What Is OCD Really Like — and How Can Therapy Help?
If you’ve ever felt trapped in your own mind — by intrusive thoughts, constant doubt, or rituals that feel impossible to stop — you’re not alone. And no, you’re not “crazy,” broken, or attention-seeking.
You're likely living with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) — and it’s a lot more misunderstood than most people realize.
What OCD Isn’t
OCD isn’t just about being “super clean” or needing your bookshelf color-coded. That’s the stereotype. Real OCD often looks like:
“What if I snapped and hurt someone I love?”
“Did I actually do that terrible thing and forget?”
“I need to check one more time... just to be sure.”
These are called intrusive thoughts — unwanted, distressing thoughts that feel completely out of alignment with your values. (That’s why they hurt so much.) People with OCD usually feel ashamed of their thoughts — not empowered by them.
The OCD Cycle
OCD creates a painful loop:
A scary or uncomfortable thought pops up
You feel intense anxiety or shame
You try to “fix” it through a compulsion (checking, asking for reassurance, replaying events, avoiding things)
You feel a little relief — until the thought returns
The cycle starts all over again
It’s relentless. OCD targets what matters most to you — your values, your safety, your relationships — and convinces you that you must do something to make the anxiety go away.
How Therapy Helps: ERP
The gold standard treatment for OCD is called ERP — Exposure and Response Prevention. And yeah, that can sound intimidating, but I promise: it’s about building self-trust and freedom, not pushing you into anything before you’re ready.
ERP helps by gradually exposing you to the thoughts, situations, or feelings you usually avoid — while teaching your brain that you don’t have to engage in compulsions to be safe or okay.
For example:
If you usually ask for constant reassurance after a distressing thought, we practice sitting with the thought and riding the wave of discomfort — together.
If you check the stove multiple times before leaving the house, we slowly reduce that checking, while helping your nervous system learn it can handle the uncertainty.
ERP works best when it’s collaborative, consent-based, and trauma-informed. That’s how I approach it.
Why I Trained in This
I chose training in ERP with Thrive OCD, a program created by therapists who also live with OCD. This wasn’t just professional — it was personal. I wanted to support my clients more deeply, especially those navigating:
Intrusive or unwanted thoughts
Compulsions that feel “mental” instead of visible
OCD tied to trauma, identity, neurodivergence, or shame
Misdiagnoses or years of not being believed
I integrate ERP with my broader trauma-informed and somatic work, which means we go at your pace — with compassion and care.
Want to Learn More?
If you’re starting to learn about OCD and how treatment actually works, I created my own OCD + ERP Guide to walk you through the basics. It breaks down what OCD really is, why intrusive thoughts feel so intense, and how Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) helps you build confidence instead of relying on compulsions. It’s meant to help you learn, reflect, and prepare before we dive into ERP together—or to revisit anytime you need a little extra clarity.
🖤 Download the Not Another Therapist OCD + ERP Guide
If you’re ready to go deeper into identifying your compulsions or creating an exposure plan, I also recommend the OCD and ERP Starter Pack from Thrive OCD. It’s a free, therapist-created handout with detailed explanations, a compulsion checklist, and hierarchy worksheets to help you start understanding your patterns and practice ERP more effectively. You can download it here or ask me about it in session and we can explore parts of it together.
You're Not Broken. You're Just Caught in a Loop.
And loops can be broken.
If this feels like your story, and you're ready to do this work with someone who gets it — let’s talk.
Reach out here: https://www.notanothertherapist.co/contact
