OCD is known as the “doubting disorder”—it can create doubt around anything, and those doubts often don’t respond to logic. I believe that one of the reasons it causes so much suffering is that people with OCD often recognize when their intrusive thoughts and fears focus on something unlikely or illogical. People can have great insight into their own behaviors, yet feel powerless to fight them.

For someone with OCD, the existence of a mere possibility around their fear, no matter how small that possibility may be, can cause intense anxiety and distress. Despite the individual’s own logic and insight, OCD latches onto the slightest uncertainty surrounding their obsessions. They may try to reassure themselves that they know better, and that their thoughts are completely illogical, but OCD always finds a way to overcome their logic.

Let’s explore why this can happen, and what you can do to manage intrusive thoughts instead of trying to fight them off with logic.

Why logic doesn’t work

When someone is in the midst of having their OCD triggered, it may be helpful to remember that they are responding based on feelings, not misunderstanding. Their brain has been falsely alerted that they are in danger and that they have to act in order to feel safe. 

When you have OCD, you have developed sets of behaviors that help you relieve anxiety and distress briefly when your brain’s alarm system is set off by triggers. These behaviors are called compulsions, and the problem with compulsions is that any relief they might provide is only temporary. In fact, engaging in compulsions actually reinforces the idea that the trigger posed an actual danger in the first place, since you felt better for a while by responding to it with a compulsion. There’s no way to distinguish these false alarms from real danger, because they feel identical. 

Consider this example: Someone saw a small puddle of liquid near another person’s car in the grocery store parking lot. They drive all the way home before their OCD is triggered, and they think, “What if the puddle was from a leaky gas tank? What if it ignites when they drive off, causing an explosion?” Their intrusive thoughts tell them that if they don’t turn around and warn the person immediately, they’ll be responsible for that person’s death, and potentially the deaths of others. Nothing could be worse than that. 

That is how powerful feelings triggered by OCD can be. Now if someone were to share this fear with you, you might be inclined to ask them a few questions: Did the puddle look like water? Did it have any smell? Why would it ignite? Wouldn’t it evaporate before you get there? Each of these questions could expose the person to how illogical their fears are, but since OCD doesn’t respond to logic, their fear will persist, and they’ll continue to feel anxious and afraid. There’s still a shred of uncertainty that lingers around their thoughts, and the anxiety that grips them feels 100% real. Driving the whole way back to the store, searching for the car, and waiting for its owner to return might feel easier than relying on logic and sitting with the discomfort that they feel. That’s why compulsions can seem so alluring. They provide some degree of relief immediately—so even if they take over a person’s life in the long run, they may feel like the easier route to take in the moment.

If logic doesn’t work on OCD, what does?

Arguing with OCD will only cause frustration, and ultimately make symptoms worse. That is because people living with OCD often understand the outrageous nature of certain fears, and yet feel powerless over their feelings. Initially using logic may seem assuring and useful, but in the long run, it can never suffice. 

So, instead of trying to rationalize intrusive thoughts and anxiety, it is far more beneficial for someone with OCD to learn about how their brain is working and how OCD causes the brain’s “alarm system” to malfunction. Learning that you can tolerate the distress that comes with uncertainty is a key component of OCD treatment. The idea is not to get rid of the anxiety or to fix the faulty alarm system that brings anxiety, but to allow the alarms to go off and sit with the anxiety without resorting to compulsions. 

This process is central to exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, the most effective treatment for OCD. ERP uses exercises called exposures to trigger anxiety and distress related to one’s obsessions, providing an opportunity to engage in the practice of response prevention, which means resisting the urge to engage in compulsions.

When a person with OCD consistently responds to exposures by allowing uncomfortable feelings to be present without engaging in compulsions, their brain gradually learns that these feelings don’t pose any real danger. With consistent practice resisting compulsions, obsessions cause less distress and return less often.

ERP has been found effective for the vast majority of people with OCD, and many who engage in this treatment experience results within 12-25 sessions. All of our licensed therapists at NOCD specialize in OCD and receive ERP-specific training, as well as ongoing guidance from our clinical leadership team. When using logic to solve uncomfortable feelings doesn’t work, it can feel like there’s no way out, but getting better is possible. If you think you may be struggling with OCD, I encourage you to learn about NOCD’s accessible, evidence-based approach to treatment. You don’t have to suffer forever.