Written and clinically reviewed By Dr Elaine Ryan Chartered Psychologist specialising in OCD and anxiety disorders, with over 20 years’ clinical experience.
Dr Elaine RyanWhen “homosexual OCD” searches become part of the problem If you’ve typed “Am I gay?” into Google at 2am and ended up here, I want to say something gently but clearly: This page won’t give you certainty about your sexual orientation — because certainty-seeking is often the compulsion that keeps HOCD going. What I can do is help you … Read more
If you have been diagnosed with OCD and your obsessions focus on your sexual orientation, you probably have come across Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) in your quest to get better. In today’s articles I want to show you some ERP examples for HOCD that you can try by yourself, or in conjunction with your … Read more
When people first discover the term HOCD, it’s often after weeks or months of searching for an explanation for distressing thoughts that seem to appear from nowhere. You might find yourself asking endless questions about what these thoughts mean — Does this mean I’m gay? Does it mean I’ve been in denial? Why can’t I stop thinking … Read more
If you’re here because thoughts about your sexual orientation won’t leave you alone, let’s slow everything down for a moment. I’m not here to label you. I’m here to help you notice a pattern. When OCD latches onto identity, it isn’t gentle; it demands certainty you can’t realistically give. Once you can see the loop, … Read more
If you’ve arrived on this page as you’re frightened of the thoughts you keep getting such as “What if I’m not straight?” or “What if I’m gay and I’ve been lying to myself?”—and you find you keep checking how you feel, replaying memories, or comparing yourself to others—I’m going to help you stand back and explain to you … Read more
Growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, I became very aware of how culture and a sense of “otherness” shape identity. That background often comes to mind in my work with people experiencing HOCD (Homosexual OCD), because intrusive thoughts about sexuality never happen in a vacuum. They’re filtered through culture, family background, religion and personal … Read more