Understanding OCD: Beyond Hand-Washing

You’ve probably heard someone say it, maybe even said it yourself, “I’m a bit OCD” when lining up pens neatly, or getting annoyed by wonky picture frames. It’s often meant as a throwaway comment, shorthand for being clean, organised, or liking things “just so.” But as a clinical psychologist, I can tell you that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is not a quirky personality trait. It’s a serious, and often incredibly distressing, mental health condition. In fact, the World Health Organisation has ranked OCD among the top ten most disabling illnesses worldwide, not just among mental health issues, but across all health conditions.

The image most people have of OCD tends to focus on tidiness, handwashing, or colour-coded sock drawers. But OCD isn’t really about neatness. At its core, it’s about anxiety, doubt, and repetitive behaviours that people feel compelled to do to try and ease that anxiety even when they know it doesn’t make sense.

The truth is, we all get random intrusive thoughts now and then, things that pop into your mind uninvited, like “What if I shouted in this meeting?” or “Did I definitely lock the door?” Most people can shrug those off. But for someone with OCD, these thoughts don’t go away, they spiral, grow louder, and become harder to ignore. And to try and get relief, they may feel driven to perform rituals or compulsions, anything to neutralise the thought or calm the dread, or in many cases because they believe it prevents bad things from happening.

In this blog, I want to dig a bit deeper. I’ll walk you through what OCD really looks like (and spoiler alert: it’s not always visible), the many different ways it can show up, and most importantly, what we can do to help. Because the good news is: with the right support, recovery is absolutely possible.

So if you’ve ever wondered what OCD is about, or if you or someone you care about is struggling with it, I hope this gives you some clarity, compassion, and maybe a little hope.

What Is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?

OCD is a complex mental health disorder characterised by two hallmark symptoms: obsessions and compulsions.

Obsessions are unwanted, intrusive thoughts, images, or urges that bombard the mind and trigger intense distress or anxiety. An intrusive thought is an unwanted, involuntary thought, image, or urge that suddenly pops into your mind and often feels disturbing, distressing, or out of character.

Everyone experiences intrusive thoughts from time to time like wondering “What if I swerve into oncoming traffic?” while driving, or picturing dropping a baby even though you never would. These thoughts don’t reflect your true desires or intentions. They’re simply random mental “noise” strange, fleeting blips in your brain’s constant stream of consciousness. The whole point of intrusive thoughts is that they are completely the opposite of who we are, or how we would act, that’s why we find them intrusive and distressing at times and therefore notice the thought more.  But the problem is not the thought itself, but how you interpret and respond to it.

For most people, intrusive thoughts are easily dismissed as “weird” or irrelevant. But for people with OCD or certain anxiety disorders, the thoughts stick, triggering intense anxiety and self-doubt:

• “Why did I think that? What does it mean about me?”

• “What if I act on it? Does having the thought make it likely?”

Common obsessions include fears of contamination (germs, dirt), worries about causing harm or making a catastrophic mistake, disturbing violent or sexual images including paedophilia, or excessive concern with things being “just right.” These thoughts feel alien and involuntary and as one client told me, “It’s like my own brain besieges me with thoughts I hate.”

Most of us have fleeting weird thoughts (like “Did I leave the stove on and could the house burn down?”) and even occasional urges to double-check things. In everyday life we usually brush them off. But in OCD, these intrusive thoughts are relentless and alarming, and the person cannot simply “move on” from them. Instead, the anxiety builds and drives them to perform compulsions for relief.

Compulsions, on the other hand, are repetitive behaviours or mental acts performed to try to relieve the distress caused by obsessions. For example, someone tormented by a fear of burglars might check the door lock 30 times before bed; a person afraid of germs might wash their hands until their skin is raw. I have worked with people whose hands literally bled from the constant need to wash. Compulsions can feel like literally life or death behaviours, and the urge can range from needing for things to feel safe, to believing that if the behaviour isn’t carried out that a loved one, or they might die.

