Letting thoughts be

Intrusive thoughts can feel urgent, like you have to figure them out or fix them in order to feel okay again.

And when the feeling of urgency comes up, it can be hard to ignore. But the more we try to analyse or figure out the thought, the more it keeps the cycle going.

So instead of responding to the thought or pushing yourself to feel better right away, it’s about noticing what’s happening and not following it: noticing that there’s an uncomfortable thought, and an urge to act on it, and despite that, going back to what you were doing.

And when you do this, it doesn’t mean you agree with the thought or that there’s any truth to it. It just means you’re no longer feeding the OCD.

Even if the urgency is there in the background, allowing the discomfort of not reacting is part of training your brain to learn a new response — one that helps you move forward without getting pulled into the thought.