Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a serious diagnosis. Receiving this diagnosis can be disconcerting for children and for their caregivers and parents. Although the diagnosis is significant for a family, caregivers and parents are not powerless. There are many ways that families can help and support a child with OCD.
A first, important step for caregivers and parents is to recognize when things do not seem “right” with their child and reach out for help. Early intervention predicts the best treatment outcomes for OCD (Cleveland Clinic, 2022). This is because prompt treatment reduces structural changes that take place in the brain, reducing symptom severity, as well as levels of disability (Pittinger et al., 2005). Treatment for OCD may include psychological intervention (e.g. therapy) as well as medication intervention (Sperling, 2018). Caregivers and parents play a crucial role in this process.
Families play vital roles in obtaining outside help for their children. They are also important supports in the treatment process. Caregivers and parents can participate in a child’s therapy, learning skills alongside the child, to support the child in use of those skills outside session (Lyness, 2021). They can coordinate with one another to ensure that children recovering from OCD receive consistent input and have structured days (SickKids Staff, 2016). Predictability can help reduce anxiety and its accompanying symptoms (American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 2023; Van Noppen & Pato, n.d.). This leaves the child more room for growth of skills.
A child struggling with OCD needs consistent encouragement and praise. The child benefits when caregivers and parents see him or her for himself or herself, not the OCD symptoms (American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 2023). Some families choose to give OCD a human name, so as to further externalize it (Spiro, 2023). Praising the child for skills use to overcome OCD can be a great incentive (Lyness, 2021). It can also communicate that caregivers and parents will not accommodate OCD symptoms because they believe that the child is strong enough to overcome them. Together with his or her family, a child struggling with OCD can live a healthy life.
Parenting a child with OCD can bring with it some very unique struggles. For this reason, caregivers and parent can benefit from finding and seeking out their own support (American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 2023). Parents may benefit from their own therapy, and/or support groups for caregivers of children with OCD (Sperling, 2018; Van Noppen & Pato, n.d.). Caregivers and parents may wish to set up family contracts to put in writing what they expect of their children, and what their children can expect of them. This can help reduce relational strain. The goal of treatment for OCD is to provide a healthier life for the child and for the family as a whole.
Is OCD serious for children and their families? Yes. Is it possible for caregivers and parents to help their child who is struggling? Also yes. Caregivers and parents are very necessary to successful OCD treatment for children, as all people, especially little people, need community support when in distress.
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