Importantly, people with OCD usually recognise that these thoughts and behaviours are irrational or excessive because the obsessions and compulsions are what we call ego-dystonic, meaning they clash with the person’s own values and desires. This is why someone with OCD might say, “I know this doesn’t make sense, but I feel like I have to do it.” That insight doesn’t automatically cure the anxiety; in fact, knowing that the fears are irrational can add to the torment, leading to shame and isolation.

OCD often creates a vicious cycle of distress. Obsessions (unwanted thoughts or fears) lead to intense anxiety or discomfort. This anxiety triggers compulsive acts or mental rituals to get relief. The relief is only temporary, and soon the obsessions return reinforced by the compulsions that “proved” the threat felt real. Over time, this cycle becomes a self-perpetuating trap.

The OCD cycle can take countless forms, but the core pattern is the same for everyone with this disorder.

obsession → anxiety → compulsion → temporary relief → more obsession   

It’s worth noting that OCD affects people of all ages and walks of life, from young children to older adults. It’s fairly common, occurring in about 1-2% of the population worldwide (roughly 1 in 50 people) so if you have OCD, you are certainly not alone. It can begin at any age, but often first appears in childhood, teen years, or early adulthood. Without treatment, OCD tends to be chronic (lasting for years), though its severity may wax and wane. The good news is that OCD is treatable, and we’ll talk more about effective treatments later.

To be diagnosed with OCD, this cycle of obsessions and compulsions becomes so extreme that it consumes substantial time (often over an hour a day and I have worked with people where compulsions took up to eight hours a day!) or causes significant distress and impairment in daily life. In other words, OCD isn’t just “being a perfectionist” or “liking things clean”, it’s living under siege from anxiety. First, let’s explore the many faces OCD can wear as it’s not all about hand-washing!

The Many Faces of OCD: Common Themes and Examples

One person’s OCD can look very different from another’s. OCD is often categorised into subtypes or common themes based on the content of the obsessions and compulsions. Here are a few examples (composites from real life examples) that show how varied OCD can be:

• Contamination & Cleaning: Maria is haunted by a fear of germs and illness. She has images of invisible “contamination” everywhere, door handles, money, even her own clothes. If she touches anything she thinks is dirty, panic surges: her heart races and her mind screams that she or her family will get sick. To cope, Maria washes her hands in a precise ritual: scalding water, soap, 20 minutes of scrubbing   repeated countless times a day. She knows rationally that normal dirt won’t kill her, but the anxiety feels unbearable until she washes. This contamination OCD isn’t about liking cleanliness; it’s driven by terror of harm coming through “germs.” Her hands are cracked and bleeding, and still she cannot shake the feeling of dirt.

  
  

• Checking & Doubt: Jason is a thirty-year-old teacher with harm-related OCD. Whenever he leaves home, he is seized by an intrusive thought: “Did I forget to turn off the stove? What if the house burns down and it’s my fault?” The thought of causing a disaster makes him nauseous with guilt and dread. So he checks, not once or twice, but over and over. Stove knobs, electrical outlets, door locks   each must be checked in a ritualistic pattern until it “feels right.” On a bad day, Jason might spend an hour checking and re-checking every appliance before he can leave. He often arrives late to work, exhausted and ashamed. Deep down he knows he likely turned everything off, but the sliver of doubt (“What if I missed something?”) torments him. This subtype of OCD exploits his sense of responsibility: he feels if he doesn’t check thoroughly, he’ll be to blame for a tragedy.

  
  

• “Harm OCD” (Violent Obsessions): Eva is a gentle, caring person   which is why she’s horrified by the thoughts that OCD throws at her. Out of nowhere, she’ll get a flash of an image of stabbing her own child, or a voice in her head saying “Push that person onto the train tracks.” These violent intrusive thoughts are utterly at odds with her true character, yet they feel sticky and alarming. Eva becomes terrified that “If I’m thinking this, does it mean I want to do it? Am I a dangerous person?” She starts avoiding knives and keeping distance from train platforms. Sometimes she performs mental rituals like repeating a “good” phrase to “cancel out” the bad thought. Eva’s OCD is not visible to others, she does no outward compulsions, but internally she’s battling constant panic and self-doubt. This is sometimes called “Pure O” (purely obsessional) OCD, though often there are mental compulsions. The key is that Eva finds these thoughts repulsive and would never act on them, the ego-dystonic nature of the thoughts is precisely why they cause so much anguish.

