OCD Recovery Podcast Summary

Episode: OCD Training – Every Small Step Counts In OCD Recovery

Host: Ali Greymond
Date: September 11, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Ali Greymond explores the concept of gradual progress in OCD recovery. Drawing on her decades of personal and professional experience, she reassures listeners that every small effort matters, encouraging perseverance even when progress feels slow. The central theme is that consistent, cumulative steps—no matter how minor—are key to overcoming OCD in the long run.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Value of Small Steps in Recovery

• Importance of Persistence: Ali emphasizes starting small and progressing daily, even if the steps seem insignificant.
  • Quote:

    "It's okay to start small and keep going every day, even if it's the tiniest, littlest step."
    – Ali Greymond (00:14)

• Overcoming Discouragement: She acknowledges that recovery can feel overwhelming at first and that many people get discouraged by the slow pace.
  • Quote:

    "Sometimes it can feel so discouraging because you're like, I have a million steps to take and it's just the first step and will I ever get there and how long is it going to take?"
    – Ali Greymond (00:30)

• Benefits Accumulate: Over time, even brief reductions in compulsions or rumination accrue, leading to meaningful progress.
  • Quote:

    "Little by little it will start to add up. So don't feel discouraged, just keep going."
    – Ali Greymond (00:54)

2. Managing Setbacks

• Normalizing Bad Days: Ali reassures listeners that setbacks are normal and part of the recovery journey.
  • Quote:

    "Even if you have a bad day, you will have bad days in recovery. I've had bad days in recovery... Everybody has bad days. But it's about picking yourself up and getting back on track."
    – Ali Greymond (01:15)

• Net Progress Matters: A few bad days do not erase overall forward movement; returning to recovery efforts leads to eventual success.
  • Quote:

    "Let's say you had 10 good days forward. You had one bad setback day, maybe two bad, bad setback days, okay? And then you got back on track, you still made more progress, you still made more steps forward than back."
    – Ali Greymond (01:35)

3. The Global Approach to OCD Recovery

• Comprehensive Strategy: Ali advocates approaching OCD recovery by focusing on overall reduction of compulsions and rumination, not just on specific OCD “themes.”
  • Quote:

    "Having a global approach to OCD recovery is the number one reason why this method will ensure that OCD will not come back in some other theme."
    – Ali Greymond (01:57)

• Avoiding Theme-Specific Compulsions: When recovery is based only on addressing specific themes, OCD can shift focus, making progress harder. Instead, reducing all compulsive behavior limits OCD’s adaptability.
  • Quote:

    "If you approach it from that perspective, OCD doesn't have maneuverability to move to a different theme because you're counting compulsions overall, rumination overall."
    – Ali Greymond (02:13)

• Ultimate Result: Consistent overall reduction leads to running out of compulsions, and, in time, achieving full recovery.

4. Critique of Common Pitfalls

• Limitations of Exposure-Only Approaches: Ali argues that many find recovery difficult because they limit themselves to short, theme-based exposures yet maintain other compulsions throughout the day.
  • Quote:

    "People online say they can't recover because they're doing one exposure at a time. Maybe they did exposures for an hour a day maybe or 15 minutes a day and that's it at best. So of course they won't recover because the rest of the day they're doing compulsions."
    – Ali Greymond (02:50)

• Her Advice:
  • Track and reduce compulsions and rumination daily, even by very small increments.
  • Don’t be discouraged by minimal progress—consistency is more important.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Encouragement for Listeners (00:14, 00:54):

  "It's okay to start small and keep going every day, even if it's the tiniest, littlest step... Little by little it will start to add up."

• On Setbacks (01:15):

  "Everybody has bad days. But it's about picking yourself up and getting back on track."

• On Global Approach (01:57):

  "Having a global approach to OCD recovery is the number one reason why this method will ensure that OCD will not come back in some other theme."

• Regarding Internet Discourse & Recovery Myths (02:50):

  "People online say they can't recover because they're doing one exposure at a time... the rest of the day they're doing compulsions."

Important Timestamps

• 00:14 – The importance of starting small in OCD recovery.
• 01:15 – Managing bad days and returning to progress.
• 01:57 – Introduction and explanation of the global approach to recovery.
• 02:50 – Critiquing common pitfalls and online advice.

Episode Tone

Ali Greymond maintains an encouraging, compassionate, and pragmatic tone throughout. She offers practical advice grounded in personal experience and reiterates that recovery is not linear—but persistence, even with tiny steps, is what leads to freedom from OCD.