Do I Really Have OCD or Am I Making It Up? Understanding OCD Doubts

I can almost guarantee you that if you have OCD, you've asked yourself this question...

Do I actually have OCD, or am I using it as an excuse?

How do I know this? Because I know how OCD functions and the lies it tells.

By the end of this post, you’ll understand why these doubts occur, how to tell if it’s OCD, and what steps you can take to manage these thoughts effectively. Plus, I have a special question for you that we’ll answer at the end, so stick around!

Why Do People with OCD Doubt Their Diagnosis?

OCD is known as the ‘doubting disease’ for a reason. It’s common for those with OCD to question their thoughts and behaviors constantly. This doubting nature extends to their diagnosis as well. They might think, ‘What if it’s not OCD? What if I’m actually just a bad person or losing my mind?’ This doubt can be paralyzing and make it difficult to seek help or follow through with treatment.

Here's the thing: OCD wants you to question yourself and your diagnosis because it’s deflecting. It wants to sound like the authority figure and knows what's best for you. If you're saying you're only having these thoughts because of OCD, then it takes the blame. OCD doesn’t want this. While it’s not an external thing, sometimes it can be helpful to think of it this way.

This cycle of doubt and reassurance-seeking is a hallmark of OCD. Recognizing this pattern is crucial because understanding it is the first step toward breaking it.

How to Tell if It’s Really OCD

How can we confidently tell if it’s really OCD or not?

Now, now, now, anything can easily be used as reassurance. If this is your 2nd, 3rd, or 4th time watching this to know if you really have OCD or not...you know what I'm talking about. It's a catch-22 for me. Please watch my video, but don't watch my video...but watch my video...but not if it's a compulsion. Tricky, tricky.

Anyway, let’s break it down in simple terms:

• Do I have anxiety throughout the day?
• Do I have thoughts I don't want, but they keep happening?
• Do I have to do something to figure them out or get them to go away?
• Is it interfering with my time or life in some way?

If you're thinking, "Okay, okay, all of those things I relate to, but I'm STILL NOT SURE. I need to know. I'm going to keep researching," you may be dealing with what's called meta OCD. It’s having OCD about OCD. The fear is now, "Is this really OCD or not?"

Maybe, it’s OCD—and I say maybe because it ties into the treatment I’m about to teach you.

Managing Doubt with ERP

Let’s talk about what we can do about this doubt. One of the most effective treatments for OCD is Exposure and Response Prevention, or ERP.

ERP involves exposing yourself to the thoughts, images, or situations that make you anxious (that’s the exposure part) and then preventing the usual response or compulsion (that’s the response prevention part). Over time, this helps reduce the anxiety these thoughts cause.

Practical Examples of ERP for OCD Doubts

Here's what it may look like if you continue to question:

• Read about OCD symptoms on reputable websites and respond with, "Yep, that may be me, maybe not." "I could totally be making all of this up." "Sweet, I'm getting away with this because of my OCD." "I love it."
• Often, our job isn’t to know. That's why we're saying, "maybe, maybe not." The idea is for you to do exactly what you want to do regardless of it being OCD-related or not. For example:
  • Do I want to go to this movie? I'm going to go.
  • Do I want to date? I'm going to do it.
  • Do I want to read a book? I'm doing it.

This may sound weird, but who cares if you have OCD? You're still you. Be you. The obsession about figuring out if it's really OCD or not is the problem. Let's retrain the brain to stop seeing this as such a big deal. So if you're not sure where to start...it's simple. Your job is to not know, tolerate this feeling, stop the compulsions, and eventually you get used to it. You won't seem to care in the future because you're just living life.

The Importance of Embracing Uncertainty

One of the biggest challenges in dealing with OCD is managing doubt and uncertainty. Here’s a crucial tip: Accepting uncertainty is key. Trying to achieve 100% certainty is not only impossible but also fuels the OCD cycle.

This doesn’t mean you’re ignoring the problem; it means you’re acknowledging that some level of doubt is normal and doesn’t have to control your actions.

For instance, someone with relationship OCD might worry endlessly about whether they truly love their partner. They may question if what they are experiencing is OCD or not, or if it's something else telling them they need to get out. Maybe OCD has never been a factor, and they've been using it as a crutch. Instead of constantly seeking reassurance, they learn to live with the uncertainty and focus on their values and actions. For example, "My value is to keep dating. I'm doing that. Unless there are big red flags that are super obvious, I'm staying the course and answering any doubts with, who knows...maybe."

Conclusion

Questioning if you have OCD is a common part of the disorder. If you're actually not sure if you have OCD or not, seeing a trained professional can give you a diagnosis. I've got some tests that I'll link below as well.

Ehhhummmm...not to be used for reassurance...

If you found this post helpful, give it a thumbs up, subscribe for more content like this, and check out my ‘Master Your OCD’ online course for a deeper understanding and practical strategies.

Thanks for reading! Stay strong, stay hopeful, and keep pushing forward. I’ll see you in the next post!