Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

When your brain gets stuck

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is much more than being neat or particular. People with OCD experience obsessions: unwanted, intrusive thoughts, images, or urges that cause intense anxiety, doubt, or disgust. To get relief, they feel driven to perform compulsions: actions or mental rituals meant to neutralize the fear or make things feel “just right.”

The relief never lasts. Each time a compulsion quiets the anxiety, the brain learns that the fear was real and the ritual was necessary, so the cycle grows stronger. Over time, OCD can take up hours of the day and crowd out work, family, and relationships.

OCD can show up in many different ways, including:

• Fears of contamination or illness
• Checking locks, appliances, or mistakes
• Unwanted violent or taboo thoughts
• Needing things to feel symmetrical or “just right”
• Religious or moral scrupulosity
• Constant doubts about a relationship or partner
• Repeated reassurance seeking
• Mental reviewing, counting, or praying

OCD also affects the people closest to you. Partners and family members often get pulled into the cycle by giving reassurance, avoiding triggers, or helping with rituals. This comes from love, but it can unintentionally keep OCD going.

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)

Missy is trained in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), which is widely recognized as the most effective therapy for OCD. In ERP, you gradually and intentionally face the thoughts, situations, and feelings that trigger your obsessions (the exposure), while choosing not to perform the compulsion (the response prevention).

ERP is not about being thrown into your worst fear. Together, you and Missy build a plan that starts with smaller, more manageable steps and works up at a pace you agree to. With practice, your brain learns that you can tolerate uncertainty and discomfort without the ritual, and the anxiety loses its grip.

You don’t have to keep living by OCD’s rules. If you or someone you love is stuck in this cycle, Missy would love to help you get unstuck.

For more information about OCD, visit the International OCD Foundation: https://iocdf.org/about-ocd/