Description of the Disorders
The compulsions and obsessions affect one’s daily activities as well as cause much distress. A patient may attempt to stop or ignore but it only increases worsens the situation. Eventually, one feels driven to perform acts in attempts to ease the condition. In spite of the efforts of getting rid of bothering urges, they keep happening again (Drislane et al., 2019). This causes more ritualistic behavior which is the vicious cycle of the illness. The disorder usually centers around particular themes, for instance, an excessive fear of being contaminated by germs (Drislane et al., 2019). To reduce the worries, one may compulsively wash their hands until they are sore. The behavior often has deleterious impact for the individual and people around them such as physical, emotional, financial, social and legal. For people who hoard, their quantity of their gathered items makes them stand out from other persons (Watts et al., 2021). Some of the things that are commonly held include magazines, newspapers, plastic bags, photos, or clothing. For the case of hair pulling or otherwise called trichotillomania, someone is unable to resist the desire to pull out their hair. This can be from the head or other parts such as eyelashes and eyebrows. The condition mostly happens among teenagers as well as young adults(Edition, 2913). Skin picking is a disorder known as the excoriation whereby someone repeatedly picks their own skin which leads to lesions and results in major disruption in a person’s life. It is usual for patients to spend long periods which can last for even hours in a single day (Drislane et al., 2019). Skin picking starts at adolescence stage, commonly following the onset of or coinciding with puberty around ages thirteen and fifteen years. However, they may also happen among kids under ten years old or adults at age thirty or older.
Epidemiology of Disorders
They increase the danger of triggering or developing obsessive-compulsive disorder, for instance, family history. Having a parent or relative with the condition can raise the risk of contracting OCD. Another is stressful life events whereby if an individual has experienced a traumatic incident, the risk increases. The reaction may trigger the intrusive thoughts, emotional distress, and rituals. Additionally, other mental illnesses, for example depression or anxiety, may result in someone contracting the condition. Individuals hoard due to believing that an item will be valuable or useful in the future. They may also feel that it has a sentimental worth which is irreplaceable and unique or too large to throw away. People suffering from the disorder consider items a reminder that will help their memory trusting that without them, they cannot recall an essential event or person (Watts et al., 2021). Bald parts on someone’s head may result in an unusual shape as well as affect one side more than the other. This disease may lead to low self-esteem and shame (Drislane et al., 2019). Those impacted may attempt to keep their situation to themselves. There are risk factors regarding skin picking including shame as well as embarrassment. Individuals who experience it may feel ashamed of the appearance of their skin. Another is avoidance of social situations which may result from humiliation of the condition.
Etiological Considerations for Disorders
Additionally, the condition may have a genetic component, but certain genes are still not identified. Compulsive behaviors and obsessive fears can be learned from watching a family member or relative or slowly acquired over time. Some of the causes of hoarding include being a relative or family member to a person with the illness. Brain injury can also trigger the need to save things. Traumatic life events can also be responsible for the disorder. Mental illnesses such as OCD or depression, uncontrolled purchasing habits, or inability to refuse free items can cause the disorder too. They also attribute it to the brain chemical imbalance similar to OCD changes in the levels of hormones during puberty (Drislane et al., 2019). For some individuals, pulling out hair can be an addiction. The more it happens, the more they feel like doing it. Until now, research scientists have not confirmed a particular cause for the excoriation illness(Edition, 2013). Nevertheless, proof shows that the disease is more common in people with OCD and their siblings, parents or kids than in the general populace, revealing that there is a genetic disposition to the disorder.
Assessment of the Diseases
Hoarding is an insistent difficulty parting or discarding with belongings regardless of their actual worth results from a perceived desire to save an item and to distress after throwing them away. The possessions congest as well as clutter active living places and significantly compromise their use (Watts et al., 2021). The DSM-5 categorizes the condition as an OCD or related disorder. An individual who suffers from the illness pulls out their hair consistently from eyebrows, scalp, or any other body part. The manual also has criteria for skin picking including constant skin-picking which results in lesions and recurrent trials to stop or reduce the frequency of the action. The condition causes clinical distress or impairment in occupational, social or other essential areas of one’s life.
References
Drislane, L. E., Sellbom, M., Brislin, S. J., Strickland, C. M., Christian, E., Wygant, D. B.,… & Patrick, C. J. (2019). Improving characterization of psychopathy within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (DSM–5), alternative model for personality disorders: Creation and validation of Personality Inventory for DSM–5 Triarchic scales.Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 10(6), 511. Web.
Edition, F. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. Am Psychiatric Assoc, 21, 591-643. Web.
Watts, A. L., Boness, C. L., Loeffelman, J. E., Steinley, D., & Sher, K. J. (2021). Does crude measurement contribute to observed unidimensionality of psychological constructs? A demonstration with DSM–5 alcohol use disorder.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 130(5), 512. Web.