Obsessive compulsive disorder - OCD treatment and therapy from NOCD

How Do I Recognize That I Have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?

2 min read
Patrick McGrath, PhD

The following is a video transcript. The text has been lightly edited for clarity.

There are a few things to look out for if you think you may have OCD: are you experiencing intrusive thoughts, images or urges that you find to be really disturbing or inappropriate? Do they lead you to feel guilty, shameful, anxious, or disgusted? And when you have these, if you do something to try to neutralize them, or to decrease the anxiety or disgust or shame that you feel, that’s a sign that you might be doing compulsions. 

Obsessions in OCD are these intrusive thoughts, images or urges that people experience, and compulsions are either behaviors that you can see physically or mental acts that you might be performing, like maybe counting or praying. You do those to neutralize the effect of the obsession. You find that obsession to be something that you don’t want, so you want to neutralize it.

One phrase we sometimes use for these thoughts, images, or urges is “ego dystonic,” meaning that they don’t feel like a part of us or don’t align with who we are as a person; they’re outside of who we see ourselves as. So we want to neutralize that to make it go away, because if we don’t, we fear that something bad might happen, or we might be at fault for something that could occur. 

Once we neutralize it, we typically feel really good. That compulsion kind of wipes away the obsession, but the relief is only temporary. That feeling maintains us, and we continue to do those compulsions because we know it’s the way to feel better. That’s why people get stuck, why they keep having these intrusive thoughts, and they keep doing whatever they can to try to make them go away. It’s a cycle that keeps happening over and over again: sometimes I refer to it as a really unfortunate hamster wheel that we find ourselves on, and we just keep going around and around. And we don’t know how to get off. 

These obsessions and compulsions can help you recognize that you or someone else may have OCD, but the only way to know for sure is to talk with a licensed mental health professional who has specialty training in OCD. Every therapist in the NOCD network is specialty-trained in OCD and uses exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, the gold-standard treatment for OCD. If you’re interested in learning more about working with an OCD specialist at NOCD, schedule a free call with our care team.

NOCD Therapists specialize in treating OCD

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Taylor Newendorp

Taylor Newendorp

Network Clinical Training Director

I started as a therapist over 14 years ago, working in different mental health environments. Many people with OCD that weren't being treated for it crossed my path and weren't getting better. I decided that I wanted to help people with OCD, so I became an OCD therapist, and eventually, a clinical supervisor. I treated people using Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) and saw people get better day in and day out. I continue to use ERP because nothing is more effective in treating OCD.

Gary Vandalfsen

Gary Vandalfsen

Licensed Therapist, Psychologist

I’ve been practicing as a licensed therapist for over twenty five years. My main area of focus is OCD with specialized training in Exposure and Response Prevention therapy. I use ERP to treat people with all types of OCD themes, including aggressive, taboo, and a range of other unique types.

Madina Alam

Madina Alam

Director of Therapist Engagement

When I started treating OCD, I quickly realized how much this type of work means to me because I had to learn how to be okay with discomfort and uncertainty myself. I’ve been practicing as a licensed therapist since 2016. My graduate work is in mental health counseling, and I use Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy because it’s the gold standard of OCD treatment.

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