  
  

• Religious Obsessions (Scrupulosity): Gerald’s faith is central to his life. OCD hijacks this by filling his mind with blasphemous images and fears of sinning. During prayer, instead of feeling peace, he is assaulted by thoughts of insulting God or doing something sacrilegious. He then feels compelled to pray over and over until he performs it “perfectly” without any intrusive thought, which is an impossible goal. At times he spends hours confessing to his religious mentor about minor thoughts, seeking reassurance that he isn’t damned. His OCD is often termed scrupulosity, and it blurs the line between healthy religiosity and pathological doubt. The disorder turns his loving faith into a source of fear; no matter how devoutly he practices, OCD tells him it’s never enough, that he’s a sinner at heart.

  
  

• Symmetry/Order (“Just Right” OCD): Nina doesn’t have grotesque intrusive thoughts; instead, her OCD insists that things just feel off. If books on her shelf aren’t perfectly aligned or if she steps on a floor tile with her left foot, she is overcome with an intolerable sense of incompleteness and anxiety. It’s not about a belief that something bad will happen, it simply feels unbearably wrong when things are asymmetrical or not done in a precise way. To relieve the tension, Nina arranges and rearranges items until they are symmetrical, or she steps again with her right foot to “even it out.” She might spend hours organising, counting, or repeating routine actions until the internal irritation finally subsides. While it might look like mere perfectionism, Nina experiences it as compulsion   she would truly prefer not to do these time-consuming rituals but feels driven by an internal pressure that won’t ease up until she gets things “just right.”

  
  

• Taboo or Sexual Obsessions: Dan is a kind and conscientious young man. One day, he has a random intrusive thought of a sexual nature involving a child   an image that disgusts and terrifies him. He nearly has a panic attack: “Why would I think that? Does this mean I’m a paedophile? I must be a monster!” In reality, Dan has zero history or desire to harm anyone; the thought is purely OCD’s trick. But he becomes consumed by fear that maybe there’s something evil in him. He starts avoiding being around his little niece, just in case. He mentally checks his feelings around children (“Do I feel anything inappropriate?”) and compulsively scans his past for evidence that he’s not a predator. These are sexual intrusive thoughts OCD, an especially stigmatised theme, because people fear others will think they truly want these things. Dan’s shame is immense; he hasn’t told anyone, convinced that having the thought is as bad as doing the deed. This is a classic example of thought-action fusion (a cognitive distortion in OCD where people believe having a bad thought is morally equivalent to acting on it). In therapy, Dan eventually learned that 90%+ of people have bizarre unwanted thoughts   the difference is that in OCD, the brain misinterprets these thoughts as significant and dangerous, when in fact they’re not.

  
  

These scenarios barely scratch the surface of OCD’s diversity. Other OCD themes include obsessions about causing accidents, health anxieties (imagining one has a deadly illness), “real event” obsessions (guilt and rumination over whether one did something terrible in the past), superstitious obsessions, and more. Some individuals have a single predominant theme; others experience a kaleidoscope of different obsessions and compulsions over time. The content can even shift as someone who primarily had checking compulsions might, under stress, develop a new obsession about contamination, for example. Regardless of theme, what all these forms of OCD share is the cycle of intrusive, anxiety-provoking thoughts and compulsive responses aimed at relieving distress.

Before moving on, let’s emphasise: People with OCD do not want to think or do these things. A person with contamination OCD isn’t choosing to wash for fun; they feel they 'have to', and not doing the behaviour can feel threatening and painful. Someone with violent obsessions is usually gentle, the thoughts horrify them precisely because they’re the opposite of their values. OCD imposes thoughts and urges that feel deeply alien to the sufferer. Understanding this helps us combat the stigma that OCD is just “quirkiness” or that people could stop if they really wanted.

