What are obsessive-compulsive disorder and procrastination?

Obsessive-compulsive disorder and procrastination are two psychological diseases that are relatively common nowadays. They seriously affect people's work and life. So what exactly are obsessive-compulsive disorder and procrastination? Most people don’t understand this, so let’s learn in detail what obsessive-compulsive disorder and procrastination are!

Procrastination. You know you have to do something but just don’t want to do it, you have to put off today’s work until tomorrow, and you won’t start until it’s urgent... Are you also a procrastinator who always fails every time you make up your mind to change?

American psychologist Dr. Ferrari proposed that there are three main types of procrastination: excitement-seeking, avoidant, and indecisive. Although procrastination is not a disease, the guilt, inferiority and sense of disorder in life that it brings when it is serious can make people extremely anxious.

Xi Yingjun, director of the Psychological Crisis Intervention and Stress Management Center of Beijing Anding Hospital, suggested that, first, you can divide the task into small, specific and easier-to-implement goals. Every time you complete a small goal, reward yourself with a little time to relax. Second, you must learn to eliminate distractions and get rid of all factors that affect efficiency, such as turning off mobile phone networks, finding a quiet room, etc.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder. Even though I know that what I’m doing or thinking about is meaningless, I can’t stop no matter what. The more I try to resist, the more nervous and painful I become. "Wang Guorong, supervisor of Suzhou Jung Psychological Counseling Center, said that this is a typical obsessive-compulsive disorder, which can affect normal work and life in severe cases.

Learning to reduce obsessive thoughts is crucial. The American Psychiatric Association has given a "15-minute rule": when obsessive thoughts appear, try to delay the occurrence of compulsive behaviors for at least 15 minutes. Take hand washing as an example. When you want to wash your hands again, you might as well ask yourself first: "Wait, do I really need to wash my hands?" After 5 minutes, tell yourself "I didn't wash my hands immediately, and my hands didn't seem to be that dirty." After another 5 minutes, tell yourself "This is obsessive-compulsive disorder at work." In the last 5 minutes, you can try to divert your attention.