Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
3/9/12
Cognitive Therapy Instead of trying to get rid of your thoughts, it helps you to change your reaction to them. It particularly targets unrealistic self-critical thoughts.This is useful if you have obsessional thoughts, but do not perform any rituals or actions to make yourself feel better. It can be used with exposure and response prevention. Antidepressant medication SSRI antidepressants can help even if you are not depressed. They can be used alone, or with CBT, for moderate to severe OCD. If treatment has not helped at all after three months, you can change to a different SSRI or to a medication called clomipramine. How effective is the treatment? Exposure and Response Prevention About three out of four people who complete this are helped a lot, but one in four will get symptoms again and will need extra treatment. About one in four people refuse to try this type of CBT, or else do not finish it they feel it's too much to ask. Medication About six out of 10 people improve with medication and their symptoms reduce roughly by half. Medication does help to prevent OCD coming back for as long as it is taken, even after several years. Unfortunately, about half of those who stop medication will get symptoms again in the months afterwards. This is less likely when medication is combined with CBT. Which approach is best for me? Mild OCD Exposure and Response Prevention can be tried without professional help. It is effective and has no sideeffects but you do feel more anxious for a while. You do need to be motivated and prepared for some hard work. Cognitive Therapy and medication are probably equally effective. Moderate or severe OCD You could choose either CBT (up to 10 hours of contact with a therapist) or medication (for 12 weeks) first. If you are no better, then you should try both treatments together. If your OCD is severe, it's probably best to try medication and CBT together from the start. Medication alone is an option if you don't feel you can face the anxiety of Exposure and Response Prevention but there is more chance that the OCD will return about one in two compared with about one in four for Exposure and Response Prevention treatment. Medication has to be taken for about a year, and is obviously not ideal during pregnancy or breastfeeding. This leaflet is made available through the generosity of the Charitable Monies Allocation Committee of the mental health charity St Andrew's, Northampton
February 2009 Royal College of Psychiatrists http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/. Due for review: February 2011. You can link to, download, print, photocopy and distribute this leaflet free of charge. But you must not change it or repost it on a website. Charity registration number (England and Wales) 228636 and in Scotland SC038369.
Please note that we are unable to offer advice on individual cases. Please see our FAQ for advice on getting help.
Please answer the following questions and press 'submit' to send your answers OR E-mail your responses to dhart@rcpsych.ac.uk On each line, click on the mark which most closely reflects how you feel about the statement in the left hand
www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mentalhealthinfo/problems/obsessivecompulsivedisorder/ocdkeyfacts.aspx?th 2/3
3/9/12
column. Your answers will help us to make this leaflet more useful - please try to rate every item. This leaflet is: Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
Readable
Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
Useful
Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
Well designed
Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
Did you look at this leaflet because you are a (maximum of 2 categories please): Service user/patient? Relative of a service user/patient? Carer of a service user/patient? Friend of a service user/patient? Healthcare professional? Healthcare student? Other (please specify)? Age group (please tick correct box) 0 - 16 years 17 - 24 years 25 - 55 years 55 + years name (optional): email (optional): Comments:
Submit
Reset
www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mentalhealthinfo/problems/obsessivecompulsivedisorder/ocdkeyfacts.aspx?th
3/3