Podcast Summary: Get to Know OCD

Episode: How OCD Hijacks Productivity At School, Work, And Life
Host: NOCD (Dr. Patrick McGrath)
Guest/Speaker: Tracy
Date: May 25, 2025

Overview of the Episode

This episode centers on the profound impact Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) can have on day-to-day productivity at school, work, and home. Tracy, both someone who has OCD and treats it at NOCD, shares personal stories to illustrate how OCD manifests in daily tasks, from studying to grocery shopping. The episode also covers practical ways to reclaim productivity and live a more manageable life with OCD, highlighting evidence-based therapy as a key tool.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Experience: OCD and Studying

• Tracy describes the challenge OCD posed to her studying and productivity in college.
  • Example: Compulsive reading—reading words forward, backward, then forward again to "feel just right."
    • “If I were reading the word stop, I would have to read stop and then pots and then stop again to make it feel just right.” [00:25]
  • Difficulty completing readings and preparing for tests due to repeated compulsions.

2. What is OCD?

• Tracy gives a snapshot definition:
  • “OCD...is having obsessive thoughts or obsessive doubts that are followed by compulsions, whether mental or behavioral, physical compulsions to try to neutralize or do away with those scary and bothersome obsessions.” [01:12]
  • Compulsions fuel OCD, often increasing its hold.

3. Intrusive Thoughts and Daily Life Disruptions

• Types of intrusive thoughts:
  • Harm scenarios, e.g., “you're going to push your daughter down the stairs” or “throw yourself out a window.”
  • Productivity suffers when compulsions interrupt activities like emailing or working:
    • Obsessive checking and rechecking of work for errors or inappropriate content.
  • “You want to just keep reading it over and over...maybe you keep going back to tweak it. Things like that, that can really just start getting in the way of you completing tasks.” [02:23]
• Impacts at home:
  • Compulsive cleaning or disinfecting delays household duties.
  • OCD can make even simple tasks, like shopping, overwhelming.

4. Parenting with OCD

• OCD’s influence on parenting routines
  • “Watching to see what [my children] touched and decontaminating them... avoiding certain places.” [03:15]
  • Example: Grocery shopping becomes overwhelming due to intrusive harm or contamination fears.
    • “Sometimes I would have intrusive images and thoughts and also...urges that felt like I was going to harm people at the grocery store.” [04:05]

5. OCD’s Pervasive Reach: Sleep and Everyday Routines

• Sleep disrupted by compulsive checking (e.g., checking locks, ensuring children are breathing).
• Cooking sabotaged by contamination fears.
• “It can really just interrupt everything that you are trying to do during your day.” [05:27]

6. The Emotional Toll

• Tracy highlights exhaustion from battling constant intrusive thoughts and compulsions throughout the day, affecting all areas of functioning.

7. Treatment and Tools: ERP as the Gold Standard

• Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP):
  • Tracy shares how ERP helped her manage compulsions, freeing up significant time and cognitive space.
  • “ERP taught me how to set limits for myself...Now when I want to send an email, I write an email, I read it over one time, I hit send and I don't allow myself to go back and check.” [06:50]

8. Restoring Productivity: Practical Habits

• Healthy routines are addressed:
  • Sleep hygiene—limit nighttime phone use.
  • Balanced nutrition over strict diets.
  • Physical activity—even short walks or stretches while working from home.
  • “Even in the smallest ways [movement] can add up and be really important part of your overall care routine when it comes to productivity and being refreshed and feeling good.” [08:57]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “OCD can impact us on every level of what we're trying to do.” — Tracy [05:16]
• On compulsive email checking:
  “Back in the day I used to go over my emails so many different times before sending them...Now I can just send an email.” [06:23]
• “You can get some time back in your day by learning about the ways that OCD is interrupting your day and learning the tools that help you to get those better managed.” [07:18]

Important Timestamps

• 00:25 — Tracy’s reading compulsion example
• 01:12 — What is OCD?
• 02:23 — Compulsive checking at work
• 03:15 — Parenting with OCD
• 04:05 — Grocery store intrusive thoughts
• 05:27 — OCD and sleep/everyday routines
• 06:50 — ERP’s role in managing productivity
• 08:57 — Healthy routines & movement

Takeaways

• OCD can significantly impair productivity in all areas of life by hijacking attention, amplifying doubt, and demanding time-consuming rituals.
• Understanding and naming how OCD interrupts routines is a vital first step.
• ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention) is highlighted as the most effective treatment, offering hope for regaining lost time and peace of mind.
• Establishing healthy routines in sleep, nutrition, and movement supports wellbeing and productivity.
• If you or someone you know struggles with OCD and its impact on productivity, evidence-based help is available.