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From Searching to Solutions: 4 Steps Toward OCD Recovery

From Searching to Solutions: 4 Steps Toward OCD Recovery

Written by Dr. Paul Kelly, C.Psych.              June 17, 2025

Follow Sarah’s story as she learns how to understand and deal with her OCD symptoms.

Her 4 steps might be a useful guide for you or someone you care about.

 

Table of Contents

 

Step 1: Learn About OCD Online

Sarah developed some OCD symptoms during her first term at college. Her papers and pens had to be perfectly aligned, ‘just right’ or she couldn’t leave her desk. She spent hours fussing. When her roommate borrowed a pencil and put it back in the ‘wrong’ place, Sarah got very agitated.

Her roommate asked, “Do you have OCD?” Sarah wasn’t sure. Did she have OCD, or was she just ‘extra-tidy’? She went online to figure it out. She spent hours scrolling through Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook.

At first, she was confused by her online search. Some influencers wanted to sell her bogus treatments like herbal remedies or magnets. Others gave her bad advice that made her OCD symptoms worse. Eventually she found some websites that she could trust. She learned that her symptoms fit the pattern for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Are you looking for trustworthy websites for information about OCD? Check out the links below. Sarah found them helpful and I also recommend these websites at my Clinic.

  1. The International OCD Foundation (IOCDF): This is a trustworthy source of information about OCD. Experts write the articles. Numerous fact sheets, brochures, and self-help tools are available.
  2. Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH): This website contains information about OCD treatment and resources for the Toronto area.
  3. Anxiety Canada: This website has lots of good information about OCD and OCD treatment in Canada.

Learning about OCD was Sarah’s first step. After she realized that she had some OCD symptoms she wanted to connect with other people living with OCD. She went on to Step 2 and joined a support group.

 

Support group for OCD Recovery

 

Step 2: Join An Online Support Group

Sarah learned a lot from the websites. But she still felt alone. She decided to join an online support group. She wanted fellowship and advice from other people living with OCD symptoms. The support group members helped Sarah see that OCD was not her fault and that things could be better.

Would you like to learn more about online support groups for OCD concerns? Here are 3 places to start:

  1. The International OCD Foundation (IOCDF): The IOCDF has an excellent directory of online support groups for people with OCD and for their families and caregivers.
  2. OCD Ottawa: This is a volunteer-based peer support network founded in Ottawa. It accepts participants from across Canada.
  3. Canadian OCD Foundation: They maintain a list of support groups for people with OCD, families and caregivers.

 

Step 3: Check Out OCD Self-Help Workbooks

Sarah learned a lot from her online research and from sharing in her support group. But she felt frustrated that the information was fragmented. She wasn’t sure what to do when. She told her new friend Emma about feeling stuck. Emma was a peer counsellor in her OCD support group. Emma recommended that Sarah check out some self-help workbooks for OCD recovery. Here are 6 reasons by Emma’s advice was on point for Sarah.

 

OCD workbooks

6 Benefits of Self-Help Workbooks

  1. Structured, Evidence-based Guidance: Good workbooks provide clear education and practical advice. They give you step-by-step guidance so you can make real progress.
  2. Comprehensive and Reliable Information: Social media posts and videos can be interesting but they give fragmented information. A good workbook will lay out the whole story about OCD so you get a comprehensive picture about OCD and how to manage it.
  3. Self-Reflection and Personal Tailoring: These workbooks give you places to write about your own experience. What triggers your OCD symptoms? They also show you how to track your progress so you can see what is working for you.
  4. Focused Skill Development: Good workbooks break things down into simple steps. That way you can master skills, one at a time. They will also teach you about different types of OCD and give you targeted exercises for your personal goals.
  5. Encouragement and Support: Good workbooks will help you learn that OCD can be managed by sharing success stories, and giving examples of how people use the techniques that are taught. They also explain that there can be setbacks but there is still hope for improvement.
  6. Can Lead to Real Change: Research shows that good self-help workbooks can help people reduce their OCD symptoms. This is good news for people who can’t access traditional therapy. The structured approach of a good workbook is much more effective than unstructured information off the internet. Workbooks also have a role to play if you are working with a therapist. They provide a good roadmap and can help you save time and money. That is why we recommend workbooks at our Clinic.

