

The OCD Stories
Stuart Ralph
Welcome to The OCD Stories, hosted by Stuart Ralph. The podcast has been heard over 7million times globally. Check out your first episode from our existing hundreds of episodes featuring experts, and people experiencing symptoms just like you today. If you do, you may just feel understood, heard and possibly help you identify your next step in your own personal journey to healing.
Disclaimer - this podcast is not a replacement for therapy. Please seek treatment from a licensed mental health professional.
Disclaimer - this podcast is not a replacement for therapy. Please seek treatment from a licensed mental health professional.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 27, 2023 • 50min
Dr Katia Moritz and Dr Wilfredo Rivera-Perez: The Myth about OCD and Suicide
In this midweek special episode I chat with licensed psychologists Dr Katia Moritz and Dr Wilfredo Rivera-Perez of the Neurobehavioral Institute (NBI) in Florida. We discuss what is suicide, some differences between being suicidal and experiencing suicidal OCD, when people experience both suicidal OCD or harm OCD and being actually suicidal, co-occurring disorders that may increase the risk for suicide, the importance of assessment, safety plans, suicidal ideation vs intention, protective factors, what to look out for as family members, and much more. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/nbi-8 The midweek special episodes which go out at the end of the month on a Wednesday are made possible by and in partnership with the Neurobehavioral Institute (NBI) in Florida. I will be interviewing different members of their clinical team on a range of topics. NBI specialise in treatment and programs for anxiety, OCD, comorbidities, and complex cases. They also offer an intensive outpatient program, and a residential program called the NBI Ranch: A supportive living experience that complements intensive treatment for Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Related Disorders. To find out more about their intensive outpatient services, or the NBI ranch, as well as to read some of their free information online about OCD via their blog, click here to find out more: https://www.nbiweston.com/

Sep 24, 2023 • 40min
Nami interviews Stuart on 400 episodes (#400)
In episode 400 Nami (my wife) chats with me (Stuart, the host of the podcast) about my experience and learnings from the podcast over the last 400 episodes. We discuss and reflect on the last 400 episodes, what episodes and concepts have stood out to me, my original hopes for the podcast, how the podcast has influenced me, what topics I hope to cover in the future, what I would put on a billboard, what I would tell my 7 year old self, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/stuart-400 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

Sep 17, 2023 • 45min
Story: Logan (#399)
In episode 399 I chat with Logan who has kindly agreed to share his OCD story with us. We discuss his story, relationship OCD, ADHD, therapy, how boredom played into the OCD, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/logan-399 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

5 snips
Sep 10, 2023 • 43min
Dr Maggie Perry: OCD and mood disorders (Ep398)
In episode 398 I chat with Dr. Maggie Perry. Maggie is a licensed clinical psychologist based in Denver, Colorado and the founder of Relatable Health. We discuss an update on her, mood disorders, how mood disorders affect OCD and vice versa, working with mood disorders alongside OCD, how to adjust therapy for the two disorders, behavioural activation, negative core beliefs, group therapy for OCD and mood, guilt, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/maggie-398 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

Sep 3, 2023 • 59min
Dr Anthony Pinto: Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD) (#397)
Dr. Anthony Pinto, an expert on Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD), discusses the core features of OCPD, its impact on functioning, and the cognitive behavioral therapy interventions for managing maladaptive traits. He distinguishes OCPD from OCD, explores the negative effects on relationships and burnout, and emphasizes the importance of self-compassion and accepting the messiness of life in OCPD treatment. Additionally, he addresses the relevance of physiological changes and expresses gratitude to listeners and sponsors.

Aug 30, 2023 • 42min
Dr Michele Bechor and Dr Ciana Mickolus: A team approach to OCD treatment
Dr Michele Bechor and Dr Ciana Mickolus, both licensed psychologists at the Neurobehavioral Institute in Florida, discuss the team approach to OCD treatment, including the benefits of involving families and early intervention, the advantages of a multidisciplinary team, the importance of discretion and peer consultation in sharing information, the significance of including spouses in therapy sessions, the benefits of a group setting for treatment, and the customization of treatment to help patients live their desired lives.

Aug 27, 2023 • 59min
Dr Jesse Spiegel and Dr Sarah Haider: Troubleshooting ERP when it's not working (#396)
In episode 396 I chat with Dr Jesse Spiegel and Dr Sarah A. Haider. Jesse and Sarah are licensed clinical psychologists working with OCD. We discuss their therapy stories, why exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP) doesn't work sometimes, including intensity, frequency, and duration. We also cover asking clients to tell on themselves, psychoeducation, checking for small compulsions that interrupt ERP, mental compulsions, how much homework is ideal, uncertainty, reassurance, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/jesse-and-sarah-396 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

Aug 20, 2023 • 59min
Story: Hannah (#395)
In episode 395 I chat with Hannah who has kindly agreed to share her OCD story with us. We discuss harm worries around her children, hit and run themed OCD, finding a therapist who is an specialist in OCD, her core fears, doing exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), doing ERP while raising kids, medication, support groups, OCD and faith, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/hannah-395 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

Aug 13, 2023 • 55min
Story: Will (#394)
In episode 394 I chat with Will who has kindly agreed to share his OCD story with us. We discuss his story, growing up in a toxic environment, intrusive thoughts, confessing as a compulsion, perfectionism, being active duty in the US military, identity struggles, a bad relationship with alcohol, pOCD, relationship themed OCD, sexual orientation themed OCD, suicidal themed OCD, harm themed OCD, a fear of crossing bridges, health anxiety, being hyper-fixated on sleep, his journey to finding suitable therapy, peer support, intensive outpatient therapy program, masculinity, developing self-compassion, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/will-394 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast

Aug 6, 2023 • 1h 22min
Jonny Say: Overcoming barriers to OCD recovery (#393)
In episode 393 I chat with Jonny Say. Jonny is a UK based therapist and co-director at The Integrative Centre for OCD Therapy. We discuss our new OCD centre, we talk about 9 barriers to OCD recovery, including using exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP) with the agenda of controlling symptoms, automatic compulsions, secondary spikes, intense feelings, difficulties with urge surfing, shame, unworkable beliefs, core fears, and systemic issues. But more importantly some ideas on how to overcome these barriers. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/jonny-say-393 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories Thanks to all our patrons for supporting our work. To sign up to our Patreon and to check out the benefits you'll receive as a Patron, visit: https://www.patreon.com/theocdstoriespodcast Our OCD centre, The Integrative Centre for OCD Therapy: https://www.integrativecentreforocd.co.uk/


