Far too many times in a day, I hear the words, “Oh, I am so OCD.” I am referring, of course, to the cultural phenomenon known as “coffee shop psychology,” that is, a self-diagnosis of a well-known psychological condition. ADD, OCD, etcetera are buzzwords on our campus and everyone who feels the need to clean their bathroom on a regular basis seems to think they have this serious disorder. This makes me livid. Why does this bother me so much, one might ask?

I have suffered from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder since I was 14 years old. OCD is what I like to call the “broken-record brain” disorder. Most normal people have some irrational fears: What if the man with the mask from “Scream” comes into my room, what if I get germs on me and get sick, what if my family dies? It is normal to have fears but most people have the ability to stop thinking about them. People with OCD lack the ability to “change the channel” on their thoughts. Once they start thinking about something upsetting, they cannot stop. Their thoughts become repetitive and obsessive, and no matter how much they try to get a question or an image or a phrase out of their mind, nothing can make it go away. They cannot think about anything else in their life.

Throughout high school, I had difficulty concentrating on schoolwork, building relationships and keeping interest in activities. All I could think about were my fears. For example, one had to do with blades. If I held a blade or a pair of scissors, or even if I put the blade down, I could not stop the thought I was going to hurt myself or someone else. These obsessive thoughts make the sufferer uncomfortable, especially if the person does not know what they are.

In order to survive, one must develop compulsions that temporarily help deal with the obsessive thoughts. I completely avoided holding knives or blades of any sort. I would try to mentally picture myself putting the knife down safely or imagine something covering the blade. Germ-fearers might compulsively wash their hands and people who fear their family members dying might check on them repeatedly. These compulsions take up an enormous amount of time and never completely make the fear go away; they just add fuel to the fire. When I would try to imagine putting the knife down, my thoughts would always “bounce back” to the cutting.

When I was 18, I was finally diagnosed and treated with behavioral therapy. I would have to purposely think about the things I feared. Instead of trying to avoid thoughts of a blade, I would have to focus on the blade. Once a person holds their mind on the feared object long enough, the fear begins to fade.

Use of the term OCD extends far beyond the realm of what OCD actually means. Since the rise of knowledge about OCD, people have examined themselves. “Ooh I hate things being messy, I must have OCD.” The wide use of this term trivializes the experience of people who actually suffer from this difficult condition and makes explaining the situation even worse.

When I was diagnosed I began telling teachers OCD was affecting my work and I needed certain appropriate accommodations because of my disorder. It was difficult when some less enlightened teachers asked me, “So you like things clean — how does that affect your schoolwork?” Also, when a vast majority of students claim to have this disorder, students who actually have it are not taken as seriously.

So if your question is, “What if I really like things clean?” then I will tell you: You are just an anal retentive freak. Repeat after me: “I do not have OCD.” Got it? Good.

Nicole Padden is a junior voice major. E-mail her at npadden1 @ithaca.edu.