Cristina Baroncelli

                                                                    Your psychologist in The Hague


                                                                                               **We speak**     


OCD is an abbreviation for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

OCD falls under the classification of Anxiety Disorders. However, because of its symptoms and characteristics, I choose to give it a page of its own.

People with OCD experience anxious/ fearful thoughts (obsessions), and feel the need to perform rituals / peculiar actions that are meant to reduce tension or to avert or neutralize a disaster.

The (obsessive) thoughts are experienced as undesirable and very disturbing, and the person does not identify himself with them. Below are some common thoughts:

- To kill a family member

- Worry about dust or bacteria’s

- Occurrence of a disaster (intrusion, flood, fire)

- Fear of losing something

- Excessive concern about the occurrence of certain words, numbers, images.


Compulsions are acts/ rituals that are repeated in order to avoid certain disasters. The actions may be performed mentally or through certain behavior (repeating certain words, counting, disinfecting hands, etc.).

Based on the various compulsions and rituals, patients are classified as follows:


Types of obsessions

- Contaminations fears

- Causing harm by accident

- Causing harm to others on purpose

- Sexual obsessions

- Sexual orientation obsessions

- Religious obsessions

- Symmetry and exactness


Types of compulsions

- Washing and cleaning

- Checking

- Repeating

- Counting

- Ordering and arranging

- Mental rituals