is an anxiety disorder characterised by uncontrollable, unwanted

thou ts and repetitive andlor ritua g ' ed behaviours a sufferer

feels compelled to perform. Often described as a repeated

groove on an old record, OCD causes the brain to get stuck on a

articuIar thought or ur e, so% as washing hands unt f i they

are scrubbed raw, or checking the door 20 times to make sure . it is r e d locked.

L if OCD can be a elong illness. A

Publication: The Straits Times, p D2-D3 Date: 17 March 2012 Headline: The pain of obsession

Singapore has emerged as the OCD capital of the world, the first study on the condition here has

Washers Afraid of contamination, they

usually have cleaning or hand-washing compulsions.

Checkers Repeatedly check things (like an

oven, door or windows) they associate with harm or danger.

Perfectionists

The pain

OCD WORLDWIDE o f w w

that hwethedlsadsr in their tifehs

1.1% EUROPE

3.0% SINGAPORE

SOURCE% Msya Clinic: Institute of Mental Health: S(ngapon Association tor Mentsl Haalth: tntamatlod OCD h#lndatim. Munidasa Wlndnv

ITWAStheworst~oflmrdtngthe clem-up m w ftom Boag SBvn W-

hndeverseea. -add= hnur io nudrrnmlryiareaofpla&cbags,bor- udmmpapmtbatBLled~hroom, ~ z ~ b a l h v r g r = d m p l d D g ~

Akout m ~ * . h P d tht nm of the ~ ~ , ~ ~ o a n t b e m o f , d P r t i a p ~ f m m i a b r u d f n g f e e t a n d ~ i a t o

**m thicket

FY3 ' "by% OfPTtbY-;

zr?&Zt b r f a g i n a a a w t o d e u b r ~ f r o m the d - f h r stmglbW

Thestateofthahouwmfrr~the r w n t r l ~ o f i t s ~ , ~ m o l t J i k e - ly d e r s from compddve hoarding, a form of oberdve-computrve disoder (OCD).

H o d a s tbeir b o w with items

m-. s t = t w Y , - - t o k a

greater proportion of pe le battlin# OCD th.n -m else h% -M.

me Sbgqmre Mental Heawl S*, t h e ~ t o n e o f i t S H u d ~ t o d a t e h r r o r m a t b ~ t w ~ b - t a i ~ t ~ d ~ y w r s l l g ~ g l o b r l o n e s , o C D i r t h e O l d t Y 4 t ~

compatd;riih about one in 40 h thL Umitcdst.tcs.

According to the $6.9 mmlon study, where 6,616 people were interviewed atcndvelp, d OCD are theta, depdsdoa. t h e mcnt.l rlcobol ills- h u e

c o k e . W& support group eldrt for tbwc

suffering from depression d alcohol abase, OCD Is a dent md lonely wnugc.

Likened to a hrt-drcrdt of the brah tbat,liteastuckgmweonmoldrc#rrd, hveu it unable to relure itself from a b o p , o c D & ~ n e o f t h e ~ d i r ~ mmtslillna#s.

' L c l f t b e ~ s t h t ~ e ~ in the S i p o r e Mental Health Study. OCDhasthethestageofmmt-at19 ye=, 80 it hits paUcnts at the mchl ~ t i v e s t a g a O f w ~ , ' ' ~ Asmciate Professor C b n g Slow Aaa, *icb-c6rinnm of the Institute of Mental Heawl's ~Ih(HS medical board beadl), who M the ntldv.

"It often m = d e c t e d a d ad- d, d e d ~ w u t d d r ter- rible inmret m health. well-bdru d producti;ritr..*

- ~rmagpr tka touef i td iacav -

not by mental health professkmals but by daMolo&b when they wek t n s t m m t t o r d r v ~ d ~ t o ~ * 8

often g& udqmed, e i t k bqww mffemra~tceashunedtoaeakhelpor donotlmonbwto.

Elabomting on the prlvate bell faced by OCD sufferur. Rof Chong te& ~ a m m ~ t r e & d a t h M i u ~ - kokGnminthamor~hadtakmthe mstof thedayl tut tonrhtothetr~

Uehtp about soom away. mRircase, when a p d c u h object

Source: The Straits Times O Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

Publication: The Straits Times, p D2-D3 Date: 17 March 2012 Headline: The pain of obsession

Could the relentless pursuit of perfection at all costs be fuelling the disease here?

revealed. Around 3 per cent of people here are hit by this debilitating illnes S.

of obsession ktepupwfththosebroadersodetplmove- mcnts."

Pointing to Singapore's numerous mt iod campdgns, Assistant Professor Tan of Singapore Management University says tbat their key messages are constant - ly being rdnforced in schools.

"Adding to that, the home environ- ment. We have a powerfd envfronment in which the quest to do well, to check, double-check, triple-check, be c h , be productive and be safe, all prpdyce a na- tional climate of over-achrevmg," he soys. OCD & a product of nature and m-

hnc. It tends to run in families, can be

brought on by cutsin illnesses and can also hit new mothers.

But living in a Wpsu ("scared to Iose outn in Haldden) setting, says psychfp- trbt A d r i i Wang, Is likely to worsen the condition for someone with the disorder.

uItls a fine line. Being a perfectionist can be a good thing, because it means you do your job well; but an environment .where everyone is pushing himself to do better is a stressful one, and win put a b&g atrain on OCD sufferers and those with obsessive personality traits," says Dr Wang, who has seen children as young as seven years old here sufMng from OCD.

education system is stressful. I've seen klds with OCD who have been completely paralysed by their homework d exams. The OCD kid can never &&.h his homework or exam questions, because he keeps going over it until he - - - gets it right."

