Why is stress a contributing factor in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?
146699
I think it is because most of the poeple that have OCD also have social anxiety disorders and social pobias. And also most are constintly wondering if they did that one thing. Like with me I will set my alarm for the morning. I will check the time, then check it two more times, then move the alarm button make sure I moved it, check for the red light. Then I will lay down and still get up three more times to make sure. The stress is usually an anxiety that you didn't do something or didn't do it right.
544675
OCD...Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.   Or perhaps you just have very high-strung expectations for yourself.  Many are obsessed with perfection although it doesn't make one mentally ill per say.
567198
Stress can do a lot of harm to one's body.  It can speed up & slow down your period.
967219
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is the REPETITIVE performance of an act to the point that it interferes with regular activities.\n\nBased on your data, you were cautious, not obsessive-compulsive.\n\nAs long as your skin is intact, you will be fine.
997900
These are all separate mental health disorders though they may have some overlapping symptoms. ADHD is characterized by having poor impulse control and difficulty concentrating across environments.  Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety based disorder whereby the individual performs certain acts (hand washing etc.) in response to stress in an attempt to relieve their anxiety.  Bipolar Disorder is a mixture of Major Depression and Mania or Hypomania.  In this disorder a person has mood shifts that can take them from severe depressive states to extreme anxiety whereby they exhibit high energy and psychotic thinking for days at a time.  In the hypomania form, the person is somewhat more able to focus.  Each of these have different treatment modalities and medications.  ADHD and OCD do not progress to become Bipolar Disorder but they can be misdiagnosed and mistaken for Bipolar Disorder.
868150
I think it sounds like you are right.  Recognizing your problem is a good thing, you are already on your way to getting better.  OCD is related to an anxiety disorder and is very treatable.  No one can diagnose you online.  You need to see a professional for a diagnosis - like ask your regular doctor, and maybe he/she can refer you to a psychiatrist or a counselor.
38350
Yes, but stress comes from a variety of sources. Best of luck on managing it. Remember no matter how busy take time for yourself.
436381
I think its mostly genetic, but high stress can cause a series of other mental disorders. I am sorry your ex husband has been mistreating you, I hope you find someone who can protect you from him.
592680
it could be obsessive compulsive disorder, here is a diagnostic criteria. it can help\n\n\nDiagnostic Criteria\n\n   1. Either obsessions or compulsions:\n\n      Obsessions as defined by (1), (2), (3), and (4):\n         1. recurrent and persistent thoughts, impulses, or images that are experienced, at some time during the disturbance, as intrusive and inappropriate and that cause marked anxiety or distress\n         2. the thoughts, impulses, or images are not simply excessive worries about real-life problems\n         3. the person attempts to ignore or suppress such thoughts, impulses, or images, or to neutralize them with some other thought or action\n         4. the person recognizes that the obsessional thoughts, impulses, or images are a product of his or her own mind (not imposed from without as in thought insertion)\n\n      Compulsions as defined by (1) and (2):\n         1. repetitive behaviors (e.g., hand washing, ordering, checking) or mental acts (e.g., praying, counting, repeating words silently) that the person feels driven to perform in response to an obsession, or according to rules that must be applied rigidly\n         2. the behaviors or mental acts are aimed at preventing or reducing distress or preventing some dreaded event or situation; however, these behaviors or mental acts either are not connected in a realistic way with what they are designed to neutralize or prevent or are clearly excessive\n   2. At some point during the course of the disorder, the person has recognized that the obsessions or compulsions are excessive or unreasonable. Note: This does not apply to children.\n   3. The obsessions or compulsions cause marked distress, are time consuming (take more than 1 hour a day), or significantly interfere with the person's normal routine, occupational (or academic) functioning, or usual social activities or relationships.\n   4. If another Axis I disorder is present, the content of the obsessions or compulsions is not restricted to it (e.g., preoccupation with food in the presence of an Eating Disorder; hair pulling in the presence of Trichotillomania; concern with appearance in the presence of Body Dysmorphic Disorder; preoccupation with drugs in the presence of a Substance Use Disorder; preoccupation with having a serious illness in the presence of Hypochondriasis; preoccupation with sexual urges or fantasies in the presence of a Paraphilia; or guilty ruminations in the presence of Major Depressive Disorder).\n   5. The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication) or a general medical condition.
540966
Stress is caused by many different factors not only in youth but in people as a whole.  Many things cause stress i.e. - world issues, family issues, school issues, friends, health, work.  Stress can lead people to become depressed, lose sleep, become ill, do drugs, argue with others.  Everyone handles stress different ways and how they handle it may not always be the best - doing drugs, seeing a Dr., talking about it with family or friends, attempting suicide.
987501
Stress.\nBad nutrition.\nOr maybe is genetical.\nSee a doctor.
682656
I don't think there are any solid statistics, but its common knowledge that stress can contribute to pretty much every ailment there is!
900536
That has nothing to do with OCD. If you were obsessive-compulsive you'd have many obsessions that would take up a lot of your time and be in your thoughts a lot and you would have a hard time NOT doing them. Cleaning your butt well is not OCD.
