‘People with OCD experience recurrent and persistent thoughts, images or impulses that are intrusive and unwanted (obsessions).’
From <https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/obsessive-compulsive-disorder>

Given that we are now doing a project about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, we thought that we should probably research the illness in order to have a more through understanding. Clearly, everyone who experiences the disorder experiences it differently, but there are of course some hard, diagnostic criteria for OCD.

Though these ‘obsessive’ thoughts exist to keep us safe (e.g. ‘damn is there a bear behind me? Maybe I should check.’) OCD brings these thoughts to a debilitating place and far beyond reason. People with OCD will become unreasonably worried about something, and the thoughts will remain in their head until they satisfy the anxiety, but often the measures needed to satisfy the anxiety are beyond reason.

So ultimately, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder consists of two major parts – the obsessions, and compulsions.

Obsessions are usually common anxieties and worries, but are taken to an extreme level, and are not satisfied with ordinary means (e.g. I feel unsafe. But I hear no noises. I am safe.)

Furthermore, obsessions are usually triggered by something that relates to the thought. They can also be triggered by paranoia.

  • Fear of dirt, germs, poisons etc.

  • Fear of harm, illness, death that can occur to the person OR others close to them.

  • Intrusive thoughts about sex, violence.

  • Excessive concern with symmetry, exactness or orderliness.

  • Excessive concern about illness.

  • Needing to know and remember things.

From <https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/obsessive-compulsive-disorder>

Compulsions are then actions that need to be taken in order to ‘remedy’ the obsessions…

  • Excessive hand washing, showering or tooth brushing.

  • Excessive cleaning of house.

  • Repeated checking of locks, appliances etc.

  • Repeating routine activities such as reading, writing, picking something up.

  • Applying rigid rules and patterns.

  • Touching, tapping, moving a particular way.

  • Needing to constantly ask questions and seek reassurance.

  • Mentally repeating words or numbers a certain number of times – things may be good or safe, e.g not taking four steps on a certain piece of concrete etc.

  • Replacing ‘bad’ thoughts with a ‘good’ one and needing to retouch the item when thinking about the bad thought.

From <https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/obsessive-compulsive-disorder>

So Sid is likely to be triggered by something, which gives him an intrusive thought, which then causes anxiety and makes him perform some ritual in order to get Doc to back off.

As for which obsessions Sid suffers from… having symmetry would be difficult to show on camera, while having cleanliness, given the set we have – which isn’t meticulously clean – would also be hard. We think that having him be afraid fo rhis safety will be most effective, and will also relate to our base line ‘behind closed doors’ as well.

The causes of OCD are not fully understood, but are suspected to be from both genetic and environmental factors. Medications and therapy can be used to help with OCD. It is also heavily connected to PTSD – which again, could work with Sid’s feelings of being unsafe.

References….

Betterhealth.vic.gov.au. (2017). Obsessive compulsive disorder. [online] Available at: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/obsessive-compulsive-disorder [Accessed 1 Aug. 2019]