OCD Recovery vs. Managing Symptoms

This week’s blog post was prompted by an interesting discussion I had last week with someone on the topic of OCD recovery, and on a wider level, I also think this is a common question that deserves its own blog post. The question being: is there a “cure” for OCD? Can you even fully recover from OCD, or can you really only “manage” it?

My short answer is that there is no cure, but full recovery is most definitely possible!

That might seem contradictory, so let me explain. When people think of a “cure” for something, they are typically imagining like a pill or remedy that can 100% fix a health problem. For example, in the United States, Polio has essentially been wiped out via vaccines, and syphilis has also been effectively eliminated via the use of the antibiotic penicillin. These are just a couple of examples of diseases or illnesses that we have devised “cures” for, in the sense that once we take the cure, we no longer suffer from the disease or are essentially inoculated against it from occurring.

OCD is a different beast in the sense that there is no single “cure” for it. There is no magical pill or remedy one can take to eliminate OCD. You might be prescribed anti-depressants or other medication, but these do not eliminate the disorder, they simply suppress its symptoms by blunting the anxiety response (to varying degrees of success). Essentially, things like medication and pills are masking the symptoms of OCD (which are severe feelings of anxiety and uncertainty), but are not curing the root cause of the disorder. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t take medication - it can be an effective part of your recovery arsenal and for some people, medication can make a world of difference when it comes to combatting OCD symptoms. But long term, permanent recovery from OCD requires hard work. Full recovery is possible, but there is no quick or magical fix.

What is my definition of OCD recovery? I would say it means being able to live your life fully and without any limitation, doing whatever you want to do. Note that I did not say “OCD recovery means never getting intrusive thoughts” or “OCD recovery means never getting anxious.” That is simply impossible and the wrong mindset to have. Everyone, even “normal” people, gets weird and intrusive thoughts - it’s quite well documented. And everyone feels emotions like anxiety, doubt, and fear from time to time based on whatever stressors pop up in real life. To have these experiences is to be human. You shouldn’t seek to avoid these things and if you define OCD recovery as “never getting bad thoughts” or “never feeling anxiety,” then you will find this goal is impossible to achieve.

The reason why OCD sufferers struggle so much is because we get locked up by these thoughts and anxieties. We tend to tie our self worth to these things and feel like we can’t live our lives or do things we enjoy until we “figure out” or “disprove” these thoughts and uncertainties. OCD recovery involves getting yourself comfortable with these thoughts and feelings, and learning to accept them without judgment, through techniques taught from Exposure Response Prevention (ERP) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT). Once you master these skills and are able to live your life in accordance with your values while bringing any emotion or thought along for the ride, then you are recovered from OCD. Because at this point, you realize that you are capable of living your life fully and freely, and any weird or intrusive thoughts you might get will no longer matter at all.

One might ask: how is that different from just “managing” OCD? How can you be recovered from OCD if you still get intrusive thoughts? To me, “managing” a disorder like OCD implies only masking its symptoms. For example, taking anti-depressants or medication. These things may help blunt the anxiety response from OCD and let you get through your day in a relatively productive manner, but you are still controlled by OCD. If you are dependent on your medication to “beat” OCD, then as soon as you stop taking it, you are at OCD’s mercy once again. Full recovery means you no longer need to “manage” or “mask” your symptoms, because there are none! You can have weird thoughts, just like any normal human being, but it doesn’t mean you have to stop doing things that you value or judge yourself based on the content of those thoughts. Again, I want to re-iterate that the goal of OCD recovery is NOT to eliminate the thoughts or anxiety - it is to learn to ACCEPT them. Once you fully accept and embrace your thoughts, the anxiety will fade away entirely - but that should be a byproduct of your efforts, not the actual goal itself. If you make it your goal to eliminate anxiety and intrusive thoughts, you will not succeed. You can learn to accept your thoughts and feelings and acknowledge their presence without falling back into unhealthy compulsions like rumination or checking. You’ll eventually come to realize that you can do anything you want, whenever you want, and regardless of whatever thoughts or feelings are floating around in your mind - that is true OCD recovery.

And the other great thing about OCD recovery is that, once you learn these skills and techniques (mindfulness; acceptance; observation without judgment) you will be better than normal. You will be much better prepared than the average person is to handle the ups and downs of life because you’ve built the proper mental health skills to handle any adversity or anxiety that might pop up, whether that’s job loss, the death of a close friend or family member, or even something minor like your favorite restaurant closing down. The skills and techniques that you learn in OCD recovery (through ERP and ACT) will make you a stronger and more mentally fit person in the long run - so don’t view OCD recovery as “just” a way to get yourself back to normal… see it as an opportunity to become even stronger than normal!

So to summarize my lengthy response to a relatively short question:

  • YES, full OCD recovery is entirely possible. If you resign yourself to just “managing symptoms” then you are selling yourself short!

  • OCD recovery means learning and practicing the techniques taught in ERP and ACT.

  • OCD recovery means realizing that you will never eliminate thoughts and feelings, and making peace with that fact.

  • Once you accept this and learn to live your life fully and freely, without limitations, you will find yourself on the fast track to OCD recovery. And you don’t have to limit yourself to “returning to your normal self” - you can become “better and stronger” than normal!

Some other recommended reading I’d advise on this topic can be found here and here, which help elaborate in more detail on some of the concepts that I’ve mentioned in this blog post. But I wanted to put this post up because I felt it was a very interesting and thought provoking question, and an important one to articulate as well for anyone suffering from OCD and wondering if recovery is possible.

Eric

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Courage is Not the Absence of Fear

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Avoid Turning ERP Into a Compulsion