Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Children
Many children with OCD will say that their obsessions are a lot like worries. The most common obsessions in children are "fears of intruders entering the house, fears of contamination with germs and toxic substances, or worries that they might have a
serious illness" (Obsessions in Children). Most will attempt to not think about their obsessions by avoiding certain things or by keeping themselves busy with something, but intrusive thoughts come right back dispite what the child does. Children will usually obsess about many things, not just singling out one thing to worry about.
The obsessions could be specific or vague. The younger the child is, the more vague the obsession becomes. Obsessions will occasionally change from time to time as the child gets older. At six, for example, a child could obsess about germs, then at sixteen, it could be replaced with worrying about if their candles were blown out or not. Neither the child nor parents know why these changes take place.
Somewhere around the age of eight, children start to notice that their obsessions are abnormal and will try to hide them. They are embarrassed talking about the rituals they "have" to perform, and may even deny that they have obsessive-compulsive disorder. Older children may do this because of peer pressure. They want to act like normal children their age, and know that their rituals are not socially acceptable. Younger children, on the other hand, are less aware of what’s socially acceptable and what’s not. They make no to hide their OCD. Adolescence who suffer from depression or who abuse drugs and alcohol have a better chance of developing OCD by the age of eighteen, than those who don’t.
Suggested disorders that are thought to contribute to OCD are "eating disorders, birth problems that subtly disturb brain development, and Tourette’s syndrome" (Science News, 277). Yet, in a study of 930 boys and girls, none of these factors show that they trigger OCD. This study does show, however, that those teenagers who show symptoms of other mental disorders, most often depression and substance abuse, are at a higher risk of developing OCD than teenagers who don’t have a mental disorder. Typically, people who develop OCD have one or more mental disorders in addition to OCD. Some of these disorders could include: "depression, social phobia, and alcohol and marijuana dependence" (Science News, 227).
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