All About Latest Kerala News

CBT | False memory OCD treatment using CBT

Dec 2

 

 

Read Post

 

When we think of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), its not uncommon to think of problems relating to excessive cleanliness and orderliness, or of being plagued by unwanted thoughts of harm, morality or sexuality. However, another form of OCD is not as commonly discussed but can be equally distressing: False Memory OCD. False Memory OCD is a subtype of OCD in which we become obsessed with the possibility that we have done something wrong in the past. This obsession involves the repeated checking of memories to see if we have done something wrong. This process then leads to even more doubt and the confabulation of false memories in the process. The condition becomes distressing and negatively affects mental health because of the anxiety (and other emotions) it provokes and because of the negative impact on functioning that it causes. In this article, I’m going to tell you just what False memory OCD is, and how we can overcome it using Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Exposure and Response prevention (ERP Therapy) techniques.

What is false memory OCD?

OCD is a disorder in which our responses to intrusive thoughts lead to emotional distress, and sets of compulsive behaviours which include checking, rituals, mental neutralising and thought suppression. We adopt these compulsions both to reduce our feelings of distress and to reduce the “risk” of our OCD intrusions becoming reality. Intrusive thoughts are common in both people with clinically diagnosed OCD and in people without a mental health diagnosis. The point at which intrusive thoughts lead to a “disorder” is when they, the emotional distress that they cause, and the impact that the compulsions have on our lives, reach a point where it is difficult to function.

In the case of OCD false memory, it occurs when we experience an intrusive thought (e.g., “Did I just run over someone with my car?”), and, rather than dismissing it, become anxious about the possibility that it actually happened. The difficulty to just dismiss the thought is because people with OCD tend to both a) overestimate their sense of responsibility and b) catastrophise the outcome of feared events. This elevated sense of responsibility and fear of catastrophic outcomes combine to make the false memory OCD person experience anxiety, struggle with memory confidence, and then take whatever action they can to find out whether the event actually happened or not.

The key compulsions that false memory OCD sufferers may find themselves doing can be split into two categories:  Overt (the stuff that we can see) and Covert (the stuff that goes on in our heads). Overt compulsions may include getting reassurance from other people that the event didn’t happen, revisiting the place where we think the event occurred, and checking google or news reports to find out whether they say anything about the supposed event.  Covert compulsions include mental review of memories relating to the false event, reassuring ourselves that we would never let that sort of event happen, or trying to suppress the thought entirely. The problem with these Overt and Covert compulsions is that we become reliant on them as a way of coping with the intrusive thoughts, related distress and ocd symptoms. We never get to find out what would happen if we don’t, for example, check our memory when we have intrusive thoughts, doubts, urges, images or other obsessions.

In the earlier example of false memory OCD, I’ve used an intrusion of having run someone over, but false memory OCD can fix itself on a number of different themes.  Some people may worry that they have attacked someone physically or sexually, while others may be concerned about having said the wrong thing, causing offence or having acted inappropriately. The key feature is how much time is spent trying to disconfirm the intrusion through revisiting memory.

 

Visit Us

 

What causes False Memory OCD?

Traditional models of mental health problems have viewed mental distress as being largely a biological problem – typically around the idea that there is something wrong with our brains that causes the problem.  However, more up-to-date understandings of mental health problems adopt what we call a “biopsychosocial” model. This means that we acknowledge the biological aspect, but also recognise the psychological (thoughts, behaviours, and emotions), and social factors which influence a problem. False memory OCD is no different. Sensitivity to anxiety is in part influenced by genetic factors – some of us are simply more anxious than others, but it requires certain environmental factors and life events to influence anxiety into becoming OCD.

Early life events which reinforce a heightened sense of responsibility can also be a factor for developing false memory OCD, along with witnessing parents who struggle with anxiety or mental health issues. The important thing to remember is, however, that we all get intrusive thoughts of some description – it is the meaning that we attribute to these (which is influenced by earlier life experiences) which influences whether we develop false memory OCD or not.

