Patrick is a 45 year old surgeon who maintains an almost inviolate schedule. He wakes up at 6:00am, eats breakfast at 6:50am, goes to work at 8:00am leaves work at 4:00pm, goes home at 6:00pm, eats dinner at 6:30pm and sleeps at 7:00pm everyday. He even has a routinely planned out food menu. On Monday mornings for example, he eats two eggs and a slice of bread with juice. Any changes in his schedule causes him distress and anxiety.
He is neat and organized. His apartment is meticulously arranged; his books are arranged alphabetically, his cars are arranged according to color, his utensils are organized by their sizes and his clothes are grouped according to their colors and types.
He is the best surgeon in his hospital; he thrives at his workplace because of his attention to detail.
He mostly encounters problems when he has to interact with people. He never had any long-lasting relationships whether it was a girlfriend or a friend because he doesn’t know how to compromise. Things have to go his way and he has to follow the rules which in this case is his schedule. There was a time his girlfriend at the time invited him to dinner after 7:00pm. She couldn’t meet his 6:30pm dinner schedule because she had to work. This made him annoyed and furious and he broke up with her because according to him, she wasn’t ready for a relationship. He has not had any interest in forming relationships since then. His perfectionism drives people away and also drives him away from people; people find him boring and exhausting and find it difficult to adapt to his scheduled life, on the other hand, he regards others as an interference to his otherwise perfect life.
Causes: this disorder is caused by the believe that flaws, defects and mistakes are intolerable. Genetics may also play a role in this disorder.
Symptoms: people with this disorder are perfectionists, dogmative, ruminative, emotionally blocked, cumpolsive, preoccupied with rules, details and order. They base their self-esteem on their productivity and meeting unreasonable high goals. They persist in a task even when their approach is failing. They have difficulties appreciating others. They are rigidly bound to rules. They are tensely in control of their emotions and lack spontaneity. They are workaholics who see little or no time for leisure and friendships.
NB: this disorder shares features with obsessive-compulsive disorder, but obsessive-compulsive personality disorder involves a more general way of interacting with the world than does obsessive-compulsive disorder which often involves only specific obsessional thoughts and compulsive behavior.
MentalMondays with Akwama.
MentalMondays by Akwama 