Simply Scrupulosity

One of my viewers recently asked me, "Where do you draw the line between Scrupulosity OCD and church culture? Your account has opened my eyes to a lot of harmful thought patterns, but I feel like these are taught to us as children."

My viewer has a point! Especially when it comes to high-demand religions, it can be hard to differentiate between what can be classified as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and what is s...

One of the most common messages I get in my inbox is Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) sufferers wondering how they can stop realizing on avoidance as a compulsion. 

Avoidance comes up for a multitude of different reasons. But no matter the reason, it can be just as distressing to try and overcome. That's why I made today's episode!

When you tune in, you'll discover:

• How common avoidance as a compulsi...

Many people know that Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is commonly referred to as the doubting disorder. However, what most people don't know is that the doubts that are part of OCD know almost no boundaries.

In fact, many Scrupulosity OCD sufferers eventually deal with chronic doubt about whether God thinks they're just pretending to have Religious OCD so that they have an excuse to sin and be disobedient.

If this sound...

If you've ever asked yourself, "Is this faith or OCD?", then this episode is for you!

In this viewer-requested discussion, we'll cover how to identify when your religious behaviors cross the line over into magical thinking territory - a tell-tale sign that your Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is getting involved. In addition, we'll talk about:

• What exactly magical thinking is within the c...

In this episode, I discuss everything about my journey with Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) - from when my first symptoms appeared to when I was finally diagnosed nearly 20 years later!

Tune in to: 

• Learn about early warning signs of Scrupulosity OCD
• Get examples of common Scrupulosity OCD thought loops and compulsions
• A sneak peek into where I am in my OCD recovery

Connect with me:

Website: https://ww...

When you're struggling with Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), the last thing you need is to feel lonely and/or isolated when you are attending church. However, knowing how to open up and make friends who may relate to you can sometimes be difficult.

In this viewer-requested episode, we discuss:

• Overcoming feeling like it's taboo to discuss Religious OCD at church
• Simple ways to try to reach out and make f...

After you are diagnosed with Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), it's very common to question the validity of your past religious experiences. You may wonder how many of the times you felt "the Spirit" were simply the reduction in anxiety that occurs after a compulsion is completed.

This often leads to individuals with Religious OCD going through a type of "faith crisis" in which they may strug...

Back when I was living with undiagnosed Scrupulosity OCD, one of my most destructive OCD cycle loops had to do with developing Christlike attributes - especially humility. 

The Religious OCD distorted humility to mean that it was sinful to be proud of yourself, feel hurt by other people, etc. And this is not a common occurrence among the Scrupulosity OCD community. 

That's why in this episode, I'm sharing my do's and d...

At first glance, it may appear that Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) has nothing to do with how Thanksgiving goes for you. However, that may not be the case! In this episode, learn all about how exactly OCD may ramp up during the holidays AND how you can best cope with it. 

For more information, check out this blog post: https://www.abbietabbilos.com/post/how-scrupulosity-ocd-affects-your-thanksgiving-experience 

Conn...

When your self-love is rooted in your religious beliefs, that means it is conditional upon things like:

• Whether or not you’re following the “rules”
• If you’re spending your time wisely
• If you’re serving people enough
• If enough people love you (because that means you are righteous)

Sound familiar? This podcast episode is for you. Listen to the episode to learn:

• How to untie your self-esteem from your religious beliefs
• How relig...

You don't have to have Scrupulosity OCD to wonder if God has truly forgiven you for your sins. However, people with Religious OCD need to approach the question much  differently.

In this episode, we discuss how to respond when you find yourself wondering if you're truly forgiven. We also talk about:

• What feeling guilt means when you have Scrupulosity OCD
• How to respond to intrusive thoughts about God's forgiveness
• Wh...

Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP) involves a person with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) completing tasks that are targeted to help them face the fears that are driving the OCD cycle.

For those with Scrupulosity OCD, those exposures involve things like changing the way they pray, skipping church or doing other behaviors that they believe might offend God. 

It's no wonder that many individuals with Scrupulosity O...

Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) certainly isn't a disorder that only affects the sufferer. And if your loved one has Scrupulosity OCD, it can be very difficult to know how you can best support them.

In this episode, we talk about 5 ways OCD can affect relationships and 5 ways you can effectively support your loved one with Scrupulosity OCD. We also discuss:

• How to navigate when taboo topics come up
• How you ca...

It's common to think that if you don't feel happiness or peace, it means you have done something wrong and need to repent. Scrupulosity OCD can find tons of evidence for you to feel this way, and even though you can tell it's harmful for you to think this way, it feels so real!

In this episode, we talk about how to address when emotions feel like evidence, and feelings feel like facts. In addition, you'll hear ab...

If you've been diagnosed with Scrupulosity (Religious) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), chances are you have been confused about whether you received revelation from God or if it was just your OCD talking.

I understand that answering this question can be incredibly complicated, especially since many people eventually realize that some of their most treasured spiritual experiences were simply the reduction in anxiety that co...

Have you ever wondered if worry was a sin? If you have, it's probably because a lot of people genuinely think it is. In fact, they often cite increased faith and/or prayer as the perfect antidotes to worry. 

However, for people with Scrupulosity/Religious Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), believing that worry is sinful can be incredibly harmful, not only because OCD sufferers don't have control over which worries come i...

If you have Scrupulosity/Religious Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) there's a big chance you may have had difficulty deciphering whether or not the religious behaviors you participate in are because of your faith, or because your OCD is talking.

For example, you may feel an overwhelming need to repent for a sin you committed, but you are unsure whether that is because you actually made a mistake, or your OCD wants you to fin...

When I asked my followers what they wanted to hear me speak about on a podcast episode, they said "How to manage the everyday exhaustion of intrusive thoughts." And if you have OCD, you know that if you had to pick one adjective to describe living with the disorder, "exhausting" would be near the top of the list!

In this episode, we talk about what everyday life dealing with OCD intrusive thoughts can look like a...

Scrupulosity Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is already complicated enough before you consider that it isn't much of a stretch for the OCD sufferer to develop complicated feelings towards their faith.

In my journey with Scrupulosity OCD, I've asked myself questions like:
- If I wasn't raised in a religious household, would I still have developed OCD?
- Is it worth it to remain an active member of my re...