Biological and Neurological Factors in OCD

If you ever read my blogs you will know I am always keen to understand the neurochemistry because ultimately our brains are like machines. So what is happening in the brain of someone with OCD? Research in neuroscience over the past few decades has shed a lot of light on the biological underpinnings of OCD. While we don’t have a complete picture, we do know that OCD is associated with specific brain circuits and imbalances in neurochemistry.

If you’ve ever wondered why OCD feels so powerful, like your mind’s stuck on a loop you can’t turn off, you’re not imagining it. Brain imaging studies show that in OCD, certain parts of the brain really are overactive and overly connected, making it harder to let go of worries or feel “done.”

The Brain Circuit That Won’t Let Go

Researchers often point to something called the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) loop, basically a mouthful that means your brain’s worry-checking circuit is stuck in overdrive. Here’s how it works:

• The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) flags when something seems “off” — like that sense you might’ve left the stove on.

• The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is your error detector — it says, “Hey, something’s wrong!”

• The striatum and thalamus help decide what signals to pay attention to — and which ones to let go.

In OCD, this whole loop is like an alarm that won’t shut off. The brain keeps cycling: Something’s wrong → fix it → still not fixed → try again…

That constant “false alarm” might explain why people with OCD get such a strong, persistent feeling of danger even when everything looks fine on the surface.

Connectivity: When Brain Regions Talk Too Much

It’s not just overactivity — it’s also over connection. Brain scans show that in OCD, certain regions are hyperconnected. It’s like parts of the brain are chatting too loudly or too often, especially the areas involved in checking, doubting, and reacting to “what ifs.”

This might be why thoughts get stuck and feel so convincing as the brain’s running the same tape over and over, and no one’s pressing stop.

The encouraging part? When people get better through therapy (especially Exposure and Response Prevention) or treatment like medication or deep brain stimulation, these brain patterns start to shift back toward normal. So yes, your brain can change. That stuck circuit can loosen up.

Brain Chemicals and OCD

You might have heard that OCD is “a serotonin problem.” That’s partly because SSRIs, which boost serotonin, are often effective and are a first-line treatment. But we now know it’s not the whole story. Other brain chemicals are involved too:

• Glutamate (which excites brain activity) may be too high in some brain areas.

• Dopamine (linked to habits and reward) might also be out of balance.

• GABA, the brain’s calming chemical, could be under-functioning in some people.

New treatments are even exploring meds that adjust glutamate and other systems which are promising options for people who don’t respond to standard medication.

Is OCD Genetic?

There’s definitely a genetic link as OCD tends to run in families. If a parent has OCD, their child has a higher chance (roughly 10–20%) of developing it too. But there’s no “OCD gene.” It’s more like lots of tiny genetic risk factors that mix with life experiences to tip the balance.

And here’s something fascinating: in rare cases, OCD symptoms in children can come on suddenly after a strep infection, a condition called PANDAS. It’s thought to involve inflammation in the brain, and it’s one of the many reasons researchers are exploring immune system links to OCD too.

So What Does All This Mean?

So, is OCD a brain disorder or a mind (psychological) disorder? The honest answer is both. When someone has OCD, we can observe the psychological patterns (like catastrophic misinterpretations and compulsive learning) and also observe the biological patterns (like hyperactive brain circuits and certain neurotransmitter effects). They’re two sides of the same coin. Importantly, treating OCD often leads to observable changes in the brain. Brain scans before and after successful therapy have shown reductions in activity in the OFC and related regions, for example. Medication likewise can normalise some of the brain function. This mind-brain connection is actually hopeful: it means the brain can change with the right interventions.

It means OCD is very real and it’s not just “in your head,” and it’s not your fault. Your brain might be sending faulty error messages, but the wonderful news is: those patterns can change. Therapy, medication, and support can help reset the system. You're not broken, your brain's just been stuck in a loop, and with the right tools, you can start to untangle it.

