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 thoughts can be disturbing, frightening, or completely inconsistent with how you see yourself.
OCD can look different from person to person.
These are some of the OCD presentations I work with:
Treatment is not about proving what your thoughts mean. It is about helping you recognize the OCD cycle and learn to 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 replay a conversation, question something you said, check how you feel, or go over the same situation again and again.
You might find yourself asking:
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.
When the discomfort becomes too much, you may do something to try to make it go away. 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 starts again.
If this sounds familiar, you may have spent a lot of time trying to understand why your mind does this or trying to make the thoughts stop. You may have become afraid of your own thoughts or unsure whether you can trust yourself.
You do not have to figure out what every thought means before you can move forward. We can work on recognizing the OCD cycle, understanding what keeps it going, and learning to respond to thoughts and uncertainty differently.
If you want to understand more about what keeps the OCD cycle going, read OCD: The Power Is in the Compulsions.
I work with you experientially in session, helping you practice responding differently to OCD rather than only talking about what you could do. What we practice together 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 move forward.
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 when you begin.
Over time, this work can help loosen the grip of OCD and give you more freedom to live your life without constantly checking, analyzing, seeking reassurance, or trying to make everything feel certain.
Adrie-Anne Gamble, MPCC, CCC
Online Therapy in Regina & Across Saskatchewan