270888
The urges that come with having Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can be extremely, if not impossible to over come on your own. OCD is a battle with your mind, it is a battle with yourself. It is thought that stress elevates the urges that come with OCD, but if you attempt to stop doing the routines and such, this will often stress you out more, causing the OCD to heighten. This is why it is so difficult to over come on your own, and listed by the World Health Orginization as one of the most frustrating disorders to live with, if left untreated. \n\nFor a description of treatment available for OCD and more information on the disorder refer to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OCD#Treatment\n\nIt is also good, to keep a notepad and pencil nearby when at home, or carry one with you. When you the urge to do something, before or after you do it, write down what the urge was. Beside it, list the intensity of the urge to carry out the routine, from one to ten. Then at the end of the day, read through your notes, try to find some sense in why you shouldn't be doing these things. This will most likely only be a small solution, though. If you suspect you have this, if you already haven't, a Health Care Professional can be consulted on the matter.
967147
i'm not understanding the question fully ... everyone has stress some people can deal with that stress more efficently than others.  The people who can't deal with that stress tend to show signs in their actions and bodily responses that the stress is overwhelming. So someone who bites their nails isn't necessarily suffering from GAD but it's likely that someone who has ulcers, bites their nails, twists their hair and taps their foot is someone who is suffereing from anxiety disorder. If my explanation did not help here is wikipedia's ....\n\nnxiety disorder is a blanket term covering several different forms of abnormal, pathological anxiety, fears, phobias and nervous conditions that may come on suddenly or gradually over a period of several years, and may impair or prevent the pursuing of normal daily routines.\nAnxiety and fear are ubiquitous emotions. The terms anxiety and fear have specific scientific meanings, but common usage has made them interchangeable. For example, a phobia is a kind of anxiety that is also defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV-TR) as a "persistent or irrational fear." Fear is defined as an emotional and physiological response to a recognized external threat (eg, a runaway car or an impending crash in an airplane). Anxiety is an unpleasant emotional state, the sources of which are less readily identified. It is frequently accompanied by physiological symptoms that may lead to fatigue or even exhaustion. Because fear of recognized threats causes similar unpleasant mental and physical changes, patients use the terms fear and anxiety interchangeably. Thus, there is little need to strive to differentiate anxiety from fear. However, distinguishing among different anxiety disorders is important, since accurate diagnosis is more likely to result in effective treatment and a better prognosis.
1034811
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. ADHD. Insomnia. It could be any number of things, I'd suggest laying down on your stomach and taking as deep of breaths as you can, for as long as you can while paying attention only to your breath the whole time.
348203
Summary of The Ways or Means by which Stress is Developed \nIf psychologists completely understood how stress and fears developed, we would know how to produce and reduce a phobia or an anxiety state. We don't. There seems to be a wide variety of life experiences which result in some form of stress, fear, anxiety, or psychosomatic illness. It would be convenient if life were simpler but it isn't. Perhaps a summary will help you review the ways you might become stressed and anxious \n\nEnvironmental factors and processes \n\nChanges, such as sudden trauma, several big crises, or many small daily hassles, cause stress. Intense stress years earlier, especially in childhood, can predispose us to over-react to current stress. \nEvents, such as barriers and conflicts that prevent the changes and goals we want, create stress. Having little control over our lives, e.g. being "on the assembly line" instead of the boss, contrary to popular belief, often increases stress and illness. \nMany environmental factors, including excessive or impossible demands, noise, boring or lonely work, stupid rules, unpleasant people, etc., cause stress. \nConflicts in our interpersonal relationships cause stress directly and can eventually cause anxieties and emotional disorders. \nConstitutional or physiological processes \n\nThe human body has different ways of responding to stress; one quick responding nerve-hormonal system involving adrenaline, another long-lasting system involving cortisol, and perhaps others. These systems not only determine the intensity of our anxiety reactions but also our attitudes, energy level, depression, and physical health after the stressful events are over. As individuals, our nervous systems differ; however, according to Richard Dienstbier at the University of Nebraska, we may be able to modify our unique physiological reactions by learning coping skills. \nThe genetic, constitutional, and intrauterine factors influence stress. Some of us may have been born "nervous" and "grouches." Almost certainly we are by nature prone to be shy or outgoing, and we inherit a propensity for certain serious psychological disorders. We don't know yet if different treatments are required for genetically determined problems than for learned problems. \nLearning processes \n\nHaving a "bad experience" causes us to later be stressed in that situation, i.e. pairing a neutral stimulus (situation) with a painful, scary experience will condition a fear response to the previously neutral stimulus. (classical conditioning) \nFears and other weaknesses may yield payoffs; the payoffs (like attention or dependency) cause the fear to grow. (operant conditioning) \nAvoiding frightening situations may reinforce and build fears and stress. (operant conditioning--negative reinforcement) \nCognitive learning processes \n\nSeeing others afraid and being warned of real or nonexistent dangers can make us afraid under certain conditions. (modeling) This can include seeing a movie or TV or reading a book or perhaps just fantasizing a danger. \nSome people have learned to see things negatively; they have a mental set that causes them to see threats and personal failure when others do not. Of course, seeing the situation as negative ("terrible"), unpredictable, uncontrollable, or ambiguous is stressful. \nMany long-lasting personality factors (neuroticism, pessimism, distrust, lack of flexibility and confidence) are related to stress, decision-making, and physiological responses. \nHaving a negative self-concept--expecting to be nervous and a loser--generates stress. \nIrrational ideas about how things "should be" or "must be" can cause stress when we perceive that life is not unfolding as we think it should. \nBelieving that we are helpless, that we can't handle the situation causes stress. \nDrawing faulty conclusions from our observations, such as scary ideas, like "the