Best Ways To Help Yourself If You Suffer From OCD
You don't have to wait for a therapist to start working on your OCD. The same steps a therapist would use are things you can practice on your own, starting today. This page walks you through OCD self-help that works.
By Nathan Peterson, LCSW, OCD therapistFind out your trigger points
For a week, keep a notebook or a note on your phone. Each time OCD shows up, write down what set it off, what the thought said, how anxious you felt, and what you did. OCD usually has a pattern, and you can't plan for a pattern you haven't seen.
The point isn't to avoid your triggers. It's to know where to practice.
Practice ERP on your own
The treatment with the most research behind it for OCD is exposure and response prevention, or ERP. As self-help, it looks like this:
1. List your triggers from easier to harder
Rate each one from 0 to 10 for how anxious it makes you. Start with something around a 3 or 4.
2. Delay or shorten the compulsion
If you wash your hands for five minutes, set a timer for two. If you check the lock five times, check once. Don't try to distract yourself while you do it. Let the urge be there.
3. Face the trigger on purpose
Touch the thing, think the thought, leave the thing unchecked. Then skip the compulsion. The anxiety comes with you while you keep going.
4. Cut back on reassurance
Asking "are you sure it's okay?" or Googling for answers is a compulsion too. It helps for a minute, and then you need to ask again.
I know, "face the thing that scares you and don't do the ritual" sounds like the worst plan ever. That part is what makes it work.
Develop a support system
Support helps, as long as it doesn't turn into reassurance. Tell one or two people you trust what you're working on. Ask them to cheer you on when you skip a compulsion, instead of answering the same OCD question again. For families who want to help, see the family course.
Join a self-help group
Talking with other people who have OCD takes some of the shame out of it, and you'll pick up ideas that worked for them. The International OCD Foundation lists support groups at iocdf.org.
Seek professional help
If your OCD is severe, you're stuck, or it's taking over most of your day, add a therapist who specializes in OCD and uses ERP. See online OCD therapy for what to ask. Self-help and therapy work well together.
Pick one compulsion you do every day. Tomorrow, delay it by five minutes. Notice the urge and let it sit there. (Five minutes. Easy, right?)
If you want the whole plan laid out with worksheets, that's what Master Your OCD is for.
Common questions about OCD self-help
Does OCD self-help work?
It can, especially when self-help means practicing ERP, not only reading about OCD. If your OCD is severe or you're stuck, add a therapist who does ERP.
Should I distract myself from OCD thoughts?
Distraction can turn into another way of avoiding the thought, which keeps OCD going. It's better to let the thought be there and go on with what you were doing. The difference is that you're not trying to make the thought leave.
How do I get my family to stop reassuring me?
Tell them what you're working on and ask them to help you skip the reassurance, kindly. Something like "I know you want to help. I'm working on not asking this." The family course walks them through it.
