Pure obsessional obsessive-compulsive disorder, or “Pure O” OCD, is a subtype of OCD that is characterized by intrusive thoughts, images, or urges without any visible symptoms. These “hidden compulsions” can include constant reassurance seeking, obsessive regret or worry, and may involve avoidance, excessive preparation, and thought rituals. They can also cloud your judgement, causing you to make decisions based on fears and compulsions instead of your values. So, how do you break this obsessive cycle?
Grounded in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and written by a renowned ACT and anxiety expert, “Pure O” OCD explains the cognitive fusion underlying your obsessive thoughts, and how it can lead to social anxiety, not feeling good enough, panics and phobias, and even other disorders-which then reinforce the fusion in an unhelpful, positive feedback loop. Using the five skills in this book-labeling, letting go, mindfulness, purpose, and acceptance-you’ll learn how to finally break free of the struggle, worrying, and avoidance that keep you stuck.
With practice, you’ll find that you can counter your anxiety and obsessive thoughts with your own, values-based narrative, and learn how to better accept your thoughts and feelings, so that you can proceed freely and purposefully toward a life that reflects what matters most to you.

Do You Worry All the Time?
Have you tried to control your thoughts and get your worrying under control? Did it work? If it didn’t, try this simple exercise: Take thirty seconds, right here and now, and don’t think about something you recently worried about. Think about anything and everything else, but don’t think about that worry.
How did you do? Like most of us, you probably could think of little else except whatever it was you worried about, no matter how hard you tried. This is the problem with trying to control your thoughts: Your attempts to stop worrying very often lead you to repeat and refresh the very worries you’re trying to dispel.
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a revolutionary new approach to resolving a wide range of psychological problems, can help you break the cycle of chronic worry. ACT stresses letting go of your attempts to avoid, change, and get rid of worry. Instead, it shows you how to accept your feelings as they occur, without judgment. You’ll learn to “de-fuse” from your worries, observing and then letting them go. Then you’ll explore and commit to acting on your values, thereby creating a rich life for yourself-even with the occasional worry.