Before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in the United States, Chris Trondsen felt his life was finally under control. As someone who has battled obsessive-compulsive disorder and other mental health issues since early childhood, it鈥檚 been a long journey.
鈥淚’ve been doing really, really well,鈥 Trondsen said. 鈥淚 felt like most of it was pretty much 鈥 I wouldn’t say 鈥榗ured鈥 鈥 but I definitely felt in remission or under control. But this pandemic has been really difficult for me.鈥
Trondsen, 38, a Costa Mesa, California, therapist who treats those with obsessive-compulsive and anxiety disorders, has found himself excessively washing his hands once again. He鈥檚 experiencing tightness in his chest from anxiety 鈥 something he hadn鈥檛 felt in so long that it frightened him into getting checked out at an urgent care center. And because he also has , he said, he鈥檚 finding it difficult to ignore his appearance when he鈥檚 looking at himself during his many Zoom appointments with clients each day.
Chris Trondsen, a California therapist who in the past struggled with obsessive-compulsive disorder, says 鈥渢his pandemic has been really difficult for me.鈥 OCD symptoms have resurfaced that he hadn鈥檛 experienced in years.(Courtesy of Chris Trondsen)
From the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, experts and media have warned of a mounting as people contend with a pandemic that has upended their lives. A recent found that about 4 in 10 adults say stress from the coronavirus negatively affected their mental health. (KHN is an editorially independent program of , the Kaiser Family Foundation.)
But those with and other serious anxieties face uniquely difficult mental health battles, including trying to distinguish concerns brought on by their conditions from general fears shared by the public about COVID-19. People with OCD have discovered one advantage, though: Those who have undergone successful treatment often have increased abilities to .
Dr. Katharine Phillips, a psychiatrist at NewYork-Presbyterian and professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, said it鈥檚 possible that patients who have been in consistent, good treatment for their OCD are well protected against the stress of COVID-19.
鈥淲hether it’s excessive fears about the virus, excessive fears about possible repercussions to the virus, whether that’s financial effects 鈥 good treatment protects against relapse in these patients,鈥 Phillips said.
feel compelled to repeatedly perform certain behaviors, such as compulsive cleaning, and they may fixate on routines. OCD can also cause nonstop intrusive thoughts.
Carli, who asked that her last name be withheld because she feared professional repercussions, can trace her OCD to age 6. The coronavirus pandemic has sent Carli, a 43-year-old from Jersey City, New Jersey, into a spiral. She鈥檚 afraid of the elevators in her building, so she doesn鈥檛 leave her apartment. And she鈥檚 having trouble distinguishing an OCD compulsion from an appropriate reaction to a dangerous pandemic, asking those without OCD how they鈥檝e reacted.
鈥淭he compulsions in my head have definitely gotten worse, but in terms of wearing a mask and cleaning my groceries and going into stores, it’s really hard to gauge what is a normal reaction and what is my OCD,鈥 Carli said. 鈥淚 try to ask people, Are you doing this? Are you doing that?鈥
Elizabeth McIngvale, director of the McLean OCD Institute in Houston, said she has noticed patients struggling to differentiate reactions, as Carli described. Her response is that whereas guidelines such as hand-washing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are generally easily accomplished, OCD compulsions are usually never satisfied.
McIngvale was diagnosed with OCD when she was 12, with behaviors like taking six- to eight-hour showers and washing her hands for so long they bled. McIngvale receives therapy weekly.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a part of my life and how I maintain my progress,鈥 McIngvale said.
Lately, she鈥檚 found herself consumed with fears of harming or infecting others with the COVID-19 virus 鈥 a symptom of her OCD. But, generally, with the tools she鈥檚 gained through treatment, she said she鈥檚 been handling the pandemic better than some people around her.
鈥淭he pandemic, in general, was a new experience for everybody, but for me, feeling anxiety and feeling uncomfortable wasn’t new,鈥 McIngvale said.
鈥淥CD patients are resilient,鈥 she added. Treatment is based on 鈥渓eaning into uncertainty and so we’ve also seen patients who are far along in their treatment during this time be able to manage really well and actually teach others how to live with uncertainty and with anxiety.鈥
Wendy Sparrow, 44, an author from Port Orchard, Washington, has OCD, (fear of places or situations that might cause panic) and post-traumatic stress disorder. Sparrow has been in therapy several times but now takes medication and practices mindfulness and meditation.
Wendy Sparrow says initially she wasn鈥檛 fazed by COVID-19 because she鈥檚 used to sanitizing frequently and doesn鈥檛 mind staying home. Instead, she felt her symptoms worsening as her home no longer felt like a safe space.(Courtesy of Wendy Sparrow)
At the beginning of the pandemic, she wasn鈥檛 fazed because she鈥檚 used to sanitizing frequently and she doesn鈥檛 mind staying home. Instead, she has felt her symptoms worsening as her home no longer felt like a safe space and her fears of fatal contamination heightened.
鈥淭he world feels germier than normal and anyone who leaves this house is subjected to a barrage of questions when they return,鈥 Sparrow wrote in an email.
Depending on how long the pandemic lasts, Sparrow said, she may revisit therapy so she can adopt more therapeutic practices. Trondsen, too, is considering therapy again, even though he knows the tools to combat OCD by heart and uses them to help his clients.
鈥淚 definitely am needing therapy,鈥 Trondsen said. 鈥淚 realized that even if it’s not specifically to relearn tools for the disorders 鈥 it鈥檚 more so for my mental well-being.鈥
Carli has struggled with finding the right treatment for her OCD.
But a recent change is helping. As the pandemic intensified this spring, many doctors and mental health providers 鈥 and insurers agreed to cover them 鈥 to cut down on the risks of spreading the virus. In April, she started using an app that connects people with OCD to licensed therapists. While skeptical at first, she has appreciated the convenience of teletherapy.
鈥淚 never want to go back to actually being in a therapist’s office,鈥 Carli said. 鈥淭herapy is something that’s really uncomfortable for a lot of people, including me. And to be able to be on my own turf makes me feel a little more powerful.鈥
Patrick McGrath, a psychologist and head of clinical services at , the telehealth platform Carli uses, said he鈥檚 found that teletherapy with his patients is also beneficial because it allows him to better understand 鈥渉ow their OCD is interfering in their day-to-day life.鈥
Trondsen hopes the pandemic will bring increased awareness of OCD and related disorders. Occasionally, he鈥檚 felt that his troubles during this pandemic have been dismissed or looped into the general stress everyone is feeling.
鈥淚 think that there needs to be a better understanding of how intense this is for people with OCD,鈥 he said.
