Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety condition that causes feelings of worry and distress.
A person with OCD constantly imagines worst-case scenarios. He or she feels afraid that something disastrous will happen. A child with OCD may worry that his or her parents will be harmed, or a person with OCD who is afraid of germs may be terrified of becoming seriously ill.
In order to feel a sense of control over the negative thoughts they experience, people with OCD develop strange habits which they tend to perform in sets. To use the example of a person with OCD who is afraid of germs, the habit developed may be excessive, repeated hand-washing. An individual like this might feel the need to rigorously wash his or her hands exactly five (or some other arbitrary number) times. If he or she does not do this, feelings of panic and distress arise. Following the pattern to stave off the fear becomes a “compulsion.”
For a mother who has OCD, many of the worries caused by the mental health condition may be related to her children or her family. This can lead to an unusually high amount of anxiety over what her children eat, their health, their happiness, and so on.
It may be difficult for a mother with OCD to allow her children to get involved in activities that she cannot constantly supervise. Her fear can make her feel the need to be overly protective of her children.
To read more about being a mom with OCD, click on an article detailing the firsthand experience here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rachel-hillestad/mothering-with-ocd_b_3762451.html
