7 Triggers Behind OCD and Intrusive Thoughts - for Women In South Carolina

1 - SHAME

Shame often plays a very large role in the experience of intrusive thoughts. Whether we carry a lot of shame or we are terrified by the thought of experiencing shame, this unprocessed emotion can be a major culprit to fueling your intrusive thoughts and your reaction to them. For many people who have not experienced much shame or failure, the thought of it feels unbearable. Because they have been mostly successful or have had parents who shielded them from failure they don’t believe in their ability to cope with the idea of failure. Others may have experienced traumatic or negative events that left them with boatloads of shame that they didn’t know what to do with. This unprocessed shame fuels intrusive thoughts and the response to them. 

2 - CONTROL

Our relationship with control also plays a large factor in OCD. If you have a hard time letting go, or trusting yourself or others, then you often feel out of control. Then OCD amplifies as a result of trying to feel in control but making you feel out of control in other ways. Order or symmetry can help you feel in control when the intrusive thoughts lead you feeling completely out of control, but then when it becomes a compulsive need you may feel out of control again. Unfortunately, we only have so much control in life. We have to accept that we can’t control everything. Try exploring how you can trust yourself to make empowered decisions no matter what’s going on in your life, instead of feeling the need to be in control all the time to avoid any adversity.

3 - FEARS

Our biggest fears are an obvious underlying factor that spikes OCD. Are you deeply afraid of shootings, or failing, or dying? Your OCD, intrusive thoughts, and hypervigilance will be activated around related triggers. We’re all scared of something and we can’t make our fears go away- they are natural. However, they can feel more manageable or less scary by spending some time journaling about why your biggest fears are so scary to you and exploring how you can find comfort when you’re feeling afraid.

4 - STRESS

Increased stress in our life naturally makes us feel less in control and activates our nervous system. These two factors serve as a great breeding ground for OCD to spark and grow. If you are experiencing heightened stress due to work, family, or major life changes it can be helpful to understand this may be why your OCD is worsening or heightened. Practicing stress management techniques or using boundaries can help to reduce stress and the severity of the OCD symptoms. 

5 - TRAUMA 

Past trauma often directly affects the nature of OCD obsessions and symptoms and increases overall hypervigilance and our nervous symptoms responses. Sexual trauma may lead to intrusive thoughts around sexually adjacent topics. Trauma of losing a loved one or witnessing death or illness may lead to intrusive thoughts and OCD symptoms about your own health. Sometimes the OCD symptoms and trauma responses are less obvious, but often a history of trauma can lead to OCD as an attempt to avoid the triggering experience of feeling helpless, powerless, and out of control. You may be able to reduce and resolve some OCD symptoms by processing past trauma and learning to regulate your nervous system through trauma therapy with a licensed mental health professional. 

6 - STRONG VALUES

Intrusive thoughts are often so disturbing because they are in a stark misalignment with our values. If you highly value your family or pets, thoughts about doing anything to hurt them would cause significant disturbance. If you value your reputation, career, or respecting others, the fear of being “cancelled” would feel uniquely terrifying. The stronger our values the more disturbing the intrusive thought feels because it’s directly countering who you feel like you are and what you feel like you appreciate. Recognize that these intrusive thoughts don’t mean that you don’t value what you thought you did, but you are so disturbed by these thoughts because they are counter to your values.

7 - SENSITIVITY

Finally, many people with OCD are highly sensitive people which means they experience emotions deeply and often physically and are natural scanners of others moods and actions. Therefore, high sensitivity layered with the other factors listed above, like shame and fear, means you may be feeling shame, fear, trauma, and helplessness at a higher intensity that makes the intrusive thoughts more disturbing. Also, many people with OCD are highly sensitive but often avoid feeling their emotions. They tend to overcompensate by trying to be logical and thought focused to avoid the feelings which can lead to obsessive thinking. Balancing feeling emotions first or with logical thinking on a regular basis can help to reduce the OCD intensity.

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