Trust Yourself: Stop Letting OCD Call the Shots

OCD can feel like living with a manipulative cult leader or that relentless spam caller who just won’t quit. They pressure us until we hand over our trust, our confidence, and our peace of mind.

That’s what OCD does. It sets itself up as the authority. It convinces us that we can’t trust ourselves, that only by listening to it will we stay safe. And little by little, we start to believe it.

OCD thrives on doubt. It attacks the things we care most about—our relationships, our work, our health, our reputation. It asks questions that feel urgent but are really emp

ty traps: “What if we don’t really love our partner?” “What if we’re secretly terrible people?” “What if something bad happens to our family?” One small doubt snowballs into distress, which pushes us into compulsions—checking, re-reading, researching, seeking reassurance. Each time we comply, OCD gets stronger, and our trust in ourselves gets weaker.

But here’s the truth: We can learn to see OCD for what it really is—noise. We can reclaim our confidence and begin trusting ourselves again.

The Three Pillars of the Gold Standard for Treating OCD

At Noble Path Counseling, our OCD specialists use a combination of therapies proven to help us break free:

1. Inference-Based CBT (I-CBT)

I-CBT helps us study OCD closely—how it walks, how it talks, and the manipulative tactics it uses to create doubt. The more we recognize its patterns, the easier it becomes to separate its voice from our own. You become a detective cracking a cold case and zeroing in on the suspect. In doing so, we start to see ourselves more clearly, becoming distinct and individuated from OCD. We learn that OCD is just a part of us, not the whole of who we are. From that place of separation, we can un-blend from its distorted thinking and stop giving it our trust.

So the next time you’re stuck wondering, “Is this a ME thought or is this an OCD thought?”, here are some questions to ask yourself to propel you forward with an I-CBT model:

1. If this thought were a person, who would they be?– What do they look like, how do they carry themselves, how do they show up in the room?

2. If they were a used car salesman, what’s their sales pitch?– If OCD had a slogan, jingle, or catchphrase, what would it be? (“Better safe than sorry!” “What if…?” “Don’t risk it!”)

3. How do they hook me?– What bait are they dangling—fear, shame, urgency? How do they reel me in when I’m vulnerable?

4. What’s the bait-and-switch?– What do they promise me (certainty, relief, safety), and what do they actually deliver (more doubt, more compulsions)?

5. If I step back, what do I notice?– When I picture OCD as a character outside of me, what becomes clearer about who I am versus who OCD is?

2. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

One of the hardest parts of OCD is the thoughts we really don’t want. The ones that feel dark, shameful, or terrifying. Thoughts like: “What if I hurt someone I love?” or “What if I’m secretly a bad person?” or “What if I don’t actually love my partner?”

These thoughts feel like proof that something is wrong with us. But here’s the secret OCD doesn’t want us to know: having a thought doesn’t make it true. A thought is just noise. What hurts isn’t the thought itself — it’s the way OCD pressures us to treat it like it’s life-or-death.

ACT gives us tools to see those thoughts for what they are and stop letting shame run the show. Here are five ways to start:

1. Call OCD Out– When a shameful thought shows up, imagine it coming from a shady character — a scammer, cult leader, or pushy salesperson. They don’t care about your truth. They just want your attention.

2. Say It With Distance– Instead of “I’m a horrible person,” try, “I’m having the thought that I’m a horrible person.” It feels small, but that distance helps us remember: a thought is not a confession.

3. Ground in Now– Shame pulls us into “what if.” To come back, notice your body: feel your feet pressing into the ground, take a slow breath, name something you see in the room. You’re here. Not in OCD’s story.

4. Check the Compass– Ask yourself, Does giving in to this thought move me toward the life I want? OCD wants us stuck in doubt. Our values want us connected, alive, moving forward.

5. Defy the Urge– OCD will demand we check, confess, or replay the thought until it feels “clean.” Don’t do it. The urge to fix is the trap. Each time we resist, we weaken OCD’s grip and prove to ourselves that we can handle the discomfort.

3. Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)

OCD tells us the only way to calm the storm is to give in — check one more time, wash one more time, ask for reassurance one more time. In the moment, doing the compulsion feels like relief. But that relief is short-lived, and the cycle starts all over again.

ERP flips the script. Instead of giving in, we practice not doing the compulsion. The first time feels terrifying — like standing at the edge of a wave that looks too big to handle. But then something amazing happens: the wave crashes, and we’re still standing. That moment plants the seed of self-trust.

OCD hates this. When we don’t play along, it gets frustrated. It might twist itself into new forms, new doubts, new tricks. But once we know its patterns, we can see the game for what it is. And every time we refuse to give in, the frequency, intensity, and duration of OCD’s attacks shrink.

OCD may still play in the background — like a song stuck on repeat — but it doesn’t get to control us anymore. Here are five ways to not give into to the urge:

1. Name the Urge– When you feel pulled to do a compulsion, say to yourself, “This is OCD asking me to play the game.” Naming it weakens its disguise.

2. Ride the Wave– Notice the discomfort like a wave in your body. It rises, it peaks, it falls. Remind yourself: “I don’t have to make this go away. It will pass on its own.”

3. Breathe and Wait– Give yourself one full minute before acting. Focus on slow, steady breathing. This pause shows your brain that you are in control, not OCD.

4. Refocus on What Matters– Shift your attention to a value-driven action: call a friend, take a walk, keep writing the email. OCD wants your whole day. You can choose otherwise.

5. Celebrate the Victory– Every time you resist, no matter how small, you’re strengthening self-trust. Say to yourself, “I did it. I didn’t give in.” Those moments add up.

Today is the Day to Take Your Trust Back

Stop answering the spam calls. Stop drinking the cult’s kool-aid. Stop dancing with OCD. You don’t have to hand over your trust anymore—you can take it back.

At Noble Path Counseling, we have a team of OCD specialists ready to guide you through this process with care, expertise, and compassion. You don’t have to face OCD alone.

👉 Schedule your consultation today and take the first step toward trusting yourself again. www.noblepathcc.com