I would like to quote from the book “How Neuroses Can Be Completely Cured” by Tomonori Suzuki (Seishin Shobo, March 1986), which describes the experience of a patient with obsessive-compulsive disorder who received inpatient treatment and then continued with Morita therapy for several years, resulting in a complete recovery.
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[Case 2] A Case of Gradual Complete Recovery from Severe Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
This is a case of complete recovery from severe obsessive-compulsive behavior, which is the most difficult to treat. Treating severe obsessive-compulsive behavior is extremely difficult. Moreover, this case is a complete recovery, with no trace of the behavior remaining. However, it takes a considerable amount of time. Of course, the recovery is gradual, with ups and downs. Rapid psychological changes are extremely rare.
Diagnosis: Severe Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
First Visit: October 1979
Age of Onset: Around 15 years old
Age at Admission: 31 years old
Occupation: Company employee at the time of admission
Experience of Recovery from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
Shigeaki Takeyama, 37 years old
When I was discharged from the hospital, the doctor told me, “When you return to real life after being discharged, run as fast as you can.” I’ve become so accustomed to this lifestyle that I no longer even consider whether I’ve gone beyond being neurotic or whether my neurosis has been cured. It’s been at least three years since then.
My intense obsessive-compulsive behaviors began in mid-1953 (when I was 31). Until then, I had no awareness of being neurotic. I do remember, however, from my childhood at age 15, that I would spend a great deal of time checking for fire hazards and locks before going to school or going out. Even after checking multiple times, I would still worry and suffer each time, repeating this process for over an hour, resulting in frequent tardiness. I also recall having a fear of syphilis and acrophobia, but because it was during my childhood, I never considered myself neurotic or suffering from a nervous disorder. Later, after graduating from university and moving to Tokyo for work, I would always experience severe nausea when answering phone calls from outside, making it impossible to have a proper conversation. This eventually led to throat surgery, which, in retrospect, was a form of neurosis.
Around the summer of 1953, after reading an article in a weekly magazine about the side effects of a certain drug, I, who was regularly taking that drug, became tormented by anxiety and visited many doctors for explanations. However, no matter how many explanations I received, small anxieties, like picking apart a bento box, gradually grew larger and larger, showing no signs of improvement. Gradually, I became unable to concentrate on my work.
By the end of 1953, I realized I was suffering from neurosis and sought treatment at the neurology department of A University Hospital, receiving weekly counseling. In April of the following year, 1954, I was hospitalized, but far from improving, the treatment there was completely ineffective. In fact, feeling that medication alone wouldn’t help, I was discharged. Afterward, my handwashing, stemming from a fear of contamination that began shortly after the onset of my illness, worsened daily, and I washed my hands continuously throughout the day. Because I used soap, my hands swelled severely in winter, cracking and bleeding, yet I couldn’t stop. Furthermore, insomnia and extreme leg shaking developed, making me seem completely insane. I took a leave of absence from work and spent my days engrossed in compulsive behaviors. In October of 1954, following my wife’s advice that a change of environment might help, I went to a Zen temple deep in the mountains, but the head priest gave up on me, saying I was “on the verge of madness.”
Around that time, I read Dr. Suzuki’s book and, desperate for any help, went for an interview, resulting in my hospitalization in late November. I was instructed to read his book beforehand to gain some preliminary knowledge of Morita therapy, but since I was unable to even read a newspaper, there was no way I could properly understand Dr. Suzuki’s book, and I was admitted without any prior knowledge.
During my more than ten days of bed rest, I slept incredibly well, a stark contrast to my previous inability to sleep even with sleeping pills. My compulsive behaviors were also less severe, as I was simply sleeping. I felt then that Morita therapy was truly effective; I was beginning to recover. After my bed rest ended, occupational therapy began. Outside, a cold wind blew, and I, a thirty-year-old man, hesitantly began picking up fallen leaves, unsure of what to do alongside the lively young people. Seeing my own pathetic state, I secretly teared up each time I wondered why I had this illness, and what my family must be doing now.
As the days went by, I began to vaguely understand the core principles of this therapy and that it would take time to adopt a neurotic attitude towards life. At the same time, my compulsive behaviors also intensified. Around this time, I would wash my hands constantly without doing any work, soaking my sleeves, and the pen writing in my work log would smudge all over, making it illegible.
Even after more than 100 days in the hospital, nothing had changed. Due to my age, I had difficulty adjusting to the environment. The doctor advised me to “quickly move on to the next task when you feel like performing an obsessive-compulsive behavior” in my journal, but I resigned myself to the fact that “if I could stop myself, I wouldn’t be in a place like this,” and I doubted Morita therapy many times. However, I also knew there was no other place that could treat me, and with a desperate desire to get better, I diligently collected fallen leaves and made firewood, but there was no improvement. I was constantly tormented by the miserable feeling that I would be a wreck for life if things continued like this.