 

3 Recommended Self-Help Books for OCD

Here are three self-help books that could make a difference for you. My therapists and I use all of them, and we recommend them to our clients. They are all designed to help you understand OCD. They also help you to learn and practice techniques so you can break the hold that OCD has over you in your life.

  • Brain Lock: Free Yourself from ObsessiveCompulsive Behavior by Jeffrey M. Schwartz, M.D.
    Dr. Schwartz presents a clear four-step method for countering OCD symptoms. The steps are easy to remember. If you practice them and apply them consistently, you can regain control over your life. I have been recommending this book for almost 30 years. It was updated in 2016. It is not as comprehensive as the other two books recommended here, but it may be all that you need.
  • The Mindfulness Workbook for OCD (Second Edition) by Jon Hershfield and Tom Corboy
    This workbook explains how to combine mindfulness, cognitive therapy, and behaviour therapy (Exposure and Response Prevention, ERP). There are separate chapters for many OCD obsessions and compulsions. Topics include: contamination, checking, sexual orientation, scrupulosity, symmetry, thoughts of violence or aggression, pedophilia, relationships, hyperawareness of sensations, existential, and others. The book recommends practical coping techniques for each kind of obsession. My therapists use the book to guide clients, and clients use it to rehearse and track their efforts to counter compulsions.
  • Getting Over OCD: A 10-Step Workbook for Taking Back Your Life (Second Edition) by Jonathan S. Abramowitz, PhD
    This book is very comprehensive. It shows you how to use cognitive therapy, behaviour therapy (Exposure and Response Prevention, ERP), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, ACT, to understand and control OCD symptoms. This is very useful ‘roadmap’ book. You and your therapist can use it together to plan your treatment and to help you learn and practice the homework that will help you break free of OCD symptoms.

 

chatting with a therapist

 

Step 4: When to Add a Therapist to the Mix

OCD can be tricky to deal with. That is why adding a therapist to the mix is often necessary. This is especially true for people with moderate or severe OCD symptoms.

You should consider adding a therapist if:

  • You’re feeling stuck despite your best efforts.
  • OCD symptoms significantly interfere with your relationships, work or school.
  • You experience intense anxiety, depression, or hopelessness in addition to OCD symptoms.

For some mental health problems, most kinds of modern therapy can be helpful. This is not as true for OCD problems. For OCD it is best to use or stick with the small number of therapies that have good research support. When you are checking out potential therapists, make sure they use a combination of these therapies: exposure and response prevention (ERP), mindfulness, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), cognitive therapy (CT), and inference-based therapy (IBT).

You need the right person as well as the right type of therapy. Some therapists are better than others and you deserve a really good one. I learned this lesson about ‘better therapists’ when I in my 20s. (Here is how I learned.)

These days I watch for good therapists because I need them at my Clinic. In recent years over 500 therapists applied to work at my Clinic. I only hired 6, the best ones, because I care that people like you get good help. I have a small team of therapists whom I know and trust.

If you would like to get started with a therapist who understands how to help for OCD, send in the Contact form at the bottom of this page.

 

A Personal Note from Dr. Kelly

Sarah’s story is based on a real person. I have taken care to protect her identity. Her journey from wondering if she had OCD to finding the help she needed is typical of the people who develop OCD symptoms.

It is possible to regain control of your life if you have OCD symptoms. It takes time and change happens step by step. There can be setbacks and flareups, especially in times of stress. Still real progress is possible. I wish you well on your journey.

 

Resources

Here are the books and websites that I mentioned in this article. Please use them to deepen your understanding of OCD and get started with your recovery.

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