Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

You check the stove for the third time. You know it is off — you saw it, you touched it. But something inside you says: once more. Better safe than sorry. And then once more. And then the fear rises again, and you are standing right back where you just stood, checking what you have already checked. Not because you are forgetful, but because nothing inside you feels safe — no matter how many times you look.

Compulsive acts and obsessive thoughts take many forms: the endless checking of locks, switches, appliances. Counting between actions, certain rituals that must be followed so that nothing bad happens. The fear of contamination, which expresses itself in hours of washing and cleaning. From the outside this looks like exaggeration. From the inside it feels like a survival necessity.