Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is defined in wikipedia as is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts that produce uneasiness, apprehension, fear, or worry, by repetitive behaviors aimed at reducing anxiety, or by a combination of such thoughts (obsessions) and behaviors (compulsions). Symptoms may include repetitive hand-washing; extensive hoarding; preoccupation with sexual or aggressive impulses, or with particular religious beliefs; aversion to odd numbers; and nervous habits, such as opening a door and closing it a certain number of times before one enters or leaves a room.
There are of course obvious signs of OCD such as the famous role of Jack Nicholson in As Good as It Gets but I think all of us suffer from some degree of OCD. We all have these compulsive habits that we can't seem to break. I remember coming out of a friend's house one day and then was shocked to see her lock and unlock the door three times. She explained that it was to make sure the door was locked. I remember how strange I thought that was and laughed inwardly (I'm sorry), but soon after I started noticing my own obsessive compulsive behaviors, like arranging my books in order of size or sorting a deck of cards after every time they're used. It doesn't matter if they need to be reshuffled again later and the task becomes more cumbersome, I can't help it. An unsorted deck of cards drives me insane.
I believe that all these quirky little habits are what make people interesting, but when do these habits take over? When do they start making life difficult and complicated? And can you put a stop to them before it gets too late? Is there really a cure? When do we become Melvin Udall?
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