Hidden Compulsions

A compulsion is any behavior, thought, or pattern of avoidance whose purpose is to create feelings of safety, to reduce anxiety, and to lessen the severity of the intrusive thought or obsession. Everyone knows about the obvious compulsions: hand-washing, counting, rearranging, checking, repeating a behavior. These compulsions are easy to spot (and oftentimes --with the right tools-- easy to change!)

What can be really challenging is working to overcome hidden compulsions. Hidden compulsions are the mental exercises that our brain does to try to reduce anxiety. These can include problem-solving, reassurance-giving or seeking, confessing, googling or otherwise researching, and more. While compulsions provide temporary relief, they actually make the OCD cycle and anxiety cycle worse.

I'm going to briefly go over each of these with you, so that you can reflect and see if these "hidden compulsions" might be holding you back.

Hidden Compulsion	Definition	Example
Problem-Solving	Overthinking the problem at hand, not in a solution-focused way, but as a means to establish a false sense of control.	Bob said something embarrassing to his boss. Rather than just accept it and let it go, Bob chooses to play out 50 different situations in his mind about how to bring this up or potentially resolve it with his boss.
Reassurance-Seeking	Seeking out reassurance, validation, or safety from self or others.	Sarah just attended a meeting where someone shared they have COVID. Sarah starts to question whether she's sick. She starts asking coworkers if they're experiencing symptoms.
Avoidance	Choosing to not think about something or to not engage in a behavior because of the uncomfortable feelings.	Marcela is terrified of flying, but needs to travel for business. Rather than face her fears, Marcela decides to cancel her flight and drive.
Confessing	Sharing or "confessing" a perceived wrong, usually in attempts to get confirmation that the wrongdoing wasn't actually bad.	Sam forgot a friend's birthday. She confesses to her other friend her feelings of guilt, seeking reassurance.
Googling or Researching	Looking up information compulsively or to create a feeling of safety.	Mark used a public bathroom at a gas station and is now convinced he contracted HIV. He spends his afternoon googling the risks.

What are some signs that you might be engaging in hidden compulsions?

You might:

feel more fatigued
notice you're losing track of time / wasting time
notice that anxiety, guilt, shame, or other uncomfortable feelings are actually increasing
find yourself being less mindful.

Whenever you notice that OCD or anxiety are worsening, there is a strong likelihood that you are engaging in more compulsions. If you've already ruled out the obvious compulsions (e.g. checking, rearranging, ritualized behaviors, etc.), your next step will be to rule out the hidden compulsions discussed above. By cutting back on compulsions, you are showing OCD that you are in control -- not your OCD Brain.

Try identifying your current compulsions using this brief workbook.

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