The 5 Zones of OCD

At any given moment in time, there is a power balance between your child and the OCD Terrorist. I find it helpful to think about different OCD Zones.

In the BLUE OCD ZONE, your child is completely in charge. It’s as if OCD went into a deep sleep.

In the GREEN OCD ZONE, your child has just waged a war on OCD and triumphed.  They recognized the obsessive thought for what it was , resisted the urge to perform the compulsion and lived through their anxiety and discomfort. 

In the YELLOW OCD ZONE, your child has the awareness that a thought COULD be OCD, but they’re not sure.  I often got calls from my son that went something like this, “I have a thought and I’m not sure if it’s real or it’s OCD.” Almost every time he asked the question he was right.  

In the ORANGE OCD ZONE, your child and your child’s OCD are wrestling for power. Part of our child’s awareness includes the possibility that this is most likely an obsessive thought, but the OCD may be very cunning. My son’s OCD says “This time it’s different. I’m telling you the truth.” Your child might be sleepwalking through OCD Land. 

When your child is in the RED OCD ZONE, OCD has taken complete control. Your child is in the midst of their OCD nightmare, and they're asleep to their reality.

In any moment in time, your child is in one of these zones. However, they can shift zones in the  course of minutes. The goal is always to help them spend more time in the BLUE and GREEN and Yellow Zones and less time in the RED and ORANGE Zones.

Connect with Dr. Vicki Rackner:

• Website: FreeMeFromOCD.org
• Social Media: Follow Dr. Rackner on Instagram and Facebook for more insights and resources on managing OCD.