Around that time, for reasons I can’t quite explain, I gradually began to be able to reduce my obsessive-compulsive behaviors through willpower. Of course, it was only a small improvement, a two-step forward, one-step back situation. However, from that time on, I also began to realize that I was gradually regaining a glimmer of hope. At the same time, I felt I was beginning to understand a little bit of the mechanism behind the pitfalls of neurosis. I realized that my nervousness was causing me to engage in compulsive behaviors to alleviate anxiety, and that these compulsive behaviors, once started, would never end, like the Yamanote Line train, tracing a circle…
This continued for a month or two, and then the so-called “rose commotion” began. Our movements were inevitably demanded to be more active, and the doctor would suddenly order us to work on the roses at regular intervals. Around the time when I was becoming more conscious of those around me and finding it difficult to perform my compulsive behaviors, during a consultation with the doctor, I was greatly surprised when he instructed me, “Your wife has asked if you and your husband would like to act as matchmakers for a friend’s wedding in about two weeks. Go and do it.” This was because, up until then, I had been a notorious underachiever; I had been assigned to shopping duty, and the moment I left the hospital, I broke the isolation and called home, which the doctor found out about, resulting in my removal from duty. My compulsive behaviors continued unabated. Despite all this, my doubts only grew. Furthermore, I had no confidence that I could possibly fulfill the role of matchmaker. However, I had no choice but to obey the doctor’s instructions. I immediately started practicing my speech whenever I had free time, and the day arrived. I was anxious, but the result was better than I expected; in fact, I was able to speak confidently, as if I had returned to my old self.
Perhaps due to this newfound confidence, the number of compulsive behaviors gradually decreased, and fellow graduate students often pointed this out to me. However, I was still not able to live a normal daily life.
Then, in June, after more than 210 days in the hospital, I was discharged. At that time, the doctor said, “It’s not perfect, but as a working adult, you can’t neglect your work and family any longer. Even if you feel like doing a compulsive behavior, don’t do it and run as fast as you can.”
I had absolutely no confidence. The compulsive behaviors still remained. However, the doctor’s words at this time, though the same words, resonated with me without resistance. So, once I did it, it would be over. I returned to my normal life with considerable determination, vowing absolutely not to do it again. Initially, I almost broke down many times, and it was painful, but the nearly two-year gap in my working life was significant, and I couldn’t afford to be complacent; I had no choice but to dedicate myself to my work. As I did so, I eventually became able to do it without doing it at all. Up until that point, I believed that my ability to stop compulsive behaviors was primarily due to my own willpower. This period lasted about six months after my discharge from the hospital.
Only afterward did I begin to understand that my ability to stop compulsive behaviors was actually thanks to the doctor’s guidance on daily life, the exercises, the lectures, etc.—in other words, the environment itself. Without the doctor and that environment, my willpower would never have developed. I was deeply ashamed of my ignorance. Since then, like peeling away thin layers of paper, before I knew it, my willpower and compulsive behaviors had become unrelated, and this continues to this day.
However, I should add that the obsessive thoughts that caused me such hellish suffering still arise today. I still feel the same sense of filth, disgust, and fear. I continue working and living my life, letting these feelings pass me by. And, as the doctor said after my discharge, I started running as fast as I could, and that’s all I did for my life. And now, I no longer feel the need to wash my hands at all. This took three or four years after my hospitalization. It certainly took years.
Finally, I ended up taking a long leave of absence due to neurosis—or rather, due to a lack of understanding of neurosis at work—and resigned from my job a year and a half after being discharged from the hospital. I started over from scratch, taking on the challenge of running a restaurant business, which has now grown into a chain. Now, I utilize the experience of my own struggles to train and educate my employees. In fact, rather than focusing on others, I even believe that my own neurosis was a valuable experience that allowed me to re-examine myself, including my weaknesses, shortcomings, and strengths. I owe this progress entirely to Professor Suzuki, and ultimately to the fruits of my struggles, for which I am deeply grateful.
Going forward, I intend to maintain my pace, stabilize my business, and then strive to be of assistance to those suffering from neurosis, a modern ailment in our highly complex civilized society. (60.12)
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I hadn’t read this book in over 10 years, but reading this account, I understood the suffering the person endured, and tears welled up in my eyes. Due to anxiety and symptoms, his daily life fell apart, and he was even turned away when he tried to go to Zen temples.
Even after 100 days of hospitalization, Mr. Suzuki’s compulsive handwashing continued, indicating extremely strong anxiety and a vicious cycle of behavioral changes to alleviate that anxiety. This shows he had a severe mental illness and neurosis.
Nevertheless, after approximately 210 days of hospitalization, and three to four years later, his symptoms completely disappeared. Furthermore, he achieved great success in business, even managing and expanding his own restaurant chain. His remarkable recovery, effort, and perseverance are truly admirable.
And I have the utmost respect for Morita therapy and Dr. Tomonori Suzuki, who enabled and supported such a patient’s long-term treatment and recovery.
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