OCD Cycle
Name one part of the OCD cycle
Any of the following: obsessions/intrusive thoughts, distress/anxiety/meaning attached, compulsions/safety behaviors, temporary relief.
Asking a friend if something is okay/normal
Bathroom picnic is an example of what kind of exposure?
Contamination
Subjective Units of Distress Scale
What stage of the OCD cycle does ERP treatment interrupt?
Compulsion/Safety Behaviors
Telling yourself "this isn't something I need to stop doing, it makes me feel safe and okay, which I need to do!"
Self-reassurance
What kind of exposure would we be doing if we purposefully hyperventilated or tried to make ourselves dizzy?
Interoceptive
What does "ERP" stand for?
Exposure and Responsive Prevention
Why do safety behaviors/compulsions not provide lasting relief and, ultimately, reinforce the cycle?
Because they reinforce the idea that we HAD to complete those compulsions/safety behaviors in that specific way to survive the anxiety or distress, and if we didn't do them then it wouldn't be tolerable.
True/False: Moving on right after I finish an exposure task to distract myself from the distress is still fully doing it! It's about doing the task and then moving on with your day.
False! Slightly tricky, but sitting with the distress of an exposure is absolutely part of it and is what stops us from reinforcing the OCD cycle! It tells us that we CAN survive anxiety without safety behaviors. You want to move on with your day eventually, yes, but distracting yourself right after the exposure is a form of avoidance.
My homework is to get ready for bed without my usual routine and order. What kind of exposure is this?
NJR (Not just right)
When we engage in ERP treatment we are moving towards living a ____-based life.
Values-based life
What might the distress part of the cycle feel/look like?
Anxiety, panic attacks, disgust, anger, rage, discomfort, tearfulness, nausea, shutting down, etc.
My homework is to go to a crowded store to target social anxiety. What safety behaviors/compulsions might I try to eliminate?
Avoidance of the store altogether, avoidance of certain areas that are more crowded, avoiding talking to anyone (going to self-checkout), reassurance-seeking, self-reassurance, escape planning, mental review.
In exposure group we are discussing the costs of safety behaviors for social fears. What might some of these costs be?
Missing out on experiences, negative impact on relationships, time consumed by safety behaviors, resources lost, lower self-esteem, loneliness/isolation, low mood/impact on overall mental health.
What is thought defusion?
A skill in which one de-fuses from unhelpful thoughts by labeling/acknowledging the thought but reminding themselves that they do not have to act on it.
Give an example of the OCD cycle in action
Personalized example (no right or wrong!)
Name as many types of safety behaviors/compulsions as you can!
Reassurance-seeking, self-reassurance, checking, avoidance, ordering, symmetry, washing, cleaning, repetitive actions, special words or prayers, mental review, escape planning, counting, replacing "bad" thoughts with "good" ones.
Name as many guidelines for writing imaginal as you can
Make it specific, write in present tense, write in first person, make each sentence meaningful and activating, do not use overly flowery language, write something that you are directly responsible for/dealing with the consequences of, etc.
What is "Pure O" OCD?
An expression to describe OCD that does not appear to have any compulsions/safety behaviors accompanying obsessions.