The harder you try to control your thoughts, the more it controls you
Get to know OCD18 Mar 2025

The harder you try to control your thoughts, the more it controls you

When we try to control every thought that enters our mind, we unknowingly give it more power. The harder we fight intrusive thoughts or uncomfortable feelings, the more they seem to persist. Brenna Posey, a member of NOCD, shares how this cycle kept her stuck and how she learned — through therapy and experience — that true freedom comes from allowing thoughts to come and go without reacting to them.

Learning to sit with uncertainty is one of the most challenging but life-changing skills for managing OCD. In this video, Brenna explains why resisting anxiety only fuels it and how changing your response can break the cycle. She also offers practical strategies to help you step away from compulsions and regain control —not over your thoughts, but over how you respond to them.

Exposure and Response Prevention therapy helped Brenna manage her OCD, and it might do the same for you. If you want to explore treatment options with our team, book a free 15-minute call at https://learn.nocd.com/podcast

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Episoder(195)

How I Stopped Fearing My Darkest OCD Thoughts

How I Stopped Fearing My Darkest OCD Thoughts

During the 18 years she went without a proper diagnosis, Alison Dotson lived inside a "horror film" of her own mind. She was suffering from Pure O — a form of OCD dominated by mental compulsions rathe...

5 Feb 48min

Nothing Was Ever “Just Right” For Alex Anele's OCD

Nothing Was Ever “Just Right” For Alex Anele's OCD

Alex Anele has been creating makeup videos online for more than a decade, building an audience of over a million people along the way. Behind the scenes, her lifelong OCD made almost everything feel u...

1 Feb 41min

John Green: The Thoughts I Was Too Scared to Share

John Green: The Thoughts I Was Too Scared to Share

Everyone has intrusive thoughts. With OCD, the difference is that they tend to escalate from 0 to 100 in an instant. Author John Green compares it to a snowstorm: three flakes, then four—then suddenly...

29 Jan 25min

What It’s Like To Have OCD In A Culture That Doesn’t Talk About It

What It’s Like To Have OCD In A Culture That Doesn’t Talk About It

Radha Bage grew up in India, a culture where mental health wasn’t discussed openly — not at home, not in the community, and not as something you sought help for. When OCD began to take hold in her adu...

22 Jan 45min

OCD Made My Own Thoughts Feel Unsafe

OCD Made My Own Thoughts Feel Unsafe

Faith Hilmer was terrified of driving — not because of an accident, but because of a thought. What if I have a seizure? What if I lose control? Those questions stemmed from her harm OCD that paralyzed...

18 Jan 38min

My OCD hit a breaking point on a Netflix set. This is what happened next.

My OCD hit a breaking point on a Netflix set. This is what happened next.

OCD hijacked Rachel's life. Perfectionism and obsessive thinking had always been a part of her life, but a new relationship gave OCD something to latch onto — and it escalated fast. Her thoughts spira...

15 Jan 44min

4 Simple OCD Tips For 2026

4 Simple OCD Tips For 2026

As 2026 begins, NOCD therapist Tracie Ibrahim offers up a few small but meaningful shifts that can make living with OCD feel more manageable. Instead of chasing quick fixes or “perfect” routines, thes...

11 Jan 4min

She Made A Comedy Show Out Of Her OCD Journey

She Made A Comedy Show Out Of Her OCD Journey

Olivia didn’t set out to make a comedy show about her OCD struggles. The idea came from noticing how much power her thoughts still had when they stayed unspoken. In her head, they felt heavy, urgent, ...

8 Jan 43min

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