ABSTRACT
The book The Boy Who Couldn't Stop Washing is considered a psychology classic and was one of the first to raise the topic of obsessive-compulsive disorder or OCD. It shows that OCD was far more common than other better known disorders such as bipolar disorder (manic depression) or schizophrenia. Charles was an ideal case study into OCD because he displayed many of the classic symptoms of OCD. Current explanations for the cause of OCD concentrate on biological factors. OCD patients appear to benefit from drug treatments. The essential feature of OCD is recurrent obsessional thoughts or compulsive acts. Judith Rapoport reports that Charles was a very easy going boy with a friendly and playful disposition. Charles was treated with the drug Anafranil and his symptoms disappeared for about a year. Unfortunately, he developed a tolerance to the drug. When compared to drug treatments, behaviour therapy most often produces stronger and more lasting improvement.
