When “I’m so OCD” Misses the Mark
It’s become part of our cultural shorthand, a casual apology for being particular. Someone laughs and says, “I’m so OCD,” because they like symmetry or can’t relax until their desktop is perfectly aligned.
But obsessive-compulsive disorder isn’t about liking things neat or organized. It’s not about perfection. It’s about fear, doubt and a brain that will not stop sounding alarms.
Reducing OCD to a personality quirk doesn’t just water down the diagnosis. It blurs the line between a preference and a condition that can take over someone’s life.
What OCD Actually Is
OCD is not about choice. It is about compulsion that overrides reason.
Imagine knowing your front door is locked, yet feeling a surge of panic so strong you cannot move on until you check again. And again. The relief lasts seconds before the doubt returns, louder this time.
That is OCD.
It’s a disorder of fear and uncertainty, not of neatness or control. It involves obsessions, which are intrusive and distressing thoughts, and compulsions, the behaviors or mental rituals meant to neutralize them.
About 2.3 percent of adults in the United States will experience OCD at some point. The themes vary: contamination, safety, symmetry, morality, harm, relationships. The content may change, but the feeling is the same. The brain demands absolute certainty in a world that can never give it.
We’ve seen countless people with OCD in the ER, in inpatient settings and in private practice, and it almost never looks the same. Some clients have visible compulsions, like checking or tapping. Others fight invisible battles with mental rituals, self-reassurance or silent counting. Some recognize their fears as irrational. Others are not so sure. But all describe the same exhausting loop of doubt, relief and doubt again.
What It Is Not: Perfectionism
Perfectionism is something else entirely. It’s about wanting to be enough, not about trying to be safe.
A perfectionist might rewrite an email five times because they want it to sound right. Someone with OCD might rewrite it five times because if they do not, something terrible could happen.
Perfectionism seeks validation. OCD seeks relief.
A perfectionist can eventually step away, even if they feel uneasy. A person with OCD often cannot stop until the ritual feels complete.
One simple way to tell the difference:
Perfectionism wants things to be right. OCD needs things to be safe.
When Perfectionism Turns Into Something Else
Sometimes perfectionism crosses into another condition altogether: obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, or OCPD.
People with OCPD tend to live by strict rules about how things should be done. They value order, control and precision, and often believe their way really is the correct one. Their standards can cause friction at work and in relationships, but they rarely see their own behavior as a problem.
That is one of the key differences between OCD and OCPD. People with OCD usually know their thoughts and rituals do not make sense and wish they could stop. People with OCPD, on the other hand, believe their systems are right and that others should adapt.
OCD causes distress. OCPD causes conflict.
Why Language Matters
Calling ordinary tidiness “OCD” might seem harmless, but it erases what people with the disorder actually live through. For them, compulsions are not quirks. They are survival tactics in a mind that does not feel safe.
Getting the language right is not about political correctness. It’s about compassion. When we name things accurately, we leave room for understanding and for real help.
We Can Help
OCD and related conditions are highly treatable. Cognitive-behavioral therapy, especially Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), is the gold standard. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and mindfulness-based approaches can also help people step back from obsessive thoughts instead of obeying them.
If you recognize yourself in any of this, whether it’s the checking, the doubt, or the perfectionism that never rests, know that help exists. With the right treatment, it is possible to quiet the alarm and start trusting your own mind again.
We’re here to help: lemihelp.com