OCD can involve intense anxiety, but it's more than anxiety or overthinking.
OCD can attach itself to the things that matter most to you. The content can be disturbing, frightening, or completely inconsistent with how you see yourself. The important part of treatment is not proving what the thoughts mean, but learning to recognize the OCD cycle and respond differently to it.
Maybe you know what it is like to have a thought pop into your mind that you never asked for.
You try to push it away, but it keeps coming back. You tell yourself it does not make sense, but somehow you still feel like you need to figure it out.
You might find yourself replaying a conversation, questioning something you said, checking how you feel, or going over the same situation again and again.
Maybe you keep asking yourself, What if? What does this mean? What if I am wrong? What if I cannot trust myself?
You may desperately want to feel certain, but no amount of thinking seems to give you the certainty you are looking for.
And when the discomfort becomes too much, you may find yourself doing something to get relief. You might ask someone for reassurance, search online for an answer, mentally review what happened, check something repeatedly, or avoid situations that trigger the thoughts.
For a little while, you feel better. Then the doubt comes back. And the cycle repeats.
If you want to understand more about what keeps the OCD cycle going, read OCD: The Power Is in the Compulsions.
If this feels familiar, you may have spent a lot of time trying to understand why your mind does this or trying to make the thoughts stop.
If you are tired of feeling caught in this cycle, we can work on it together. I offer a complimentary 15-minute consultation where we can talk about what you have been experiencing and whether working together feels like a good fit.
I work with you experientially in session, helping you practice responding differently to OCD and begin breaking the cycle. What we practice together in therapy becomes something you can continue practicing between sessions. Over time, you can begin to develop a different relationship with your thoughts, uncertainty, and discomfort.
A central part of this work is Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), an evidence-based treatment for OCD. I have completed specialized ERP training through the Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI) of the International OCD Foundation.
Rather than trying to get rid of intrusive thoughts or prove that they are not true, ERP helps you change how you respond to them.
This may involve:
In simple terms, ERP helps you learn that you do not need to check, solve, or be 100% certain in order to feel okay.
We also pay attention to patterns such as self-doubt, hyper-awareness, misplaced responsibility, and sensitivity to uncertainty or perceived threat. These patterns can keep the OCD cycle going, and learning to respond differently to them is part of the work we do together.
If you are new to ERP, you may find it helpful to read Beginning Treatment for OCD. I explain what treatment involves, why ERP can feel difficult, and what you can expect as you begin the recovery process.
Over time, this work can help loosen the grip of OCD and give you more freedom to live without constantly checking, analyzing, seeking reassurance, or trying to make everything feel certain.
OCD can look different from person to person. These are some of the OCD presentations I work with, and you may recognize yourself in one or more of them:
I invite you to reach out for a brief introductory call. We can talk about what you’re experiencing and whether working together feels like a good fit.