The Origins of Obsession

In this Chapter Davis focuses on all the things that needed to happened and needed to be established for obsession to become the term we know today. I think this Chapter overall was a way of Davis explaining his concept of obsession as a disease entity rather than a disease, He begins with the difference between obsessions and possessions and how over time the focus changes and new ideas and factors are introduced and  revised but in the end still add up to what today we consider obsessions.

Thin

All I can say is wow.. I'm honestly just in shock, It's really crazy how the pressure to be thin can just take over and even destroy your life. These women were honestly obsessed with being thin to the point where they would hurt themselves and their family to obtain it. It's not the first time I see a documentary on eating disorders but it every time i see one it leaves me with a feeling that I can't explain, it's just so unfortunate and disguising that we live in a world where we judge people and their value based on their physical appearance and their weight. It really bothered me to see how these women just threw everything away to be thin, I've never suffered from an obsession so I can't judge or say that what they were doing was wrong and that they should just suck it up, We don't can't understand or judge someone's situation until we've actually lived through it. All I can say is it must have been really hard to wake up every morning and fight the same battle every day, and documentaries like this one is what teaches people to value human life and to think before they speak and judge because it only takes one word, one look, to make someone feel like they aren't worth anything.

As a girl I totally understand the pressure of being thin and looking a certain way, I am a big girl and weight loss became a challege for me when I entered high school but thankfully I have been surrounded by friends and family who love me and value me for who I am and what ever size I may be, I learned that life is what we make of it and tomorrow is never promised so you always have to enjoy today...

"Rat Man"

This has to be the most confusing reading we have had so far on OCD, I seriously had to read it more than once to try and understand it and I think I still don't. The name "Rat Man" came from his fear of a story that the patient was told about a punishment that they would do to inmates, which consisted of putting rats on the inmates buttocks and covering it with a bucket and the rats would make it up the anus. Rat man suffered fears of something happening to two people: his dad and a woman he admired, he also suffered impulse to injure the woman he admired, prohibitions, and cutting his throat with a razor. What I didn't understand was what his masturbation had to do with his OCD and why he was afraid of his father being harmed if he was already dead. To me Rat man lived a very confusing life, there was way too much going on in that head and the fact that Freud could sit down and analyze all the events and people that effected his life.

What I valued most from this article was Freud's professionalism and dedication to this craft, he lived by the "fundamental rule" of psychoanalysis: to speak freely, without censorship, no matter how insignificant or senseless or disagreeable it might be, he let Rat man say what he wanted to say and at what ever time he wanted; to me it was very unorganized and confusing but Freud valued this and he believed that stepping back and letting Rat man just talk was the best way to learn more about him and be able to help him.

Rewind Replay Repeat

I'm no doctor but I think Jeff was suffering from OCD and didn't know it, I think the doctor knew that there was more to Jeff than he had been sharing in his sessions and he had been holding off to see if he would come out on his own and start the conversations. Jeff's thoughts were taking over his life, I think he was afraid of change and disappointment, when he was caught of guard by something or when something unplanned happened he immediately panicked and soon the thoughts would start to rewind play repeat.
Reading all these OCD cases is really starting to play with my mind, I know I don't have OCD but reading cases like Jeff's makes me want to evaluate the things I do and the way I act and I'm beginning to wonder: am I missing something??

OCD: Now and Forever

After reading both Chapter 8: OCD: Now and Forever and reading Osborn it's interesting to see how even though both authors are talking about OCD how different they speak about it. Osborn speaks about OCD with optimism stating that many people suffer from OCD and that the sooner that they find help the better, he hopes that his book brings insight on OCD. Davis on the other hand speaks about the evolution of OCD and how it has changed from rare to one of the top four mental disorders in the world.

What stood out to me the most about this chapter was that Davis questioned the validity of such a rapid growth of OCD cases, and I agree that the media, internet, and books may have had a great deal to do with that.

When you feel sick you don't go to the doctor anymore, now with Google and WebMD you can simply type in your symptoms and find your answers without leaving home. This is the technology age and we (the people) have a tendency to turn to technology for everything, with the internet we have the power to become what ever we want: doctors, scholars, experts. We believe anything and everything we read, we are very simple minded and unfortunately I have to go with Davis on this one I believe many people have tricked and self diagnosed themselves with OCD to the point that they live life as if they really had it, so how valid are the reported cases of OCD?

Obsession of Harm: Sherry

Of all the case histories I would have to say that the most serious case of OCD was the one of Obsession of Harm: Sherry, Osborn defines Clinical Obsessions as a battle in the mind and  Sherry's battle was not an easy one. The thoughts of harming, and killing strangers and the ones she loves have taken over her life. She began having thoughts a the young age of 11 and the thoughts have been tormenting her since then. I believe she has the most serious case because not only are her dangerous thoughts towards others but also towards herself, her thoughts are triggered by stress and a feeling of unbalance so she tries to keep herself busy all day but at that one moment she finds free time the thoughts begin again. Although she does receive counseling and help for the thoughts they always return when she feels stressed. To think that she can keep herself busy 24/7 is unrealistic and if anything will bring her more stress, things can happen unexpectedly therefore her OCD can be triggered at anytime.

Obsession of ____ ...

Clinical Obsession= a battle in the mind
What keeps you up at night? What keeps your mind busy?

A Thought...

When you Think, Eat, and Live one thing your life ultimately becomes that ONE thing... Is that Obsession?

Diagnosing OCD

Before reading I already had my own opinions and thoughts about OCD. OCD has become a term of daily use very similar to OMG, LOL, and TTYL, it's very common to say "oh your OCD about that" apparently we all have medical degrees to go around diagnosing OCD on our friends and family.

I never thought OCD was such a serious disorder, I am so use to using the media definition of  obsessions, that to read information like this one where it is broken down and explained it's really eye opening. After reading this I have to say I am embarrassed of the way I use the term OCD and how quickly I am to make a joke about it. It's really scary how people (including myself) are so influenced by the media and how uneducated our assumptions are.


I definitely learned many things from this for example the real meaning and components of an obsessive-compulsive disorder and the most common types of compulsions (which is one of the most interesting parts in the article). I found myself saying "woah I definitely do that" or "wow I thought I was the only one who did that" but I've learned that my normal everyday worries of daily living are nothing compared to the obsessions and compulsions of an OCDer. A person living with OCD lives a very troubled life that even they don't understand sometimes; their obsessions are intrusive, unwanted, recurrent, and inappropriate and Osborn shares many examples of people including himself who live with these obsessions on a daily basis. Many OCDer's are undiagnosed and live life troubled and confused and I admire that Osborn is writing a book about to tackle what is OCD, how it can be explained and what type of help is available.

It's really interesting how so many test/ self- administered questionnaires are available to diagnose OCD and although I am sure they are very valid I wonder if like every test these test can be cheated. What if I decided to lie on these test just for the sake of seeing a different result, this proves that the test can be manipulated into diagnosing what ever I want it to. Overall definitely a great way to start off our discussion on obsession and infatuation, we've only had two classes but I feel like I've already learned so much and gained so much information.


I advise many to look into their vocabulary and Google words before they begin to use it so carelessly! I know I will !     

Napoleon: Obssesive?

In my opinion Napoleon was not obsessed with his wife Josephine, he was simply upset because she was being so indifferent and distant. Automatically Napoleon begins to assume that she is having an affair instead of asking her politely what is going on. Napoleon may say she is his motivation for the war but in my opinion the truth is that what motivates him to win the wars is his love and desire for power and recognition and Josephine is simply one more of his trophies and proof that Napoleon is number one. So Napoleon is obsessed but not with his wife.