Learn about OCD
Plain answers about OCD, backed by the research: how the loop works, what to do mid-spiral, how ERP works, and more.
In the moment
- OCD spiral after drinking: what to do the next day
Why the day after drinking triggers OCD doubt, why replaying the night and checking messages keeps it going, and what to do instead the next day.
- How to sit with anxiety when OCD spikes
Sitting with anxiety in ERP means feeling the spike without doing the compulsion. What it means, the steps for the moment, and the traps to watch for.
- OCD flare-up out of nowhere: what to do
OCD flaring up out of nowhere? Why symptoms spike with no trigger, what to do in the first hour, and how to get back to ERP over the next few weeks.
- OCD attack or panic attack? How to tell
OCD attack or panic attack? One is thought-driven, one is body alarm. How to tell them apart mid-spike, where they overlap, and what to do either way.
- Why does OCD get worse at night?
OCD spikes at 2am because nothing is distracting you from the thought. The mechanics of night spirals, what to do in bed, and when to get more help.
- How to stop an OCD spiral
An OCD spiral is the OCD loop repeating over and over. Six steps to stop it, what to do if you already did the compulsion, and why night makes it worse.
ERP at home
- New Exposure hierarchy example for OCD: a finished ladder, step by step
Two complete OCD exposure hierarchies with a 0-10 rating and a response prevention line for every rung, plus how to build and climb your own ladder.
- How to do ERP for mental compulsions
Mental compulsions are rituals you run in your head. How to spot them, build exposures, and practice response prevention when the ritual is a thought.
- Does ERP make you worse before it gets better?
Anxiety rises during exposure by design, then falls with repetition. What "worse" means in early ERP, why dropout is the real risk, and how to pace it.
- Exposure ideas for every OCD theme
Graded exposure ideas for checking, harm, contamination, relationship, scrupulosity, real event, pure O and more, each with its response prevention line.
- How to do ERP at home, honestly
How to do ERP for OCD at home: a first exposure, response prevention, building a ladder, the traps that fake progress, and when to get a specialist.
Is this OCD?
- New Intrusive thoughts vs impulsive thoughts: what's the difference?
Intrusive thoughts are unwanted and distressing; impulsive thoughts are urges you want in the moment. Why checking which one it is becomes a compulsion.
- Are intrusive thoughts normal?
Yes - nearly everyone has unwanted intrusive thoughts, across six continents. What makes it OCD is the meaning and the response, not the thought itself.
- Is it OCD or anxiety?
OCD or anxiety? The obsession-compulsion loop versus general worry, why they overlap, what it means for treatment, and why only an assessment can tell.
- Why do intrusive thoughts feel so real in OCD?
Why intrusive thoughts feel so real in OCD: thought-action fusion, the alarm system, and why chasing certainty makes them feel realer. What helps.
Compulsions
- New Checking OCD: how to stop checking locks, stoves and messages
Checking OCD is repeating a check until a feeling says stop. Why rechecking lowers certainty, and an ERP plan to cut checks down to one or none.
- New OCD urge to confess: why telling never settles it, and what helps
The OCD urge to confess is a compulsion that works like reassurance seeking. Why telling brings relief then more doubt, and how to resist it with ERP.
- How to resist compulsions when the urge feels impossible
The urge to do a compulsion peaks and passes. How to delay and ride it, why stopping beats cutting down, and what to do after you've already given in.
- How to stop asking for reassurance
Reassurance is a compulsion. Why it wears off, how to stop asking, how to tell the person you ask, and what to do with the uncertainty instead.
- How to stop OCD rumination
OCD rumination is a mental compulsion, not deep thinking. How to catch reviewing and analyzing mid-loop, stop it, and leave the question unanswered.
OCD themes
- False memory OCD: when you can't tell if it happened
False memory OCD: why reviewing makes the memory feel more real, why checking can't settle it, and how ERP works when the question stays open.
- Real event OCD: when the guilt won't resolve
Real event OCD loops on a memory that really happened. Why reviewing never settles it, why confessing backfires, and the ERP shape for not-knowing.
- Sensorimotor OCD: hyperawareness of breathing, blinking and swallowing
Sensorimotor OCD is hyperawareness of breathing, blinking or swallowing plus monitoring. Why attention amplifies it, and how ERP works for this theme.
For family
- How to help someone with OCD without reassuring them
Reassurance feeds the OCD loop. Why it backfires, scripts to use instead, how to agree a plan together, and how to look after yourself.
- What to say to someone with OCD (and what not to say)
Phrases that help someone with OCD, phrases that keep the loop going, why reassurance backfires, and a short script to use on a hard evening.
- When helping makes OCD worse: family accommodation explained
Family accommodation means the reassurance, checking and routine changes that ease OCD distress now but keep it going. How to step back kindly.
