Living with OCD

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Speaking it out loud takes away its power?” I’ve always really liked this statement, and I believe it to be true.

On a daily basis, your mind is hijacked by intrusive thoughts that seem to go against everything you believe to be true about yourself or the world. You

Do you feel constantly aware of where you’re looking? Are you worried you look at people too often or at inappropriate times? Does staring make you feel

Why OCD and anxiety are separate diagnoses, how they overlap and how to find treatment for both

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a complex disorder that can become completely debilitating—even life-threatening—when it’s left untreated. The good

You may have heard that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can be very sneaky. As someone who lives with the disorder, I can confirm this to be true. You

Ten years ago, Megan Ocando thought she knew OCD. She was in graduate school, earning her master's degree in mental health and training to be a therapist.

Tracie Zinman-Ibrahim, LMFT, CST, wasn’t the first in her family to become a therapist—and she wasn’t the first to struggle with obsessive-compulsive

NOCD was built by people who deeply understand the struggles and needs of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Some of us had lived experience

Having obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can feel isolating. It might seem like you’re the only one going through what you’re going through. Social

I knew ERP worked, after all, it helped me so much in the past. I knew I just needed to put the difficult work in and keep forging ahead.

I always thought that if I didn’t feel like I wanted to do something, leave the house, or do something that I had maybe previously enjoyed doing, it was me making that choice. Now I can clearly decipher the difference between me wanting or not wanting to do something versus the OCD telling me I shouldn’t do something. I don’t need to let OCD run my life...

Seemingly overnight, these thoughts became more and more intense. I was consumed with guilt over them. It snowballed into experiencing unwanted thoughts about harming my family; the people that I loved the most in the world. I knew I had to tell my wife. I needed to seek help.

My family was surprised when they learned of my OCD diagnosis, I didn’t have the stereotypical signs of OCD. I didn’t wash my hands for countless hours, I wasn’t someone who was super organized. To look at me, you would not suspect all of the turmoil that went on in my mind. This is one of the most frustrating parts of this disorder, people do not often understand the mental compulsions. Many people just see the physical compulsions and don’t really understand the “why” behind the compulsions. I didn’t even know that there was such a thing as mental compulsions.

The uncertainty I’d spent my whole life running from now feels exciting and liberating. I don’t need to know “for sure” before I move my feet. I GET TO MAKE MISTAKES. And that’s horrible and amazing all at the same time.

Something that has helped me along the way is no matter the content of the intrusive thought/feeling, I will ask myself “and then what”....you see, the story must go on. Play it out. Play out the worst case scenario. And then what happens… it always comes back to I just don’t like how it feels, and we know that life will go on.

I don’t remember a life before my OCD showed up, as some of my earliest memories involve (what I now know are) obsessions and compulsions. I remember being early school-age and feeling different from everyone else around me.

My life was going great. I was an award-winning college quarterback with a bright future ahead of me. But then OCD came out of nowhere and derailed everything.