WHAT’S OCD

WHAT’S NOT OCD

ADULT

CHILDREN/

ADOLESCENTS

ADULT

CHILDREN/

ADOLESCENTS

A man who washes his hands 100 times a day, until they are red and raw.

A 14-year-old boy who is late for school every day because he can’t get out of the shower until he has lathered and rinsed exactly 41 times.

CLEANING/

WASHING

A woman who unfailingly washes her hands before every meal.

A 16-year-old girl who spends 20 minutes washing and styling her hair every day before school.

A woman who locks and re-locks her door before going to work every day—for half an hour.

A child who checks over and over that the light switch is in the off position, even though it is obvious that the light is off.

CHECKING/

QUESTIONING

A woman who double checks that her apartment door and windows are locked each night before she goes to bed.

A child who double-checks that the light is off as she leaves a room, just like her parents have asked her to do.

A man who stores 19 years of newspaper “just in case” with no system for filing or retrieval.

A child who collects used matches as protection against his house burning down.

COLLECTING/

HOARDING

A woman who dedicates all her spare time and money to building her art collection.

A child whose bedroom wall is covered with pennants of all of his favorite sports teams.

A college student who must tap on the door frame of every classroom 14 times before entering.

A seven-year-old girl who can’t stop skipping over cracks in the sidewalk until she has done it 99 times because she fears that something terrible will happen to her mother if she doesn’t.

COUNTING/

REPEATING

A musician who practices a difficult passage over and over again until it’s perfect.

A five-year-old girl who laughs with her friends while skipping over cracks in the sidewalk reciting, “Step on a crack, break your mother’s back”

A woman who spends hours alphabetizing every item in her kitchen cabinets and must have all clothing organized by color.

A fifth grade boy who cannot leave the gym locker-room until the laces on his sneakers are tied with loops that are exactly the same size.

ARRANGING/

ORGANIZING

An office manager who won’t leave the office until his desk is clear and his in-box empty.

A 17-year-old boy who enjoys arranging groceries on store shelves as his first part-time job.