A breakdown
OCD
Intrusive thoughts and compulsions that hijack hours of your day.
Overview
OCD is a loop: an intrusive thought (obsession) creates intense distress, and a behaviour or mental act (compulsion) temporarily relieves it — reinforcing the loop. OCD is highly treatable, but most people wait years for the right diagnosis. You are not your thoughts.
Common signs
- Intrusive, distressing thoughts you can't dismiss
- Compulsive behaviours: checking, washing, counting, reassurance-seeking
- Mental rituals: praying, neutralising, mental review
- Significant time lost daily to the loop (often 1+ hour)
- Themes: contamination, harm, sexual, religious (scrupulosity), relationship, 'just right'
What helps
The gold-standard therapy. You face the trigger and resist the compulsion — the anxiety habituates.
SSRIs at higher doses than for depression. Combining ERP + SSRI is the most effective approach.
Helps decouple from thoughts — useful for pure-O / mental-compulsion presentations.
Reassurance is the compulsion in disguise — every google, every 'are you sure?', feeds the loop.
Daily practices
Small, repeatable habits — not a checklist to fail at.
- 01Name the OCD as separate from you — 'OCD is asking me to check'
- 02Resist one small compulsion today; sit with the discomfort for 10 minutes
- 03Notice the loop: trigger → thought → urge → ritual → temporary relief
- 04Don't argue with intrusive thoughts — observe and let them pass
When to reach out today
These are signals to contact your care team, GP or a crisis service — today, not next week.
- Compulsions are taking more than 4 hours a day
- Avoidance is preventing you from working, eating, washing or leaving home
- Intrusive thoughts feel indistinguishable from intent
UK resources
Keep reading
Information shaped by NICE, NHS, Mind, and peer-reviewed clinical guidelines. Not a substitute for personalised medical advice.