Chris explains the thinking and assumptions of many people and patients about what "compulsions" are, and are not. Often, it's the assumptions we make about such behaviors that allows them to continue-on unchecked. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found the podcast helpful, consider giving OCD Straight Talk a 5 star-review, and subscribing to the podcast for more structured help with your anxiety-symptoms.
Apr 05, 2023•25 min
Chris discusses common patterns across years of cases. Many patients struggle to make progress early in treatment (or because they are not in it to start with) for one or both of two reasons. Making efficient progress is first about distinguishing obsessions from compulsions, and second about finding the needle-compulsions in the behavioral haystack. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a...
Mar 28, 2023•13 min
Chris sits down with Dr. Mark McMinn to discuss scrupulosity and religious scrupulosity. The two talk through various issues, though, the simple issue. They also talk about spiritualty and psychology and how or where the two bodies of knowledge intersect. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you found the podcast helpful, give us a 5-star rating; and consider subscribing to OCD Straight Talk for more structured help with your anxiety-symptoms....
Mar 27, 2023•34 min
Chris discusses the idea of meta-cognitions: the thoughts we have about the thoughts we have; and he answers a listener's question about intrusive images. He points not to the images or thoughts we have, but what we think about those thoughts or images that makes them scary. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rating, and subscribing to the podcast for more structured help with ...
Mar 15, 2023•13 min
Chris grapples with the questions of 1. What constitutes a panic attack? and What are the common triggers or reasons that individuals might experience them? He then tackles the whole matter of what to do next, suggesting that panic disorder is just OCD disguised as something else. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rating or subscribing to the podcast for more structured help w...
Mar 02, 2023•14 min
Chris tackles a listener's question about Mental Contamination, and provides clarity on two points: the first priority in making therapeutic progress, and the aim of exposure therapy. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving it a 5-star rating or subscribing to the podcast for more structured help for your anxiety-symptoms.
Feb 22, 2023•14 min
Chris discusses the idea of overriding your urge to manage your thoughts and feelings. This isn't easy; and nobody (at least nobody who knows what he or she is talking about) is saying it is. But it certainly is possible. To further unpack this, Chris gives the example of behavior-change within the context of depressive episodes, and explains its longitudinal effect. He then shows how behavior-change within the context of clinical anxiety or OCD is not only a similar concept but also enjoys the ...
Feb 09, 2023•20 min
Chris takes on the question of the degree to which OCD is unlike the anxiety disorders and more like Trichotillomania and Excoriation Disorder. It comes down to emotionality and what specifically to focus on managing. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com; and consider subscribing for more structured help with your anxiety.
Jan 30, 2023•23 min
Chris tackles a good question relative to exposure therapy: How informal is too informal? Many of us walk into exposure-work with the idea that it has look a certain way; and that way is often accompanied by some preconceived notions. Some of these are good and accurate. Some of them are not. Well, which notions or "parameters" are actually helpful, according to the literature? Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com; and consider subscribing to OCD Str...
Jan 09, 2023•13 min
Chris provides a bird's eye view of the process-landscape. One of your questions at this point might be, Am I doing my exposures right? And that's a good question. Chris explains a few concepts and then connects them in such a way that will help you answer that question.
Dec 14, 2022•18 min
Chris asks listeners a question about the possibility of live-meetings, and invites feedback. And he takes on the question of whether differentiating between so-called anxious behaviors and objective compulsions is truly helpful; and he provides a clinical principle that orients individuals in the clinical process. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com, and subscribe to OCD Straight Talk for more structured help with your anxiety symptoms....
Dec 13, 2022•12 min
Chris reflects on a conversation he recently had with a respected colleague. They discussed the resistance some patients/OCDers appear to have toward doing exposure therapy on their own (that is, without the direct or immediate support of a therapist). Chris believes that under the right conditions, people may be willing to do exposure therapy despite not being in traditional treatment. The question is: If he's right, what conditions might those be? Feel free to reach out with any questions you ...
Dec 06, 2022•13 min
Chris discusses a therapeutic conversation he had recently with a new patient. They work through a few basic concepts, and how those concepts fit together in real-time. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have, chrisleins04@gmail.com; and to subscribe to OCD Straight Talk for further help with your anxiety-related disorder.
Dec 01, 2022•14 min
Chris responds to a listener: Are these symptoms even related to OCD? Following a confusing meeting with a mental health professional, she further inquires as to the difference between overthinking and rumination. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, feel free to give us a 5-star rating, and subscribe to the podcast for further help with your anxiety-related symptoms.
Nov 22, 2022•15 min
We've all learned real skills from watching YouTube videos and listening to podcasts. Some of us have earned college, and even graduate degrees in asynchronous university programs, in which we've read and wrote and watched prerecorded lectures. The idea of DIY-learning is not new. What if there were a way for you to learn a structured process and formal, therapeutic skills? What if you could be your own behavior-therapist and treat your own OCD or anxiety-symptoms? OCD Straight Talk is launching...
Nov 01, 2022•3 min
MAJOR OCD STRAIGHT TALK ANNOUNCEMENT coming tomorrow. Chris responds to a listener's question, and discusses the concepts of distinguishing between obsessional and ruminitive thinking in so-called "pure-o OCD, and of mental contamination. feel free to reach out with any questions you have to chrisleins04@gmail.com.
