5. OCD Treatment: The Vicious Flower - how OCD is maintained

I have been watching your videos in sequence and I am starting to think that curing OCD might be like quitting smoking. When you are a smoker each cigarette you smoke gives relief to the craving, but ultimately causes the next craving and if you stop getting the short term relief, and hang on in there in the face of huge discomfort and agitation, you can eventually stop having cravings. p.s. Thank you for these videos, they are a God send.

These videos are god sent

I am just so broken I don't even know how I can put this in to play I feel like my life is done. But thanks for the videos Katie

It's like the obsession to get rid of OCD is the OCD itself. Talk about a paradox. Katie, thank you so much for these videos. I was never sent to psychologists as a kid and recently found a reason for all these thoughts I've had since little. Your videos are something else. You have nothing but my utmost respect and adoration.

Hi Hannah, thanks for your comment.  Yes that's a great analogy - thanks for sharing it - hope you're getting on well.  I should get some time to make some more videos in the new year. Best wishes, Katie

Hi Katie, I've been suffering from anxiety and OCD for a few years now and, although I am still in treatment, I want to thank you for these fantastic videos. I watched them while feeling anxious/a little down today, and they made everything seem so much better, and make so much more sense. Really professional, relatable and genuine. THANK YOU!

This is really helping me right now, I was really struggling, but you helped me out a bit

Your videos helped me immensely. Thank you so much!

Omg i see so much of me in these videos. I can't wait to go through all of them and implement the skills. I am also buying the book referenced in video 2 i believe. Wishing success to all! 

Thank you Katie, i have a habbit of doing all the things in the vicious flower. But not as much as my mental thoughts which is the worse of it all. Years ago I happened to block every one of my OCD action and it all goes to my mind. Something that I am struggling very much. You are very helpful to me not just because I could not find any OCD specialist in my country but also the ways you interpreted things, as it just feels right.

Thank you so much for these videos...I've had OCD since I was younger, and it's only getting worse...my main compulsion is avoiding, and unnecessarily cleaning things that I avoid in order to stop avoiding. It makes a lot of sense that in the long term, avoiding things won't make my anxiety over them go away, and I do feel better after watching this. However, one thing that scares me is that I feel like my OCD keeps escalating - the things that bothered me last month don't even phase me now, and new things keep popping into my head that scare me/make me anxious. I keep having thoughts that make me feel that I am a bad person and they keep changing, and it's really scaring me and it's stressful. How can I make this stop?

really helpful video! thank you~

Great vids, thank you for sharing (: . I would like to add something I learnt from experience, OCD can occur if you have a hormone imbalance (and I'm sure other things too). I found myself it really helps more to see a good doctor specialised in hormone treatment (preferably natural not chemical) and then start the CBT, because a hormone imbalance like mine can really make it harder to get through/transform the OCD as it's being fed more than it would otherwise. (: This may not be the case in every situation but it is with me personally.  Thanks Katie and good luck everyone (: .

These information is very helpful, thank you very much Ms Katie.

Well often when I'm trying to get to sleep I try to get to sleep but I can't coz I have to keep getting up

Hello, i have a question about ocd. I got rid of my physical compulsions and i feel much better but the mental compulsions/ urges are still there and i'm having difficulty with trying to coop with them even tough i know they are false. I have this for about 3 years and i'm currently healing. this is the last thing i have to conquer. What advice do you have for me? Grts Christophe. Ps: Thanks for your video's they really help allot. 

I will try tho

Hi Katie Thank you so much for your videos! They really are helping! I do have a couple of questions though. 1. I have a very bad case of social anxiety that I developed over the past 3 years and the problem is that it actually affects society in a way. See the problem is (and I apologize for the graphic description) is that I think I'm dirty after I go #2 and I think I'm dirty down there. This has caused me to "forget" exactly how I used to clean myself and I don't trust anything I do to clean myself a lot of the times. Because of this, I start to sweat down there and then I ACTUALLY start to smell (what I was fearing) and have really bad poop stains... Then I go to the bathroom, wipe up my dirtiness (and I actually am dirty because of the sweat) and feel better for a bit until the thought that I'm dirty strikes me again... The problem is that now that I realize the compulsion- the wiping, it's incredibly difficult to expose myself because, well, I ACTUALLY do smell.. my coworkers have noticed... and I still sweat as I try to habituate myself... I have to do this to get better, don't I? 2. Is a reward a type of compulsion? I reward myself (reading a comic book/playing a video game) after or before I do something I feel anxious about (doing hw for an hour). Of course, I also am a terible perfectionist and I feel that I need to do my hw perfect and I fear that I may never rest because I have to do EVERYTHING (including extra things that are not necesarily necessary) to perfectly finish my hw...All this gets exhausting and makes me procrastinate doing things I like for hours...

hi thank you so much for these vids....they have helped me a lot,but can you help me with this problem....i have ocd of repeating phrases or words in my head..so therefore i realised this and stopped repeating them,but isnt stopping them a form of thought stopping..and hence again a ritual..i am really confused..please help.

Hi thnx a lot for des videos..it has really helped me alot.but I have certain problems. Could you please hel me. 1. I feel guilty a lot..like for small things also. Des guilt makes me mad. Makes me feel m bad. I should be punished n all. 2. I get blasphemous (sexual)thoughts about god n religious figure. It makes me think that I have done a sin by thinking this n I confess n apologise to god. Ll god punish me for such thoughts? Pls help me Thanks