FearCast Podcast

Lauren Rosen, MFT, joined me today to help answer Lemon’s question. Lemon wanted to know how she can move forward with her life, pursuing her values, etc., but what if her thoughts and values aren’t really her own? Lauren, the author of The Mental Compulsions Workbook for OCD was the perfect guest to help address this existential question. We discuss ways to identify her mental compulsions, the fe...

Sophi sent in her audio question and had a question about how to best deal with this really unhelpful, bad-for-the-relationship, unwelcomed obstacle of ROCD and Paranoid Personality Disorder. This isn’t a common combination that we’ve talked about on the show but she reached out. She asked about what she can do to get a better handle on these two so it isn’t to ruin her relationships or any other...

This is a jam packed episode. I answer four questions from listeners across a wide range of topics. We discuss the differences between an obsession and an intrusive thought. Are they different, and if so, how, and is it important? Another listener wants to know whether someone identifying as gay/ lesbian can still have Sexual Orientation OCD, or is that just a straight people thing? One listener w...

Toblerone Girl messaged me with an audio question recently. Unfortunately, she’s struggling with the dreaded overlap of ROCD and SO-OCD that seem to be made for one another. She notices some genuine feelings, but OCD jumps in and demands the all or nothing of it, and doesn’t take “I’m must be bisexual” as a reasonable label. I discuss some ways she can consider the situation and offer some exercis...

Today I answer a twofer from Katie; both of them Religious Scrupulosity related. The first question is about how can someone “cast their cares on the Lord” and ask God for healing from OCD in a non-compulsive way. She also wants to know how she can “do all things through Christ who strengthens me” while also exerting her own will on her OCD recovery. Is using her own willpower subverting God’s imp...

Today we are holding off on the questions to dedicate our time to talking about all things medication for OCD and anxiety disorders. Lucky for us, Dr. Sanjaya Saxena, MD, graciously gave his time and expertise to go over an exhaustive amount of information. We talk about what medications are most effective, first line treatments, supplemental medication, how to best communicate with your doctor, a...

John sent in an audio question. He wants to know whether his attempts to control, and even mentally play with, his Sensorimotor OCD obsession is helpful because he was able to do it once and it felt so empowering! Tied in, he wants to know whether he has to resign himself to never feeling fully “OK.” Emma also sent in a message about how to deal with the idea of death and the impossibility of gett...

I’m answering two questions today. Why not. The first is a follow up audio question from Spiritual Overthinker. She shares how her struggles have deepened as she has started to explore the world of Twin Flames and how her anxiety is preventing her from having an enjoyable relationship with boyfriend, or whatever OCD wants her to call him. Next I answer Ella’s question about what she can do with he...

For this first episode of 2026, I am answering a Sensorimotor OCD question from Dave. However, as many FearCast questions go, this one also applies to a great many other people struggling with OCD. In addition to wanting to how he can manage his obsessions, he wants to know whether or not he should avoid others out of fear that he may take on their Sensorimotor obsession, or should he wait until h...

For the last episode of the year, I’m going to answer two, that’s right TWO, listener questions. These two questions from Rubi and Emily. They both share very personal obsessions that don’t get talked about a lot, so I’m really honored to have a chance to speak with them. First, Rubi shares her struggle with Self Harm OCD and whats to know some practical ways she can deal with them. After that, I...

Ed recently sent in an audio question where he expressed a fear of being socially humiliated. This fear was triggered during a conversation with a group of friends where he feared that he would be humiliated later on. So, Ed did the most reasonable thing; ruminate, and later send me this question. I discuss this fear broadly as a worry that straddles the line between OCD and Social Anxiety while f...

Today’s episode is an exciting one! Kimberley Quinlan and Chris Trondsen joined me to talk about their new program focused on Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). These two experts on BDD, eating disorders, and OCD (and pretty much everything else, too) discuss the differences between treating OCD and BDD, and why specialized treatment for BDD is necessary in a way that is encouraging, positive, light,...