Oct 31, 2022•13 min
Chris responds to a patient's question, Is one compulsion better than another? Good question. The short answer is, No; but the long answer is, Yes. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rating, and supporting the podcast to help us produce more content.
Oct 17, 2022•16 min
**Major OCD Straight Talk announcement coming November 1, 2022. Chris discusses the question of, After I stop compulsions and mental rituals (e.g., ruminating), and I stop arguing with my thoughts, what I am supposed to do with them? The answer is not easy but simple. He ultimately presents a hard truth: the unabated acceptance of the future's uncertainty . Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider givin...
Oct 04, 2022•12 min
*** Big OCD Straight Talk Announcement coming November 1, 2022. Chris discusses a really common response OCDers have to their intrusive thoughts. The conversations we have with ourselves can often happen almost outside of our conscious awareness. Certain responses can be instinctive or reflexive. But does that mean that they're not compulsive? But wait, does it mean they are? These are important questions, as arguing with our compulsions can be a very common response to the experience of obsessi...
Sep 27, 2022•15 min
Chris deals with a common question in therapy: What do I do: I have anxiety, not OCD. The Cognitive Model provides a useful roadmap for understanding anxiety-related symptoms; and it offers a practical, step-by-step guide for beginning to change their severity. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have. Chrisleins04@gmail.com If you found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rating and supporting the podcast to help us produce more content.
Sep 13, 2022•20 min
Chris responds to a listener's question about how to manage "just right"-OCD. It's important, first and foremost, to remember that OCD is OCD; and although OCD often appears in so-called "subtypes," the condition is largely treated the same way. Chris explains how just right-OCD is distinct from other subtypes, and discusses managing the "feeling" of "just right." Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rati...
Aug 29, 2022•13 min
At the request of a listener, Chris returns to the question of, How do I stop ruminating? He provides a specific technique, but explains the importance of first distinguishing between different kinds of thinking. It is a compulsion to block intrusive thoughts; but it is not a compulsion to stop a compulsion (e.g., rumination). Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have. Chrisleins04@gmail.com; @ocdstraighttalk. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star ...
Aug 19, 2022•18 min
Chris responds to a question regarding perceived memory loss and obsessional distress, and incorporates various clinical observations and explanation into his response. Feel free to reach out with any question you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com, or @ocdstraighttalk. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider giving us a 5-star rating, and supporting the podcast to help us produce more content.
Aug 12, 2022•21 min
Chris discusses his understanding of the dreaded phrase, "I can't" in relation to the resistance of compulsions, and discloses his battle with OCD. But an important difference is to be highlighted between the notion that you can't and the empowering idea that you won't. One points to power and therefore the possibility of a different tomorrow. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com, or @ocdstraighttalk. If you've found OCDST helpful, consider giving us...
Aug 05, 2022•14 min
Chris discusses the Cognitive Model and how it applies to depressive and anxious symptoms. Distinguishing between symptoms that we can directly control and symptoms that we can't is an essential first step to making progress. The questions become, Where do you have control? and, What are you doing to feed the bear? Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com; or message Chris on Instagram @ocdstraighttalk. If you've found OCD Straight Talk helpful, consider...
Jul 29, 2022•13 min
Chris sits down with Dr. Kathleen Rupertus, Clinical Director of the Anxiety & OCD Treatment Center in Wilmington, DE, and coauthor of the acclaimed Loving Someone with OCD . Together they discuss a range of topics, from the difference between OCD thoughts and real-world concerns, the so-called "disconfirmation of beliefs" in the treatment of OCD versus the concept of accepting uncertainty; and how family members can love and support their symptomatic loved ones without participating in thei...
Jul 15, 2022•26 min
Chris is on Instagram (@ocdstraighttalk)! On this episode, Chris explains the idea that we're not really doing exposure therapy if we're also doing compulsions (or OCD minus the "C" equals Exposure and Response Prevention), and presents the concept from a few points of view. But some people get stuck on the idea of stopping compulsions. Afterall, certain things are easier said than done. So he provides two pointers. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.c...
Jul 01, 2022•15 min
Chris sits down with Dr. Edna Foa, a psychological scientist who needs no real introduction. To those who are even somewhat familiar with the literature relative to the treatment of OCD, the anxiety disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder, Dr. Foa is internationally recognizable as one of the great contributors to evidence-based psychotherapy. She is among those who will go down in psychological history as one of the greats. Two schools of thought are apparent among OCD- and anxiety disorde...
Jun 20, 2022•29 min
Chris discusses the symptomatologic reality that individuals can't manage their anxiety and manage their compulsions: they're either working to keep their anxiety in check, and in so doing they're engaging compulsions; or they're identifying, resisting, and preventing compulsions when they feel anxious, and facing the anxiety head-on. They can't do both; and neither can you. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have to chrisleins04@gmail.com. And view my recent interview with the ...
Jun 17, 2022•15 min
Chris discusses a phenomenon that he calls, The Banana Peel Effect that changes the power individuals report feeling over resisting and stopping compulsions. The idea is that the more individuals engage their compulsions, the less ability they feel they have to resist and stop them. Or, the more we engage the OCD, the more the power differential shifts to favor it.
Jun 09, 2022•11 min
