Obsessive......

ob·ses·sive ( P ) Pronunciation Key (b-ssv, b-)
adj.

Of, relating to, characteristic of, or causing an obsession: obsessive gambling.

Excessive in degree or nature: an obsessive need to win.

In the last twelve months, I have come across obsessive behaviour twice. Once was with an employee that we 'inherited' from our business' previous owners. His obsessive desire to gamble resulted in his repeated thefts from us. As ex-bankers, we were quick to realise what the previous owners had not; someone was stealing on a regular basis. Two court cases later, we have been reimbursed the thousands that he stole. However, it has taken a year to regain the trust in and the trust of the remaining staff. In our efforts to catch a thief we had to shut previously well-regarded staff out of the office and monitor their work on CCTV. That sucked.

Today, my sons had a playdate with a group of boys from their school. It culminated in a mammoth Playstation session at our house. One of the little boys visited the bathroom many, many times. He missed his slot on the playstation over and over again. The other boys seemed to take it for granted that this little chap would not be able to play as he would be too busy washing his hands.

When his mother came to collect him, she looked so very sad.

Obsessive behaviour hurts so many more people than the one who is obsessed.