• Additional Anxiety disorders (such as Panic Disorder or Social phobia)
• Depression, Dysthymia
• Disruptive behaviour disorders (such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder, ODD), or Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, ADHD).
• Learning disorders
• Tic disorders/Tourette's syndrome
• Trichotillomania (hair pulling)
• Body Dysmorphic Disorder (imagined ugliness)
• Sometimes comorbid disorders can be treated with the same medication prescribed to treat the OCD. Depression, additional Anxiety disorders, and Trichotillomania may improve when a child takes Anti-OCD medication.

For teenagers, trying to hide an illness like OCD or feeling guilty or embarrassed by it, is the last thing a teenager needs. This, at a time when their bodies are changing and they are trying to get used to the new roles and responsibilities they have to face as independant adults.

This can make an already difficult time worse and place enourmous stress on the family. It is important to note that placing blame on the teenager is the wrong approach. Both teens and their parents need to understand that the thoughts and behaviors associated with OCD are in fact NOBODY'S fault.

Each teenager has their own way of describing the frustration and feeling caused by their compulsions, but it is clear that they make them feel awful. For example, such terms as "having parasites inside you" and " feelings of being trapped in a box, where the only way to get out is by performing a ritual" have been used.

Anti-OCD medications control symptoms, but do not "cure" the disorder, and the positive effects of OCD medications only work for as long as they are taken. When a child or teenager stops taking the medication, the OCD symptoms usually return. There is NO known cure for OCD; symptoms are only controlled.

If you think you might have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), you should seek help and visit your doctor.

The Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation provides literature about the disorder as well as a list of doctors and support groups in America.

The organisation, Obsessive Action, provides a simular service in the UK.

next: OCD Do's and Dont's