Characteristics of Phobias, Depression and OCD

• behavioural: PHOBIAS

  - avoidance = physically adapting normal behaviour to avoid phobix objects

  - panic = an uncontrollable phsyical response

  - failure to function = difficulty taking part in normal day-to-day activities
• behavioural: DEPRESSION

  - reduction in activity level = includes lethargy, lacking energy needed to perform everyday tasks

  - a change in eating behaviour = either significant weight gain or weight loss

  - aggression = to others/self harm
• behavioural: OCD

  - compulsions = behaviours performed repeatedly to reduce anxiety

  - avoidance = take actions to avoid objects that trigger obsessions
• emotional: PHOBIAS


  - anxiety = an uncomfortable high and persistent state of arousal

  - fear = intense emotional sensation of extreme and unpleasant alertness, only subsides when phobic object is removed
• emotional: DEPRESSION


  - sadness = a persistent, very low mood

  - guilt = linked to helplessness and a feeling that they have no value in comparison to other people
• emotional: OCD


  - anxiety

  - depression = a consistent and long-lasting sense of sadness due to being unable to control thoughts
• cognitive: PHOBIAS


  - irrational thoughts (fears) = negative and irrational mental processes that include and exaggerated belief in harm that the phobia causes

  - reduced cognitive capacity = due to attentional focus on a phobic object
• cognitive: DEPRESSION

  - poor concentration = people with depression cannot give their full attention to tasks

  - negative schemas = automatic negative biases when thinking about themselves, the world and the future
• cognitive: OCD


  - obsessions = intrusive, irrational, recurrent thoughts that tend to be unpleasant and even catastrophic

  - hypervigilance = a permanent state of alertness, looking for the source of obsessive thoughts