Reference no: EM132876052

Bernice was hesitant during her initial counseling session because she feared what the therapist would think of her. The therapist focused on building a therapeutic alliance with Bernice by engaging in empathic, nonjudgmental listening. Soon, Bernice shared that she feared contamination. She was particularly upset by touching wood, mail, and canned goods. She also disliked touching silver flecks. By silver flecks, Bernice meant silver embossing on greeting cards, eyeglass frames, shiny appliances, and silverware. She was unable to state why these particular objects were special sources of possible contamination. Bernice became more distressed during the session, and she started sharing what made her come for counseling. Bernice shared that disturbing images pop in her mind, and the images are mind's eye pictures of her "worst fear." The images are so disturbing to Bernice that she showed marked distress when talking about them. She explained that the images were in regards to her child, "The person love most in the world and would do anything to protect."

Bernice explained that she feels compelled to do specific behaviors to try to reduce her distress. Bernice engages in a variety of rituals that, when taken together, take up much of her day. In the morning, she spends hours washing and rewashing. Between each bath she has to scrape away the outer layer of her bar of soap so that it will be free of germs. Bernice said that although the decontamination rituals are tiresome, the rituals she does to protect her child from harm are so detailed that Bernice has to repeat them several times to get them "right." She said that she feels a sense of urgency to do the rituals perfectly to protect her child.

Question 1: identify the most relevant psychological disorder associated with her symptoms and explain your rationale.