Does not having constant stimulation make you anxious because you do not want to experience intrusive thoughts and images or uncomfortable feelings? Do you feel the urge to listen to music all day long, keeping it playing even while you’re asleep? To have a podcast in your ears at all hours of the day, even when you’re not actually listening to the words? To run the television constantly, even when you’re not actually paying close attention to the show?
If you have OCD and carry out these behaviors, you might be engaging in compulsive distraction. Sitting in silence can be difficult for people with OCD who experience scary, unwanted thoughts and images on repeat, and so compulsive distraction–through the use of constant stimulation—can be carried out with the goal of not experiencing such thoughts and images.
What is compulsive distraction?
In the context of OCD, I define compulsive distraction as engaging in distraction as an attempt to suppress what is out of our control: intrusive thoughts and images, uncomfortable feelings, bodily sensations, etc. I specify what is out of our control because there is a difference between trying to suppress intrusive thoughts that happen to us (which backfires) and stopping how we are actively choosing to mentally engage with obsessions (which is a goal of OCD treatment).
When a person is compulsively distracting as a means of suppressing intrusions, by listening to music 24/7 let’s say, they are trying not to experience something that they aren’t in control of. This can backfire for a few reasons. First, research shows that trying to suppress thoughts can actually lead to an increase in the very thoughts we are trying to suppress. Telling your brain not to produce a thought about something can contribute to you thinking about it more.
Second, compulsive distraction sends the wrong message to the brain, reinforcing that intrusions and uncomfortable feelings are bad and dangerous. This is the opposite of what I want my clients to learn: that thoughts are not good or bad (they merely are thoughts), thoughts are not threats, and thoughts are not actions. I want my clients to be less afraid of, and less responsive to, thoughts and feelings that are out of our control. Compulsive distraction through constant stimulation tends to make people more afraid of their brain.
Third, the use of constant stimulation to try and ward off OCD means that OCD is controlling how you live. It’s making your world smaller.
How does compulsive distraction differ from healthy redirection?
You may be asking yourself: Is it wrong if I turn my attention to something else instead of engaging in a compulsion? Healthy redirection involves allowing what is out of our control, like intrusive thoughts, to exist while redirecting our attention to what is more helpful in the present moment. This is done without engaging with obsessions compulsively (e.g., without arguing with them) and without suppressing thoughts and feelings that are out of our control.
Reminder: we cannot control intrusive thoughts that happen to us, but we can control how we are choosing to respond to them. The intrusions and feelings can exist, but we get to decide what is more helpful to attend to. This may be a TV show or a podcast, but the function of your watching and listening in this context is different from distracting to not experience something.
Distraction says, “I can’t have these thoughts and feelings!” Healthy redirection says, “I can experience whatever my brain and body produce, and I get to decide how I interact with them.” The latter is more helpful when it comes to not engaging with intrusive thoughts.
But what if I like listening to music a lot of the time?
Just because something can be a compulsion or safety behavior doesn’t automatically mean that it is. It’s important to look at the function of that behavior.
Here are a few questions to ask yourself when differentiating between values-driven behavior and compulsive, fear-based behavior:
- Do I want to be doing this (watching TV, listening to music, listening to a podcast) right now because it is enjoyable or because I am trying to ward off obsessions? If the answer is yes to both, what is guiding me more?
- Is having music in my ears 24/7 driven by anxiety and fear (what will happen if I don’t) or genuine interest? If yes to both, what is guiding me more?
- Can I be flexible when listening to a podcast, such as listening on my drive to work but turning it off when I get to my desk, or does it feel like I have to be listening to the podcast at all times? If it feels like you absolutely have to, there may be a compulsive element to it.
- Does anxiety arise when I think about limiting the constant stimulation? If yes, there may be a compulsive element to it.
How to treat compulsive distraction
Exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, the frontline treatment for OCD, can help you target compulsive distraction. ERP entails gradually exposing yourself to triggering stimuli while simultaneously eliminating compulsive rituals.
ERP exercises to target compulsive distraction involve allowing intrusive thoughts to be present without responding with compulsions. Examples could look like:
- Gradually reducing the time you spend listening to music throughout the day
- Dedicating time to sit in silence
- Falling asleep without the TV on
- Purposely bringing on scary thoughts as exposure to facilitate desensitization
Mindfulness-based therapy, an adjunctive treatment to enhance ERP, can also help you change your relationship to unwanted thoughts and feelings by allowing them to exist without resistance, judgment, or engagement.
If you’re struggling with OCD and practicing distraction compulsively, NOCD can help. Their licensed therapists deeply understand OCD and are specialty-trained in treating OCD with ERP. It’s important to see an OCD specialist because they’ll specifically help you prevent distraction and other compulsions. A specialist will teach you how to accept the uncertainty behind the OCD fears and will give you the tools and knowledge needed to learn how to implement acceptance into your daily life.
At NOCD, all therapists work side-by-side with the OCD experts and researchers who designed some of the world’s top OCD treatment programs—and that means the best care for Members. I encourage you to learn about NOCD’s accessible, evidence-based approach to treatment. To get started, book a free call with the NOCD team.
