Posted by Rzip on January 25, 2001, at 12:11:58
Super,
Cognitive behavior therapy is found to be more effective in treating OCD than that of SSRI drugs. Original article is in the ARCH General Psychiatry (Vol. 53, Feb 1996). This is a very popular magazine, so you should be able to find it in any Universities. The article is by Jeffrey M. Schwartz and et. The title is "Systematic Changes in Cerebral Glucose Metabolic Rate After Successful Behavior Modification Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder". I certainly do not have the qualifications to diagnose you with OCD. But since this is something that bothers you and interfers with your lifestyle. My advice is to go see a professional and put some happiness and control back into your life.
Statistically significant studies have shown that BMT (Behavior Modification Treatment) is at least equally as effective as medicine. I would argue that it is a safer treatment plan (therapy that is) than any drug on the market. Why? Because no one really knows much about any of the medicines currently being used to treat mental illness. Proof: check out the PB board. Seriously through, it wasn't until after WWII (1940s) that people realized that the scientific method can be applied to the mental health field. What this means is that all the studies being done in psychiatry is all too primitive, in comparison with the treatments for somatic diseases. Although, there are some instances, like Lithium for Bipolar where the medication is way more effective than psychotherapy. It is kind of hard to conduct therapy on someone who is maniac and out of perception. I don't know why I am writing so much.
Anyway, the point I wanted to bring to your attention is that BMT has proven to decrease glucose metabolic rates in the right head of the caudate nucleus (part of the brain). So, in this case affective therapy actually rewires the cortico-striato-thalamic (a brain region feedback pathway), which is the cause of OCD. A feedback pathway goes something like this Part A sends a signal to Part B to act out (in this case, think about eating). Under "normal" conditions, Part B is supposed to tell Part C that "Yes! The eating thought has been acknowledged. And no, we do not need another signal to think about food". So, Part C then loops back to Part A and tells it not to send another eating signal to Part B. Do you see the circular pattern? In patients with OCD, the looping back from Part C to Part A (or Part B to Part C) is turned off. Like in an electricity series circuit board, all switches should be ON. When one of the switches is not on, the electricity is not able to feedback upon itself. However, the electricity and the wiring is still there. I probably lost you already. I am trying to explain the signal pathways of OCD.
Just try to understand, in OCD cases, a part of your brain (Part A) is always sending signals to another part (Part B) to do think about food. BMT, psychotherapy has been shown to turn back on the signal pathway between Part B and Part C. And finally, the looping back of Part C to Part A.
Key point: Go in for BMT professional help.
- Rzip
poster:Rzip
thread:52523
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010122/msgs/52523.html