THE BIG OCD SUBTYPES POST.
Common (BUT NOT ALL) types of OCD people experience. No readmore cut, to make it fully accessible. All of the information is right here. I encourage reblogs to tag it #long post so it can be filtered in the app and web browser. All information comes from Made of Millions; some language is limiting or not as inclusive as it should be, in my opinion. Click headings' links for more info on each subtype.
OCD without visible compulsions
Common Pure OCD obsessions:
Fear that you’re not good enough for your partner. See Relationship OCD.
Fear of harming yourself, a loved one or a stranger. See Harm OCD.
Fear that you’re gay when you’re actually straight or vice versa. See Sexual Orientation OCD.
Common Pure OCD compulsions:
Guilt: Feeling deeply ashamed for having violent, blasphemous or sexual intrusive thoughts.
Thinking you’re a bad person: Your character is at risk if you do the wrong thing and you feel devastated if someone thinks you’re a bad person.
Avoidance: Avoiding objects, places and people that are related to the nature of your intrusive thoughts.
Constant fears that you might harm yourself or someone you love
Common intrusive thoughts:
Fear of harming yourself, a loved one or a stranger.
Fear of losing consciousness and harming someone.
Fear of accidentally poisoning someone.
Hiding everyday objects: The impulse to hide potentially harmful things. Kitchen knives. Ropes. Scissors. Forks.
Checking: Making sure you didn’t accidentally put poison in someone’s food or drink.
Reassurance: Constantly seeking reassurance from others.
Research: Looking up convicted criminals who have harmed others online and creating profiles to prove that you don’t have the same characteristics.
Repetitive fears that you are with the wrong partner
Common Relationship OCD obsessions:
Fear that you’re not good enough for your partner.
Constantly second guessing your love for your partner.
Constantly wondering if you’re with the right person.
Common Relationship OCD compulsions:
Obsessive questioning: You’re preoccupied with very small details that make you question everything about your relationship.
Research: Constantly reading articles that define what a “successful” relationship looks like.
Comparisons: Speaking to friends about their relationships and comparing it to yours.
Fears and obsessions about sexual orientation
Common Sexual Orientation OCD obsessions:
Fear that you’re gay when you’re actually straight or vice versa.
Constantly questioning your sexuality.
Fear of sending out signals that make you seem gay or straight, depending on sexual preference.
Common Sexual Orientation OCD compulsions:
Avoidance: You stop dating, attending events or going out into social settings.
Checking: Looking at someone or a picture of someone of the same sex and determining whether you have a sexual or emotional response.
Questioning: Becoming confused when you see someone of the same sex and thinking they’re attractive.
Reassurance: Looking at photos of the opposite sex to confirm that your sexual desires are aligned with what you know to be true.
Unwanted obsessions that you might harm a child
Common Pedophilia OCD obsessions:
Fear of having sexual thoughts about a child or young adult.
Fear of getting aroused when you’re around a child or young adult.
Fear that you sexually assaulted a child or young adult in the past.
Common Pedophilia OCD compulsions:
Avoidance: Staying away from social situations where there might be children.
Fear: You’re afraid you might act on your thoughts, and children around you may be at risk.
Character indictment: You think you’re a bad, twisted person for having sexual thoughts or thinking you’re attracted to children.
Religious OCD (Scrupulosity)
Constant fears that you’ll be punished for blasphemy
Common Scrupulosity OCD obsessions:
Fear of living a life of sin or one that God wouldn’t approve of.
Fear of doing something that doesn’t align with your moral or ethical standards.
Constantly wondering if you’re praying enough or the right way.
Common Scrupulosity compulsions:
Excessive prayer: Saying the same prayer over and over again until a state of certainty has been achieved. You feel as if God would approve of the amount.
Reassurance: Seeking constant reassurance from God.
Excessive reflection: Making sure that you haven’t said something God would blasphemous.
Repetitive fears that you’ll get contaminated by germs or diseases
Common Contamination OCD obsessions:
Fear of getting AIDs or other serious diseases.
Fear that someone you love will die from germs.
Fear of coming into contact with potentially harmful things like viruses, bacteria and bodily fluids.
Common Contamination OCD compulsions:
Avoidance: Avoiding objects, places and people that you fear could threaten your health.
Protection: Wearing gloves or using paper towels to try and stop germs from touching your skin.
Excessive Washing: Repeated or overlong showering, hand-washing, using antibacterial soap or heavy-duty cleaning products on your skin.
Fears that your actions or non-actions pose a serious risk to others
Common Responsibility OCD obsessions:
Fear that you accidentally put someone in danger.
Fear that an action or action you didn’t take could hurt a loved one.
Fear of failing to prevent harm from happening.
Common Responsibility OCD compulsions:
Guilt: Thinking you’re a bad person for harming a stranger or loved one by an action that you took or an action that you didn’t take.
Prayer: Having associations about spiritual harm happening to someone and then praying that it doesn’t happen.
Excessive washing: Repeated or overlong showering, hand-washing, using antibacterial soap or heavy-duty cleaning products on your skin. This is similar to people with Contamination OCD.
Hyper-awareness of your everyday functions or surroundings
Common Somatic OCD obsessions:
Constantly being aware of your common bodily functions.
Fear that you’ll never stop noticing your common bodily functions.
Constantly being aware of other people’s bodily functions.
Common Somatic OCD compulsions:
Create distractions: You put in a great deal of effort to create distractions so you’re not aware of your natural functions.
Frustration: You’re frustrated over paying so much attention to naturally occurring functions.
Hyper awareness: Pressure for life to exist without the awareness of natural functions.
Obsessions with philosophical questions that you don’t know the answers to
Common Existential OCD obsessions:
Constant questioning about the nature of self or reality.
Constant wondering about the meaning of life or your purpose.
Constant wondering about the universe.
Common Existential OCD compulsions:
Answer seeking: Establishing legitimacy and determining answers to your thoughts.
Reassurance: Going to church or temple and talking with clergy members or getting reassurance from family members that you’ve reached the right conclusion.
Research: Looking online to find answers to your questions.
The fear of acting on thoughts of suicide
Common Suicidal OCD obsessions:
Fear that you’ll commit suicide.
Constantly thinking about the ways you’ll commit suicide.
Fear of becoming depressed, which could lead to suicide.
Common Suicidal OCD compulsions:
Excessive reflection: You’re constantly trying to determine if you’ll act on your thoughts.
Seeking answers: You’re desperate to find answers to your thoughts.
Research: You often look up stories about people who committed suicide and ruminate on what happened.
Metaphysical Contamination OCD
Fear of objects or people that remind you of a past traumatic event
Common Metaphysical Contamination OCD obsessions:
Fear of objects or people that remind you of something traumatic.
Fear that you might become contaminated by someone’s non-physical traits.
Constantly feeling unclean.
Common Metaphysical Contamination OCD compulsions:
Social avoidance: Stop dating, going to events or hanging out with people.
Avoidance of objects: Don’t use things connected to the original trauma or abuse.
Avoidance of people: Don’t see people that are connected to or are a minder of the original trauma or abuse.
