Why can children have OCD, what does it mean? Should they be treated? A psychologist answers you.
What is OCD?
“A OCD is a repetition that imposes itself, beyond all comfort and all will” explains Geoffroy Sombardier, psychologist in Marseille. “Its forms are so varied, in intensity and quality, that a majority of OCD are not identified as such. All children have OCD, without exception, regardless of their cognitive or psychological style.”
These impulses may include checking several times to make sure a door is closed, pulling out one’s hair or pinching one’s skin, hoarding objects of a certain type, avoiding touching certain things, or being preoccupied with a defect imaginary physics.
Obsessive-compulsive disorders can be more or less intrusive, some obsessions cause suffering in children and affect their quality of life.
Why does a child have OCD?
“OCD is a treatment for anxiety.” explains the psychologist. “Despite its unpleasantness and apparent absurdity, it has a therapeutic function. It’s a defensive formation.” This repeated movement thus makes it possible to replace theanguish felt, and to treat it, partially or totally.
Not all OCD is of the same intensity. Among those who are identified and diagnosed, 25% are before the age of 14 according to the MSD Manual. They can subsequently decrease as they become adults.
These disorders could arise from genetic or environmental causes. Other studies suspect bacterial infections as being the cause of certain OCD, such as streptococcal or mycoplasma pneumoniae infections.
How does OCD manifest in children?
Worry or fear is often the cause of OCD. Thus, for fear of being injured or catching a serious illness, the child will force himself to do actions repeatedly: checking that the door is locked, washing his hands excessively, counting the steps of the stairs. , clean, etc. These actions can be performed up to hundreds of times per day.
While some OCD have a direct link to fear, such as washing your hands to avoid getting sick, others are closer to fear. superstition, such as avoiding walking on lines on the ground to prevent a loved one from dying. Preventing them from carrying out these OCDs can make the child’s anxiety worse.
Children generally try to hide their OCD, so they are not always noticed by adults. In some children, particularly boys, OCD may be accompanied by ticsinvoluntary, rapid and repetitive movements.
Should OCD be treated in children?
“We should not try to eliminate compulsive action” warns Geoffroy Sombardier, “unless there are disabling consequences. Because the child would suddenly find himself in an emergency to treat the cause of anxiety with the limited means at his disposal: regression of all kinds (agitation, aggressiveness, excitement, consumption, character disorders, refusal of language, etc.), somatization (headaches, abdominal pain, pruritus), or cognitive disorders (inattention, confusion, various learning disorders).”
“OCD has the advantage of not being confused with medical disorder, not to risk confusing a neurological or cognitive symptom with a psychological symptom. It is a signature of the psychic.” he adds. “To treat it is to risk the formation of phobia and therefore possibly a return to OCD.”
So what are the disabling consequences of OCD that could justify treating it? For some children, OCD has a direct impact on their quality of life, their schooling and their social relationships, which can cause great suffering. In this case, a cognitive behavioral therapy Seeing a psychotherapist may be beneficial for the child in reducing symptoms.
In more severe cases, if cognitive behavioral therapy is not effective, the child’s anxiety can be treated with drugs, such as serotonin reuptake inhibitors. These medications are not prescribed lightly, they entail certain contraindications, precautions for use, and particular monitoring of possible adverse effects.
OCD resolves spontaneously during childhood in about 5% of children, and for 40% by early adulthood, according to the MSD Manual.
Sources:
Geoffroy Sombardier, psychologist in Marseille
The MSD Manual
Health Insurance
Vidal
Ramsay Services