OCD is all about jumping to illogical conclusions. It take something that is insignificant and potentially unrelated and transforms it into the biggest problem of the moment. Cutting tomatoes with a kitchen knife can spiral into "what if I murdered my entire family right now." OCD thrives on taking something innocuous and then connecting it... Continue Reading →
OCD Center of LA On Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Health-Related OCD
I was considering writing my own post about Coronavirus and how I plan to deal with it from an OCD standpoint, but this post from the OCD Center of LA did a much better job than I ever could. I trust their professional expertise and have worked with them before so I know that they... Continue Reading →
The Three Ways to Respond to “I’m so OCD”
"I'm so OCD." It is a pretty common phrase that I would guess I encounter about once or twice a month (either in person, on TV, in a book or article, etc). Other people with OCD may encounter it more or less, but no matter the frequency, it can be a difficult saying for a... Continue Reading →
Interesting Article from WSJ on Mental Health and Colleges vs Workplaces
The article, linked here, discusses how some young, recently-graduated employees are encountering difficulties as they transition from a university environment to a business one because workplaces are often less accommodating of mental disabilities or illnesses than colleges are. I would agree with that reasoning and try to categorize the difference (at least in my personal... Continue Reading →
White-Collar OCD vs Blue-Collar OCD
I wanted to use this post to reinforce the idea that no matter how "diverse" our OCD thoughts may be, they are in the end, all trying to do the same thing and should be dealt with in the same way. To illustrate this, I'd like to detail a white-collar and blue-collar example from my... Continue Reading →
The Art of the OCD Handshake
The handshake. A staple of almost any business meeting. And for someone with contamination OCD, a very uncomfortable experience. This specific OCD is one that hasn't ever been among my most "difficult" OCD worries, but it definitely has affected me at certain points of my life. And for those who suffer from it constantly, I... Continue Reading →
OCD: The Suffocating Anvil
Throughout my whole OCD journey, I think the feeling I hated the most was not the direct in-the-moment anxiety that came from an OCD worry, but rather the "anvil" feeling that came after. I would describe the anvil feeling as such: my belief that I was essentially doomed because I'd had some powerful OCD thought... Continue Reading →
Tip: No Thought is Too Outlandish with OCD
OCD works by making you worry about thoughts that you inherently know aren't true and about actions that you will never do. So consequently, OCD has a ton of material to work as since everything it is feeding you is false anyways, it might as well try to hit you with any and every idea... Continue Reading →
Opening Up Thanks to OCD
The following story is about how I improved my relationship with my family and friends (through the OCD therapy and recovery process) by personally shifting from an insular nature to a more open one. Also this story was published on the International OCD Foundation Blog, which was pretty nifty. I always preferred being alone. I... Continue Reading →
Tip: Backdoor Spikes are OCD’s Response to Your Success
So let's say you have been doing well with your therapy and are dealing with less and less OCD anxiety each day (which is great). But then suppose that out of nowhere, you are hit by a huge OCD panic stemming from a worry or fear that hasn't bothered you in months and that you... Continue Reading →