People dealing with contamination OCD may have to follow some rituals daily, like excessive hand washing and showering; discarding items that they think are contaminated; changing clothes repeatedly.

Recently, on the video sharing app TikTok, something called ‘contamination OCD’ began trending after a user with the name of ‘@zavhbruh’ shared what it is like to live in a house “controlled by an extreme germaphobe mom”.

According to a Popsugar report, the video generated more than 44 million views and five million likes in less than a month. In it, the user Zav talked about contamination OCD, said to be a subtype of obsessive-compulsive disorder, stating that while he lives in a “really nice house”, he does not “feel happy in it” sharing it with his mother who has compulsive rules about household cleanliness. The reason the video garnered so many views is because many users found it to be educational.

Sub-categories of OCD

According to ocduk.org, there are “infinite forms of OCD”, but it is said that traditionally a person’s OCD will fall into one of these five main categories: checking; contamination/mental contamination; symmetry and ordering; ruminations/intrusive thoughts; hoarding.

A blog post on treatmyocd.com states that contamination OCD is a common subtype, wherein a person “obsesses over contracting an illness or spreading germs”. As a result, they get “intrusive thoughts, fears, or images related to these topics” that causes them serious anxiety and distress. A person suffering from it may try to get relief by excessively washing hands, or avoiding crowded spaces.

Symptoms of contamination OCD

Treatmyocd.com explains that all types of OCD include obsessions and compulsions that can come in the form of “unwanted and intrusive thoughts, feelings, urges, and doubts”. Compulsions are “repetitive physical or mental actions connected to those obsessions”. People with contamination OCD can become preoccupied with fears of illness, germs, and dirt. Some obsessive thoughts are:

• Fear of contracting STIs, developing cancer;
• Fear of spreading illnesses to others;
• Fear of getting contaminated by germs or getting sick;
• Fear of bodily fluids like blood, saliva, semen;
• Fear of germs, toxins, radiation, dust, dirt;
• Fear of emotional contamination, like someone else’s negative emotions, eye contact, bad luck.

Common rituals

People dealing with contamination OCD may have to follow some rituals daily, like excessive and repetitive hand washing and showering; discarding items that they think are contaminated; changing clothes repeatedly; using harsh chemical cleaners on the skin; etc.