The Human Impact: Life with OCD

Living with untreated OCD is often a daily nightmare. It’s not merely “having a quirky habit” it is endless anxiety and self-doubt that infiltrates every corner of life. The disorder can be like an occupying force in the mind, dictating what you do or avoid all day long.

OCD causes marked distress, and people are typically acutely aware that something is wrong. Imagine constantly questioning your own safety, morality, or sanity, and feeling responsible for preventing disaster at every moment. It’s exhausting. Many with OCD describe feeling “on high alert” all the time. The anxiety can be through the roof during severe spikes, including full-blown panic attacks triggered by obsessional fears.

Equally painful is the shame and guilt. Since sufferers often know their compulsions are irrational, they feel embarrassed or ‘crazy’ for doing them. They may go to great lengths to hide their symptoms, which only fuels their sense of isolation. In Eva’s case, for example, she was convinced that having violent thoughts meant she was a terrible person her self-worth plummeted, and she became depressed. In fact, depression is a common companion to OCD, as years of struggle and the losses caused by OCD (missed opportunities, strained relationships) can lead to hopelessness. It’s no surprise that research once found OCD to be one of the leading causes of functional disability as the suffering is profound.

Time and Life Interference: 

OCD can consume incredible amounts of time. Some people spend hours each day performing rituals or avoiding triggers. This can wreak havoc on normal functioning at work, school, household responsibilities, even basic self-care. A student with OCD might be up until 3 AM rewriting homework because of perfectionism, or a parent might be chronically late to events because of time lost to rituals. Important activities fall by the wayside. Avoidance can shrink a person’s world: someone afraid of germs might stop eating out, touching others, or going to public places; someone with social-related obsessions might avoid dating or gatherings. Life becomes increasingly narrow as the OCD demands more territory. It’s like living in an ever-contracting prison of rules and fears.

Impact on Relationships: 

OCD doesn’t just affect the person who has it, it often entangles family and loved ones. Family members can become part of the rituals (like a spouse who must repeatedly answer “Did I do something wrong?” to reassure their partner, or a parent who has to check the child’s homework excessively because the child with OCD begs them to). This is called family accommodation, and while it comes from a place of trying to help, it can enable the OCD to grow. Over time, loved ones might feel frustration and fatigue. They may not understand why the person can’t “just stop” the behaviours.

Arguments and tension are common, especially if the OCD centres on interpersonal fears (for example, relationship-themed OCD where the person constantly seeks reassurance about the partnership). In some cases, the strain can lead to breakups or family conflict. On the other hand, some families rally with great support once they understand it’s OCD at play. Education for family members is often key so they can respond supportively without feeding the disorder.

Insight and Functioning: 

It’s interesting that people with OCD usually have insight   they know their fears are exaggerated or not grounded in actual likelihood, unlike psychotic disorders where the beliefs are held with conviction. Yet, as we said, that insight doesn’t mean they can stop. It often just means they suffer with awareness. However, insight in OCD exists on a spectrum. Some, especially when anxious, have “poor insight” part of them almost believes the obsessive fear (e.g., “Maybe I really did run someone over and blocked it out”). In extreme cases, OCD can reach a delusional intensity, though that’s relatively rare and typically indicates a very severe case. Most are at least partly aware, which is why they often suffer in secret. They know others “wouldn’t understand” or might think they’re crazy if they revealed their true struggles.

Quality of Life: 

Ultimately, OCD can degrade quality of life significantly. Joy and spontaneity get replaced by fear and rigidity. Simple pleasures  like playing with your child, or going out with friends are hijacked by intrusive thoughts or rules (“What if I contaminate my child?” “I can’t enjoy the movie because I have to mentally neutralise that bad thought.”). It’s heartbreaking to see, and it’s why effective treatment is so crucial. The flip side is: when someone fights their way out of OCD’s grip, they often experience a wonderful rebound in life quality. I’ve had the privilege to see clients reclaim their lives, do things they avoided for years, and rebuild relationships. But it starts with breaking the silence and getting help.

