The Mysticism of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in History (essay for Psych)
Obsessive compulsive disorder, commonly shortened to the acronym OCD, is mental illness that affects the basal ganglia, the section of the brain engaged in action selection and regulating voluntary movements. It also often is seen engaging the amygdala, which is generally in control of emotional processing. It is a disorder under the umbrella of generalized anxiety disorders, one that causes the individual to hyperfocus on thoughts and actions, often showing up in repetitive “compulsions” such as tapping, counting, praying, and a multitude of other actions.
Just like other types of mental disorders, OCD has been seen as just another variation of insanity, or a psychosis that generally went disregarded throughout history. What is especially interesting about OCD is the ways in which it connects to religion and mysticism, and how the two are linked in such a way that even now OCD often affects people who are more religious than others.
When someone says they have OCD, the chances are they don’t have a wide overview of every symptom described in the DSM-5, which is to be the case for any mental illness. OCD is known to center around themes, and they can be broken into many different subsections. The ones most addressed are as follows:
· Contamination OCD creates a fear of viruses and germs, which leads to excessive cleaning or avoidance of things that could be contaminated.
· Harm OCD which is accompanied by a fear of hurting oneself or others, intentionally or accidentally.
· Sexual Intrusion OCD forces taboo and often violent sexual thoughts into the individual's thoughts; that are then checked over to be sure they are not born from desire.
· Scrupulosity OCD is one of the oldest documented faces that OCD can take. It focuses on the obsession around religion and morality.
In Ancient times, specifically Ancient Greece (the classical period), most mental ailments were attributed to an imbalance of something called “bodily humors”. Bodily humors referred to four fluids that everyone had in their system: blood, melancholy, bile, and phlegm. It was supposed that if these were imbalanced a person would experience paranoia, depression, and other mental health issues. The treatment of OCD started here but of course was not specifically treated as an individual disorder.
In the Renaissance era, obsessive behavior was seen in one of two ways. It was either a very holy experience, as if God Himself was speaking to you, or a devil had possessed you, and caused you to be obsessed. It really depended on whether or not your obsessions were on scrupulosity or sexual intrusion/harm. Regardless, it was seen through a theological lens throughout.
In the 19th century it began to be treated as a medical issue, which was accompanied by lobotomies and harsh conditions. This was how it was in the West, but in other parts of the world it was still seen as a theological issue. Even today OCD is linked with religion. It can be seen as highly moral to obsess over sin and ritual, as to avoid going
against scripture, and at the same time OCD is extremely taboo, as obsessions can go the exact opposite way.
I believe the only way to address the taboo around OCD is to continue to talk about it. Though it can be seen as moral, even the “moral” OCD is distressing and harmful for the person experiencing it. OCD is not just cleaning and being tidy, it is a serious disorder that affects many people across the world.
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