Nathan Peterson, therapist, youtuber, educator, and now author, joined me on this episode to talk about his upcoming book and upcoming video program on Tics and Tourettes Syndrome. He was such a delightful guest who was kind enough to come on to share his thoughts on OCD treatment, making recovery feel achievable, and helping people looking for easy to use and understand resources. Nathan’s videos...

Tina recently reached out to ask a question about what she thinks is Partner Focused ROCD. She struggles with obsessions about her partner and is looking for approval from her friends and others about the relationship. She also finds herself ruminating about her partner and various minutia of their appearance and mannerisms. I talk about a little about what Partner Focused ROCD is and offer her so...

Melody sent me an audio question recently. She wants to know what she can do to best help her boyfriend who is struggling with health anxiety. He is just starting therapy, but she wants to know some best practices on what she can do to be a helpful partner. How great is that?! To answer this, I try to highlight the importance of communication between her and her boyfriend and working together to e...

I got an audio question from Burrito John who wanted to know he can deal with a situation. He’s obsessing about whether he actually liked someone, or whether he was just obsessing and didn’t. He is worried he made it awkward with his co-worker and now wonders whether he and trust his intuition about whether he genuinely likes someone or whether OCD is just clouding his judgment. This question come...

Jeffrey messaged me and wanted to know how to forgive himself for his obsessions and past choices so he can finally move on with his life past the grip of SO-OCD. His question has a lot going on, and includes elements of shame and guilt from his past behaviors, doubt and confusion about motivations for said actions, confusion about titles and identity, and a struggle with a sticky comment made by...

Dan reached out with an audio question to ask about what he can do when his interests and values happen to also be the focus of his obsession. Hijacking your values, hobbies, and interests is a really common tactic of OCD, but does that mean you have to give it all up to get better? What happens then if you value intimacy in a relationship? Is Dan doomed? I discuss what people can do to grow their...

Just in case the threats of the Rapture didn’t get you down (or amped up with anxiety) enough, GS comes along to ask the question about what to do, and how to move on with life, now that, apparently, science proves that we have no free will. So, GS struggles to know what to do with this information. Luckily, this isn’t my first rodeo, and I’ve got just the right chaps and spurs for this question....

For today’s episode, I got a relatively simple question; what are the differences between the compulsions and other behaviors found in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) and how do they differ from those in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). While this was a pretty quick answer, it spun out into a comparison between OCD and GAD, how they differ diagnostically, and how they are really similar! Yo...

Dr Jeremy Shuman, PsyD, joins me today to discuss OCD treatment for those on the Autism Spectrum. Dr. Shuman offers a wealth of knowledge, insights, and encouragement to clinicians, families, and individuals alike. We discuss some of the diagnostic complications with the overlap of OCD and Autism symptoms, obstacles in the way of using CBT and ERP, and ways to adapt common treatment methods for OC...

Alan sent me a message asking me about how he can deal with a spike in Real-Event OCD themes. He’s a reporter who used AI to help with his grammar, but his anxiety latched on about violating AI policies at work. He struggles to let go of the obsession and get back to appreciating his craft again. We go over Real-Event OCD and how it differs from other obsessions, the use of AI in treatment, and so...

Annie reached out to me as a follow up to a previous question she had about her toenail fungus and her obsession about it. She noticed that after all her ERP treatment she continues to have an obsession because she continues to get infections! How frustrating!? I talk about the expectations of ERP and anxiety treatment, how we can deal with the possibility (and reality) that bad/ unwanted things h...

I recently got a follow up question from the Emotional Contamination episode (#240) asking about what to do if/ when someone actually believes their OCD fear is absolutely real. In Therapy-Land, we call this a high Fixity of Beliefs, or their thoughts are highly rigid or fixed. I know a word that doesnt sound like a word. I talk about what can be done when someone has high Fixity of Beliefs, what...

Today’s episode feature Dr. Caitlin Pinciotti, PhD, and Jon Hershfield, MFT in our discussion of the National OCD Survey. The goal of the National OCD Survey is to gather information about the demographic differences in OCD subtypes across the United States in alignment with identified cultural groupings within the United States. This was a really fun episode to record and is full of fascinating i...