welcome to the all the hard things blog

As a therapist, I have seen many individuals who struggle with OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) and anxiety when it comes to the decision of having children or even more children for that matter. For some, the fear of passing on their symptoms to their children can be overwhelming. For others, the thought of managing their symptoms while raising a child can seem like an impossible task. If you are someone who is dealing with these fears and anxieties, I want you to know that you are not alone. This decision shook me for years until I finally learned some tools to help me get through day to day. And here I am, 5 years later, completely at ease and peace with my decision. It is completely normal to have these concerns, and there are steps you can take to feel more empowered in your decision.

One of the most common questions I get is “what are some good exposures for ___ OCD?” People really resonate with the subtypes of OCD, like contamination OCD, relationship OCD, sexual orientation OCD, pure O, and the list goes on and on. While subtypes exist to provide basic clinical information and to establish a sense of community for those who have this condition, identifying too strongly with the subtypes can lead to oversimplification of this disorder and its treatment.

As cliche as it sounds, every single person comes with their own uniqueness and nuances that cannot be simply explained away by identification of a subtype of OCD theme. The fact of the matter is that two people could very much resonate with a term like relationship OCD, yet have completely different triggers, rituals, obsessions, and therefore, completely different sets of exposures, different styles of response prevention that will be needed, and therefore, a different treatment plan.