PsychlaMsts and m ~ t a l health work- ers, alarmett at the hrgh levels of OCD here, are looking into &tthg up support groups for sufferers, as part of efforts to close the treatment gap for the almost nine in 10 people who currently do not - - seek help.

Those who do often find relief from their symptoms@ go on to lead normal lhtes, although the rlsk of a relapse during times of stress is e d present.

IMH, which currently does not have a structured support group for OCD suffer- ers, is looking into setting *a&. It is al- so training GPs and c c n n d t y grass- roots and help groups to watch out for warning signs of mental illness.

But the problem is too big to be tack- ted by IMH alone, says the institutels Rof Cbang, who hopes to get more fund- ing to farther research into OCD here. YOCD is m illness with an early onset d luge hatment gap, so education in schools canplay acritical rolein helplng to spot it early," he says. Dr LamFlnMin, whochairstheGov-

ement Parljamentary Committee for Health, MgbUghts the need to raise the awareness of this treatable condition among Slneaporeans, and suggests that IMH partner the Health Promotion Board to do so through roadshows, exbiMtions and educational talks.

A specific support group is a good idea as it allows patients afflicted with the same condition to share experiences and challenges in ove~~omlag the problem, he adds.

'Patients can also use this platfonn to ~oneauother.Thiswil lhopeful- ly enhance compliance withntreatment and minimise the default rate.

0n.e big issue that keeps sufferers trapped in a bubble is the stigma f a d by people with OCD or any other mental ill- ness. Like many other sufferers approached

by The Straits Times, the residents of the Changi house - m old woman and her daughter - pointedly refused to be inter- viewed.

Government offlcers on the ground said the duo had repeatedly evaded them and could be persuaded to start cleaning up the place only after five pears of re- peated hits and wamiags. ~lrllwhprr*acl H-

~pugkthfseye,hehadtoexamineitfrom every poQdble ongle until he was satis- fled. The behaviour was uncontrolhble and took wsr his life."

Hespenthoyrefrosentoaspotuwn- hlw, say, a plant or the pavement, such thatheltadtoquithisfobasasecurity @=d.

Yet the condftion b e d w d y treata- ble, says hof Chong.

This often i n W s a combination of drugs and other therapy, m& as kh- four therapy tkat helps patfenb rmder- standthe thoughts and feehgsthat M u - ence behidoum.

The symptoms caa be reduced drasti- cally within weeks of treatment, urd most people go on to lead n o r d lives, althoughfPctaslikestrerscsncausea flare-up, say paycMatrMr.

If left tmtmaked for teo long, however,

a p e m with OCD may develop depres- sion, whfch may in turn lead to suicide.

The more bMg&g question h Why k Singapore m OCD ardlon?

c o u l a t h b r e l e n ~ p l r ~ o f ~ e c - tfon at oll costs be fdling the disease here, and the greatest price?

While the causes of Singaporerno' obsession wfth obsesdon have not ken researched, experts from various fields po in t to the~cLiwtoexce l ,keep thecwntrgclsanPndbefirstatewry- U r t s g - a e t r i g g s r .

Psychiatrist Munidosa Widow, for instance, wonders whether having OCD or OCD traits h s people to t h h in Singapore's usemi-r@ environment", giVingmon~tothoeewhoPlwopsd0 thinru bv the book rather than wonLe

wanting to be perfect does coatribute to the high OCD figures here. Even our school system dies more on getting the ' I i g l l t ~ s ' t h P n 0 n t h e ~ v e ~ - m v==.

'In public too, there are huge Issues of appearing 'xi&', 4 or normal despite huw messed up things may be," rays h Wfnslaw, who is in p r i d e practice and anrwroddeprafemr@theNatjonalUni- versity of Sia&rpan.

Sodolo~PpnltnStraugharlcmalso s e e w h y e n ~ f p c t o r s m a k e s f n - g a p w e ~ a s m o r e ~ t o O C D .

"When we perceive that d e w mide of as are he-sensitive, we SW- cumb to rituals, such as -tin& wash- fne~,admoLfneWs,thatglveusn @eve from the perceived chaos." sbr S W .

'Ofcourse, *the obmssionwith

cantrol takes over, a coping mechanhn will tum into a chronic d b a ~ , " says the*-dermoftheArbdSocirlSci- ences Faculty at the N a t h ~ I University OfSrogapwe.

Nominated Member of Parliament E l J g e n e T a n ~ t h a t o n e ~ a -

~%3Z,":om-Thir~zEo First h double-quick time.

While more studies need to be done, the law acPdemic and sodopoMd corn.- mentator says tbat @the national drive, I not obsession, ;for superl.tives cm con- tdbutetothelni#erInddenceofOCDin

% T i s o w * . ) a c o n - dder that the llPtionol atmospherics in arr drive to become a First World nation were- all-pervasive. It% hPrd not to im- hi the prevdling ethos or, at least, be conodousofit,nndtofeelthat0neh0sto

rrho-are &oath or m&ed about r-d-ts. do thfnir that OtU ~ t b n a l prgehc d

Source: The Straits Times O Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Permission required for reproduction.