Why revisiting memories in False memory OCD doesn’t help

There are two main reasons why obsessively trying to work out whether a memory is real or not is not helpful ocd and false memories. First, memory in its very nature is incomplete, and often unreliable. Whenever we try to remember something, there will always be gaps, new recollections, or misremembering. Because there is no memory of the intrusive event actually occurring, when we revisit memory, the fact that there are natural gaps in our memory will provoke anxiety as we will believe that it was in these gaps that the “event” occurred.  We misinterpret the gap as evidence that something may have happened, rather than acknowledging that gaps are natural, and we tend to remember important events anyway.

The second problem with revisiting memory is that we may increase the likelihood of confabulating a false memory entirely. Confabulation is when we create ideas, narratives or justifications for past events or actions, and is a feature of human brain function. If we are entertaining an intrusion that we may have done something wrong in the past, our mind may connect unrelated patches of memory to create the illusion that the feared event actually did happen.  Upon arriving at this confabulated conclusion, we may then feel more anxious and continue searching through memory to confirm or disconfirm the false memory. The compulsions then carry on.

How to recover from false memory OCD using CBT

Cognitive Behavioural therapy is a type of psychotherapy that has been shown to be an effective treatment for many disorders, including OCD. OCD treatment with CBT has two main components: Exposure and Response prevention (ERP), and Cognitive restructuring. ERP has its roots in behavioural psychology and argues that, through repeated exposure to feared stimuli (i.e., intrusions, appraisals of intrusions, triggers and avoided emotions), the body will learn that the stimuli is not intrinsically harmful and will, over a period of time, start to reduce.  The “RP” bit in “ERP” is all about dropping our compulsions, both overt and covert, as we engage in the exposure. Our compulsions, rituals, responses etc, give us very short-term relief in relation to our intrusions. For example, we get very short-term relief from reviewing memory and reassuring ourselves that the feared intrusion did not actually occur. However, we can become so reliant on using our compulsions to get this relief that we spend more and more of our time engaged in them, rather than finding out what would happen if we just exposed ourselves to the fear.

CBT is an active type of psychotherapy, in which you and your therapist work together treating OCD. The first step in overcoming false memory OCD is to gain a better understanding of how the condition works. This will be done using a process called formulation – you will work with your therapist to define the links between the intrusions, the meaning that you attribute to them, and then the compulsions and emotions that arise from them.  Next, we would focus on tracking your intrusions, the negative emotions that arise from them and the compulsions, including revisiting memory, that follow. This symptom tracking helps you to become more aware of the intrusions and compulsions as they arise, making them less automatic and available to intervention. Based on the information that you collect, a series of exposure and response preventions and behavioural experiments form the bulk of the rest of treatment.

Other tips to cope with False Memory OCD using CBT

ERP and behavioural experiments are the main elements of CBT for false memory OCD, but the other tips can be helpful in maintaining stability during your therapy.

Be mindful: Mindfulness can contribute greatly in overcoming false memory OCD. Being mindful will help you to be more in tune with your body and feelings, meaning that you have a greater chance of recognizing when you are remembering something incorrectly or engaging in an unhelpful compulsion. Being mindful will help you to not get caught up in your anxiety, improve your focus, and feel more in control of your symptoms.

Stay connected:  It is important to maintain connections with others when you are experiencing false memory OCD. False memories, particularly when we believe them to be true or that they say something bad about us, can lead us to isolate from our family, partner, or friends. This is unhelpful in two ways. Firstly, our avoidance of others may reinforce our unhelpful beliefs about what the false memories mean. Secondly, when we isolate and disengage from others, we will have more time alone with our thoughts, leading to more opportunity to engage with our compulsions. Try to stay connected with the people around you.

Keep a journal: Journaling can be a helpful way to manage false memory OCD. You can use your journal to record false memories as they happen, as well as challenge those thoughts and create new, more helpful ways of thinking. Journaling can also be helpful for people who experience other types of OCD.

Conclusion

False Memory OCD is a challenging form of OCD that can cause a great deal of distress. It is important to note that False Memory OCD is treatable using CBT techniques. If you’re interested in learning more about false memory OCD and CBT treatment, then get in touch with us here at www.Accesscbt.co.uk and we’d be happy to help. 

 

Find Us Here!
 
 
 

ThingsTo Do In Liverpool 

 

Liverpool News