Stigma and Misrepresentation

Despite OCD’s seriousness, public understanding of this disorder is still full of misconceptions. The casual use of “OCD” as an adjective “She’s so OCD, always color-coding her closet” trivialises the condition and confuses people about what it really is. Being organised or liking things clean is not OCD. In fact, many people with OCD are not especially neat, their compulsions might be completely invisible (like mental rituals or avoidance) or actually make life more chaotic (imagine spending hours checking or re-doing tasks, it’s hard to be tidy then!). As the UK’s OCD charity puts it plainly, you can’t be “a bit OCD.” OCD is an illness, not an exaggeration of normal traits.

Media representations have often done a disservice to OCD. On one hand, you have comedic portrayals of ultra-neat or eccentric characters (“anal-retentive” is sometimes incorrectly equated with OCD). They might show a character wiping doorknobs or arranging pencils for laughs, without conveying the crippling anxiety driving those actions. This makes OCD seem like a personality quirk rather than the anxiety disorder it is. On the other hand, some media do highlight severe OCD, but even then, it’s often one-dimensional (e.g., only contamination OCD is shown, making people think that’s the only type). It’s rare to see portrayals of the intrusive thought aspect, the dark, taboo obsessions, probably because they’re harder to depict and socially uncomfortable. Yet those themes (harm, sexual, blasphemous thoughts) are extremely common in OCD, and sufferers often feel extra ashamed because “no one talks about this side of OCD.”

Stigma can lead to real harm. People with OCD frequently report feeling misunderstood. They might hear things like “Oh, I wish I had OCD so my house would be clean!” or friends may joke, “You’re so OCD, haha,” if someone double-checks something, not realising their comment might embarrass the person who truly is battling OCD privately. Such attitudes can make individuals hesitate to seek help: they think, “Others won’t take it seriously” or “Maybe I’m just being silly.” In reality, OCD is extremely serious, in fact it is one of the conditions I see impacts ,my clients the most, taking hold of their lives.

It’s not beneficial or cute; as one advocate said, “OCD is a painful illness dressed up as a best friend, not a personality trait.” It’s even been called “the doubting disease”  as sufferers live in a world of uncertainty about things most people take for granted. Constant doubt and fear is not something anyone would want.

In sum, we need to retire the phrase “a little OCD.” OCD is not an adjective for idiosyncrasies; it’s a noun, a diagnosable condition that can devastate lives.

Overcoming OCD: Evidence-Based Treatment and Hope for Recovery

Here’s the most important message of all: OCD is treatable. In fact, it’s very treatable in the majority of cases. Over the past few decades, mental health professionals have developed and refined therapies and medications that can dramatically reduce OCD symptoms. People who once thought their lives would always revolve around rituals have been able to break free and live in ways they never imagined, thanks to effective treatment. Let’s look at the main evidence-based treatments available today, as well as some emerging approaches.

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP):

If there is a “gold standard” of OCD treatment, ERP is it. ERP is a specialised form of cognitive-behavioural therapy specifically designed for OCD, and it has the strongest track record of success. The concept is simple to describe but takes courage to do under the guidance of a therapist, the person gradually exposes themselves to the situations that trigger their obsessions (exposure) and then refrains from doing their usual compulsion (response prevention).

For example, Maria might touch a doorknob and then not wash her hands, sitting with her anxiety; Jason might leave the house with the stove on (in actuality, it’s off, but he must resist checking) and go for a walk. At first this causes a spike in anxiety it feels counterintuitive to do, but with repetition, something powerful happens. The brain habituates to the feared stimulus, and the expected catastrophe doesn’t occur. Over time, the obsessive trigger loses its power. ERP essentially retrains the brain’s alarm system and breaks the link between “obsession = need to do compulsion.”

