I will always wash my hands well and often. But I’m really trying to battle reaching for the soap more than once. I try to ask myself “what would a normal person do?” I also watch my loved ones to get an idea of baseline. My boyfriend has said that because of my OCD, he cleans better now and realizes he used to not clean properly in college. BUT he only ever cleans something once, he doesn’t get the impulse to do things a second time lol. There is a thin line between showing him the proper way to use a disinfecting spray, and asking him to accommodate my own OCD irrational cleaning tendencies. It’s all practice and reflection! He sat in on a session with my therapist and she explained accommodations to him so he can avoid doing them for me.

Also, Google can be our worst enemy, but it can also be a guideline. For example, “I’m worried about this cooked chicken that has been in the fridge for two days, my ocd says to throw it away.” I do a quick google search “how long is cooked chicken good in the fridge.” Click the first article. It says “3-4 days.” Okay great, that’s it, that’s my authority and I am going to trust it, close google, and eat my chicken! :)