and how it's treated will determine the quality of life for the duration of life. Thus a keen eye for childhood anxiety and depression is key to ensuring the child doesn't kill him/herself as an adult.
I often wonder about the etiology of my own OCD, and this study provides me clues. In fact to this day I struggle with oral and tactile sensitivities, and though these sensitivities have varied since childhood they all share a common thread: they occupy my mind to such a strong degree I have no choice but to analyze them incessantly. It's to the point where I cannot focus on immediate surroundings until I "think" through it (thus fuelling the OCD) or accept it (thus theoretically reducing the OCD)... regardless this takes much time, and when I'm forced to endure this in public I become exponentially anxious. Unfortunately analyzing has become a compulsion of mine... a "mental compulsion" is what psychologists have termed it... and since it's not a pysical compulsion I can hide mental turmoil and appear "normal". Yet appearing "normal" has become an obsession, and as such I've become a very good actor. Few things in my mind actually match my actions... but I digress... the correlation this study has shown can shed a lot of light.
Other people's scent can drive me to obsessive oblivion, and how my socks feel on my feet can determine the structure of my day. If I wear a shirt with a tag I haven't ripped out it's an exercise in tolerating OCD, or if my morning bowel movement just doesn't feel right I'm forced to deal with the tactile torment until I... well there is no "until"... the sensation of just not feeling right is there until my brain finds something else to obsess on, in which case the torment continues.
The fact this this has been discovered as an indication of OCD in children is monumental. If we can notice these symptoms in children and get them therapy while they're brains are still developing they will have a higher quality of life.
The cognitive restructuring I'm doing to my own mind via therapy, drugs, meditation and education is taking too long. As an adult it's a process that takes decades, however as a young child the potential to develop a balanced brain is in full effect. The child's brain won't need cognitive restructuring if it develops and structures itself without obsessive reactions to life's stimuli.
"Of course, Prof. Dar says, all children have particular habits and preferences, and they're not all precursors to OCD. So what should parents watch for to correctly characterize normal and potentially pathological behavior? "If you see that a child is very rigid with rituals, becoming anxious if unable to engage in this behavior, it is more alarming," he explains. Also, age is a factor. A habit exhibited by a five- or six-year-old is not necessarily a predictor of OCD. If the same behavior continues to the ages of eight and above, it could be a warning sign, especially if accompanied by anxiety or distress."
