FACTS& STATISTICS. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What was once thought of to be a rare disease is now known to be 1 of the more common 1's. Approximately 2.3% of the population between ages 18- 54 suffers from OCD, which outranks mental disorders such as: schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or panic disorder. This means that in a country such as the U.S., approximately 3.3 million people have OCD. Of which you have .3 to 1% of pediatric population and 2% of adult population. So about 1 out of 50 adults have OCD, twice as many had OCD at 1 point or another in their life. There is no discrimination as to who has OCD, since it is found in all ethnic groups and both men and women are equally struck by the disorder, although in children, OCD seems to be prevalent in boys. Nearly 1/3 to 1/2 of all sufferers will find that their OCD finds it roots in childhood, some will even show signs in their pre-school years. Cases of OCD have been reported in children as young as 1,5, needless to say it's hard to make the diagnosis at such a young age due to the lack of development in speech. Around the age of 6 the linguistic abilities of the child make it easier to find out the existence of OCD, this co- relates with the age where most children show their 1 st. real signs of OCD. In most cases however, symptoms will show while being a teenager or in early adulthood. The age of onset is typically reported as 6 - 15 for males and 20 - 29 for females and is usually by the age of 40. Although so many suffer from OCD, many are still hiding their symptoms and surveys estimate that less than 10 % of those people are currecntly in treatement. The presence of any aggression or oppositional defiant disorder has been said to indicate a poorer prognosis. Typically OCD and it's symptoms will get worse by Stress, Illnesses and Fatigue. Treating a child with OCD is very important..... delay will only cause the child more harm and more chance of it missing out on certain aspects of her/his development and life. Same goes for adults, the earlier professional help is sought, the greater chances are that some real progress will be made. OCD is a disorder that can be difficult to treat, but you can get your life back if you find the right help. The longer 1 waits to act upon it and look for help, the more the system finds a place in the person's life and the harder it will be to fight it. OCD will evolve throughout a person's life. Some will experience moments where their OCD almost disappears or becomes milder. No need to add that the anticipation of knowing it will or might come back is distressing. Others will see how the OCD takes over more and more of their lives and will eventually take over completely, making it impossible to function normally in life/society., this of course if left untreated or when no serious effort is made to fight back. So treatment is crucial..... You have 3 approaches: Pharmacological., Therapeutical. and Self Help. Some will benefit from therapy alone, some from medication while others will find a combination of both most helpful. ***THANK YOU TO understandingOCD.com for this helpful information.***