Can a person pretend he or she has OCD? Is there are any way to confirm if a person has OCD?

Submitted by elianalozano95@yahoo.com Thu 02/04/2010

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My friend is always

Submitted by elianalozano95@... on Thu, 02/04/2010 - 5:13pm.

My friend is always complaining that her mother tells her all the time that she suffers for OCD, however whenever I go to her house, she acts like a completely normal person.

There are certainly a lot of

Submitted by mwilliams on Thu, 02/11/2010 - 9:12pm.

There are certainly a lot of tests to determine whether or not one has OCD, but they are best administered by OCD professionals. Even though there are types of OCD, no case is exactly the same, and the severity varies. It is possible to have mild symptoms without a formal diagnosis, but when a person has real, clinical OCD that is another matter.

A lot of people do say that they are “so OCD,” or mistake things they do for OCD. Such as someone who likes to collect things, keep lists, or stay organized. They may be saying this since it’s a sexy way to explain their actions, but in reality do not have OCD nor are they even OCD symptoms (the ones I just described are more like the symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder which is very different).

As to whether your friend’s mom has OCD, there is no way for you to test her to see if she does. Unless the OCD is very severe an OCD sufferer can easily hide their symptoms in the short term. Depending on how the OCD manifests itself would also make it easier to mask. Someone with severe contamination OCD who has to wash frequently would have a harder time appearing "normal" than someone who has harming obsessions with mental compulsions.

There is no hiding OCD from loved ones though, since they see you everyday and it just comes out. So the person who can really answer this question for you is your friend. If your friend’s mom has real, clinical OCD then your friend would probably know if she lived with her. OCD affects almost every aspect of a sufferer’s life, including family.

Here's an online checklist that may be useful: http://www.brainphysics.com/checklist.php

Dr. Williams

—

Monnica T. Williams, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist specializing in OCD
http://www.monnicawilliams.com

Perhaps the mothers constant

Submitted by supesnbats on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 4:38pm.

Perhaps the mothers constant reminder has led her to believe that she has OCD, without it actually being so.

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