It’s important that ERP is done systematically and with support; a therapist will tailor a hierarchy of exercises from easier to harder, so people build confidence. Many patients I’ve seen say ERP was the hardest thing they ever did, but also the most freeing. It’s like defying OCD’s commands and discovering that you can survive the anxiety. In studies, about 60-70% or more of people with OCD show significant improvement with ERP. It can be done one-on-one or in group therapy, or even intensive outpatient programs for very severe cases. The key is doing it consistently and sticking with it despite the discomfort, which is why the therapist’s coaching (and sometimes involving family to support, not enable) is crucial.

Medication (SSRIs and more): 

Alongside therapy, medication can be a first-line treatment for OCD, particularly a class of antidepressants known as SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors). Despite the name “antidepressant,” these medications also work for OCD (often at higher doses than for depression). Medications can reduce the intensity of obsessive thoughts and the anxiety, making it easier for people to engage in therapy and resist compulsions. For those who only partially respond, combining medication with ERP therapy is often the most effective approach, the medication takes the edge off, and therapy does the heavy lifting of changing behaviour and thoughts.

Treatment can greatly reduce symptoms, often to a manageable level. Some lucky individuals achieve a state where they essentially have no clinically significant OCD symptoms at all (remission). Many others still have occasional obsessions or urges, but they’ve learned how to handle them such that it doesn’t control their life. OCD tends to be chronic, so it can flare up during stress, but with the tools from therapy, people can respond effectively and prevent a relapse from becoming full-blown. Maintenance, whether ongoing medication or periodic therapy booster sessions is sometimes needed. There is no shame in that; managing OCD is an ongoing process for many, just as managing any chronic condition would be.

Hope and Empowerment: You Can Get Better

If you or someone you love is struggling with OCD, take heart: there is hope and there is help. I have seen clients go from being nearly incapacitated by OCD to reclaiming their lives, working, dating, enjoying hobbies, even having families essentially doing things they never thought possible during the dark days of the disorder. The journey isn’t always easy; it takes courage to face one’s fears and persistence to practice the strategies that keep OCD at bay. But recovery is absolutely achievable.

It’s important to remember that needing treatment is not a sign of weakness, OCD is not something you can simply “snap out of” by willpower or ignore. It’s a condition that requires proper strategies, much like diabetes requires insulin or physical therapy is needed to rehabilitate an injury. Reaching out for professional help (a therapist who specialises in OCD, a psychiatrist for medication evaluation, or both) is a strong and positive step. There are also support groups and communities where individuals and families can share experiences and coping tips. Knowing you’re not alone that others get it and have walked the same path can itself be incredibly healing.

Final Thoughts: There Is Life Beyond OCD

If you're reading this and feeling overwhelmed, please hear this clearly: OCD is treatable, and recovery is possible. It might not be a quick or straight path, and yes, there may be ups and downs along the way, but many people go on to live full, meaningful, joyful lives, with OCD no longer in control.

Even if OCD has been part of your life for a long time, it isn’t who you are. You are not your fears or compulsions. You are someone with values, passions, humour, kindness, and strength – all the things OCD can never truly take away. And when therapy starts to turn the volume down on OCD’s constant chatter, it’s amazing how much more space there is for those parts of you to shine through again.

Recovery doesn’t mean never having an intrusive thought again. Honestly, everyone has strange or random thoughts sometimes. The difference is that they no longer control you. Recovery means OCD doesn’t make the rules. You start making choices based on what matters to you. You learn to face uncertainty, to sit with discomfort, and to say, “I see you, OCD, but I’m doing this anyway.”

And if you’ve felt shame, guilt, or like you’re losing your mind, please know this: you are not. You have a condition that sends false alarms, and there are effective treatments to help you turn them down. Be kind to yourself. The fact that you’ve carried this weight says a lot about your strength, and that strength can carry you forward into recovery too.

OCD is a difficult opponent, but it is not invincible. With understanding, evidence-based tools like exposure therapy, support from professionals and loved ones, and your own resilience, change is absolutely possible.

Recovery isn’t a fantasy. It’s real. It’s happening every day. And it can happen for you too.

Take heart. Reach out. Start where you are and take one step at a time.

As always until next time

Carla