Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) strikes men and women equally, with symptoms often first appearing in childhood, adolescence or early adulthood. The National Institute for Mental Health (NIMH) reports that approximately 2.2 million American adults are affected each year by the disorder. The course and severity of the symptoms can vary over time. At its most severe, OCD can render a person unable to function in normal everyday life. A person with OCD will often use compulsive behaviors or rituals to temporarily decrease the anxiety that accompanies disturbing, intrusive and obsessive thoughts. People with OCD will oftentimes recognize that their thinking and behavior is unrealistic, but this insight is rarely enough to help people manage the disorder. Medications, or psychopharmacological treatments, are integral parts of an OCD treatment plan.
Antidepressants
According to NIMH, antidepressants are the most common class of medications used in the treatment of OCD. These types of medications are used specifically to counteract obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors. Examples of these medications are Prozac, Luvox, Zoloft and Lexapro.
Anti-anxiety Medications
Anti-anxiety, or anxiolytic, medications are also used to treat the anxiety symptoms that are often associated or co-occur with OCD. Anxiety symptoms that can accompany OCD include generalized anxiety, panic attack and social anxiety symptoms. Examples of these medications are Buspar, Klonopin and Xanax.
Anti-psychotic Medications
When OCD symptoms are particularly severe and a person loses touch with reality or experiences delusions or other psychotic symptoms, anti-psychotic medications such as Risperdol and olanzapine can be used to target these symptoms. A 1993 study published in the "Journal of Clinical Psychiatry" reported that only 14 percent of OCD patients had psychotic symptoms.
