The impact of OCD on learning: tips for a student how to cope with the disorder

Obsessive thoughts can appear in any person: "Did I close the door?", "Did I turn off the stove?", "Did I close the car?". A healthy person rarely has situations when what is really important is gnawing. For those who suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorder, thoughts cause severe discomfort, interfere with life. It can cause multiple problems for students. One of them is the inability to focus on comprehensive assignments and essays. They can try to do it themselves, ask friends for help, or pay to write essay by a qualified writer online.What is OCD?Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a disease in which obsessions occur, provoking severe anxiety. To avoid excitement or calm down, a person performs "rituals" (compulsions) - actions to which he attributes unreal, false properties. As a rule, these rituals look ridiculous, and the person is abnormal.Example 1It seems that if you go outside, you will definitely pick up germs, bacteria, and viruses. To avoid this, you invent a "defense mechanism": Wash your hands 7 times with soap for 3 minutes. You do it every time you need to go outside the house.Example 2I am sure that something will happen to my loved ones if they go to the store. So that nothing bad happens, you come up with a rhyme and say it several times. You think it will save them.Example 3I am convinced that you will "fail" the session if you do not count 10 trees on the way to the university. Obsessively looking for these 10 trees.Obsessions and compulsions can be very different: everyone comes up with their rituals to calm down and drown out thoughts.Consequences of OCD for a studentThis ailment may be weakly expressed: the thought "What if ...?" appears, but it can be removed by willpower. In a more neglected situation, when ideas become obsessive, exciting, it is impossible for a person to get rid of them without rituals. At the same time, thoughts are painful, uncontrollable, spinning in a circle in my head.OCD can greatly harm everyday life and studies:Being late to university. If an ordinary student's commute time takes 30-60 minutes to study, then for an OCD student this process can last for 2 hours. He can sort of getting ready, go out, walk halfway to the university, and the thought appears: "Did I close the door?". You come back several times to check. Another example can be obsessing things like whether he turned off the iron or the stove.Slow execution of homework and student work. The fear of making mistakes requires performing a certain ritual. If a mistake is made, you need to rewrite everything again. Such actions can be repeated several times until the work is done perfectly from start to finish. And then a multi-step verification follows.Problems with the assimilation of the material. This is due to the distraction of obsessive thoughts, as well as the lack of sufficient time for study, which is taken away by rituals.Restless sleep. OCD patients generally do not sleep well, because they do not have time to do much during the day. And when they go to rest, thoughts arise in their head about unfinished business, an unplugged light in another room, an open front door, etc.Those who suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorder themselves know how painful it can be. The disease not only exhausts the psyche but also creates problems in real life. It is difficult for those who are ill to get a job, cook dinner, put the child to bed, wash or iron things. Any action can be accompanied by obsessions.Tips for fightingIf the disorder causes severe discomfort, interferes with daily life, worries at night - it is necessary to consult a psychiatrist or a psychotherapist. The first may prescribe medications that will reduce anxiety and the frequency of obsessions. The second one will treat the disease without the use of drugs. Sometimes complex therapy is required.If thoughts do not interfere much with life, they appear from time to time, you can use recommendations that can prevent the development of the disease to more complex forms.Look fear in the eye. If you are afraid to use a towel at a party, touch the handrails in the subway - just do it a few times. So you will make sure that nothing terrible is happening. It is advisable to repeat the action until it ceases to cause strong excitement.Talk to your inner child. Ask questions, ask why you are suddenly afraid, why, what are the origins of fear. Calm yourself down like an adult child, try to give yourself a sense of security on your own.Reflect on the fact that obsessive thoughts are provoked by fears, not desires. You are afraid of disaster, germs, robbery, high electricity bills, etc. When thought and the need to perform a ritual appear in your head, do not think "Why should I do this?" and "For what?". In the first case, the answer is "Because something can happen to Dad," and in the second - "So that everything is fine with dad." But everything is fine with him anyway, so there is no need for a ritual.Do not forbid thoughts to appear, but work with them. Prohibitions can aggravate the disease, increase obsessions. Analyze your fears, separate the real ones from those that cause OCD.Don't blame yourself for having OCD. Accept the disease, look for ways to make friends with it, and establish daily life. Fighting can complicate the situation and cause side disorders: increased stress, depression, neurosis. The therapist will tell you how to establish contact with the "monsters" in your head.If the discomfort increases and OCD begins to change your usual lifestyle, be sure to consult a doctor!Regardless of whether you suffer from OCD or not, there may be difficulties in studying. Luckily, you can always get help from teachers, or find professionals online.-