Neurodivergence comes in all shapes, sizes, genders, colors, and vibes. IT’S EVERYWHERE!!!! AHHHHH sorry, got carried away again… anyway, neurodivergence isn’t just autism; it’s a whole massive umbrella. It covers ADHD, dyslexia, and many other beautiful brain types, but today we’re diving deeper into those three specific letters: O-C-D.

What exactly is it? OCD stands for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. In simple terms, it means a person has a brain that likes to hit the replay button constantly. It creates a repetitive nature where the brain gets stuck on a loop. This can look like counting, organizing things until they’re just right, or creating secret patterns for… well, everything!

I have OCD, and my magic number is three. Everything I do has to happen in threes. It’s like a rhythm my brain needs to feel safe. And honestly? OCD is nothing to be scared of. It just makes you unique and awesome! It’s like having a brain that operates on a different operating system, maybe a bit more complex, but definitely high-powered.

I first noticed my quirks back in the 2nd grade, maybe even earlier. Back in the 90s, neurodivergence wasn’t a buzzword. People didn’t really have the vocabulary for it, so they didn’t know how to handle it or even that it was a thing. I just navigated the world with my patterns and my counts, living with it all the way into my mid 20s before I really understood what was happening in my head.

OCD isn’t just about tapping tables or counting steps, it can also show up as obsessive fear. Someone might be convinced their house is haunted by ghosts even when everything is perfectly normal. The brain may even play the what if game. It picks a scary scenario and refuses to let it go.

I deal with this too! My big fear? Jail. Anything involving jail sends my brain into a spiral. But here’s the secret: I never let it win. I know my worth, and I know yours too. Having these thoughts doesn’t make you weird, it just means your brain is a little too good at imagining things. You’ve got the power to talk back to those fears! The more we talk about these things  the less power they have over us. We’re all in this together, navigating our colorful, loud, repetitive brains.

Since we’re embracing our unique brains, let’s talk about the positives too. Having a brain that’s wired for repetition and patterns isn’t always a burden, it can actually give you some pretty cool advantages in life. Because we are so attuned to patterns, we often notice the tiny details that others miss. Whether it’s a typo in a document, a slightly crooked frame, or a subtle change in someone’s mood, our brains are like high definition scanners! Additionally, when an obsession turns toward something productive, like a hobby, a project, or learning a new skill, we can become absolute experts. That looping nature of the brain means we don’t just learn something, we master it. It can even benefit our reliability. Many people with OCD develop strict routines. If you have a pattern for getting things done, you’re often the most organized and dependable person in the room.