinician who can both normalize and understand the symptoms you are experiencing to provide effective treatment. CalmOCD specializes in all subtypes of OCD for ages 5 and older through Exposure and Response Prevention and Inferenced-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Additional treatment modalities are also incorporated to address cognitive, behavioral, and emotional symptoms seen alongside OCD. As experts in OCD, your CalmOCD therapist will create a treatment plan unique to your symptoms to build confidence and overcome the symptoms seen in OCD.

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