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For a condition affecting patterns of behavior, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) can have a wide range of expression. One man washed his hands endlessly, avoided using the phone during certain hours, and couldn’t control his desire to check door locks and stove burners. Another man hoarded more than a hundred dogs in his house. International soccer phenomenon David Beckham has admitted he obsessively counts the number of cola cans in his fridge.

From endless worries about germs to the belief that hoarding things is necessary, OCD can be a crippling affliction—a far cry from the amusing portrayal sometimes shown in television or movies.

OCD is a relatively common problem, and not all cases are debilitating. The odds an adult has obsessive-compulsive disorder are 1 in 83.33. For women, those odds are 1 in 55.56, while for men the odds are lower—1 in 200.

When it comes to discovering the disorder, the onset of symptoms usually happens when people are young. The odds a person who will ever be diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder will first experience it when younger than 20 are 1 in 2. OCD can be linked to depression, eating disorders, or other anxiety problems.

Fortunately for those people struggling to manage their condition, there are a number of successful treatments for OCD. Most physicians begin with a mixture of medication and psychotherapy to alter OCD behavior, called rituals. One therapy method is to expose people to situations that cause fear and anxiety until they become less sensitive to them.

For severe cases, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of implanted Deep Brain Stimulation devices, which can block abnormal nerve signals in the brain.

Researchers are finding out more about what goes on in the brains of people with OCD. One recent study based on brain scan data shows that people who are at higher risk for the disorder can be pinpointed based on a decreased amount of activity in the particular part of the brain involved in stopping habitual actions. Hopefully in the coming years, scientists will get closer to finding the cause—and the cure—for the common disorder that can make life so hard for so many people.