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Learn about how to treat Just Right OCD with ERP

The Carson Center - Paducah, KY

← Resources ← Types of OCD ← Just Right OCD

Just Right OCD: When Things Feel Wrong, Uneven, or Incomplete

Many people think OCD is always about germs, checking, or straightening up pillows on the couch. But for some people, OCD is less about fear and more about a powerful feeling that something is simply...

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  • Not right

  • Not straight enough

  • Not even enough

  • Not symmetrical enough

  • Not complete enough

 

At River City OCD Clinic, our OCD therapists in Louisville often describe Just Right OCD as a subtype in which the obsession is not necessarily a specific danger, but a profound sense of discomfort, incompleteness, or wrongness that demands correction.

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Just Right OCD is one of many OCD subtypes treated with Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), the gold-standard treatment for OCD. No matter the content of an obsessional theme, the underlying mechanisms that maintain OCD are always the same.​

Our therapists in Louisville use Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) to treat Just Righ OCD and all other OCD subtypes.​​

What Is Just Right OCD?

Jon Hershfield describes Just Right OCD as being driven by the feeling that something is not precisely as it should be.

 

Common triggers may include:

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  • Objects that feel asymmetrical

  • Clothing that feels uneven

  • A routine that was completed "incorrectly" or out of order

  • Items that seem out of place

  • Physical sensations that feel off

  • Movements that feel unfinished

  • Sounds, words, or numbers that don't feel complete

 

Researchers often refer to these experiences as Not Just Right Experiences (NJREs), intense feelings that something is incomplete, imperfect, or out of alignment even when no objective problem exists. Importantly, many people with Just Right OCD know logically that nothing is actually wrong. The problem is that it feels wrong. And OCD treats that feeling like an emergency.​

OCD doesn't look the same for everyone. While the underlying cycle is similar, OCD can attach itself to many different fears, themes, and life experiences.

"It Doesn't Feel Right"

One of the most confusing parts of Just Right OCD is that the distress often comes from a feeling rather than a specific thought.

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Someone may struggle to explain: "I don't know why it bothers me. It just does."

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There may be no clear feared consequence. No obvious catastrophe. Just an overwhelming sense of:

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  • Wrongness 

  • Tension

  • Incompleteness

  • Unease

  • Irritation

  • Discomfort

 

Hershfield notes that emotional reasoning plays a major role in this subtype.

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In other words: "Because it feels wrong, it must be wrong."

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Unfortunately, OCD rarely accepts that answer for long.

The Compulsions Are Often Small, but Powerful

The compulsions associated with Just Right OCD are often deceptively simple. People with Just Right OCD may do any of the following:

 

  • Reposition objects

  • Repeat actions (until they feel just right)

  • Touch things evenly

  • Adjust clothing

  • Rewrite words

  • Re-read sentences

  • Repeat movements

  • Check symmetry

  • Mentally review whether or not something felt right

 

The difficult part is that relief often feels only seconds away. 

 

The person thinks: "If I just fix this one thing, I'll finally be able to move on."

 

Sometimes they can. But OCD quickly finds something else. And the cycle begins again.

The Easy Relief Dilemma in Just Right OCD

The Link Between Just Right OCD and Perfectionism

Just Right OCD and perfectionism often overlap.

 

Both Just Right OCD & perfectionism involve:

 

  • Adherence or obedience to unrelenting high standards

  • Intolerance of mistakes

  • Difficulty accepting imperfection

  • Excessive attention to details

 

But there is an important difference: 

 

  • Perfectionism is often focused on outcomes

  • Just Right OCD is often focused on feelings

 

The goal is not necessarily perfection itself. The goal is achieving a feeling of completeness, balance, or correctness.

 

Unfortunately, feelings are unreliable targets, which is why many people feel trapped chasing them.

Anticipating Just Right OCD's next move

ACT-Enhanced ERP for Just Right OCD

One of the most important goals in treatment is learning how to allow the "off feeling" to exist without immediately fixing it. ​Hershfield describes this as carrying the feeling with you while engaging in something more meaningful. At River City OCD Clinic, we often tell clients: 

 

"The goal is not to feel right. The goal is to live your life even when things don't feel right."

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Our OCD specialists at River City OCD Clinic in Louisville combine ERP with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to improve mental flexibility and help individuals with Just Right OCD accept uncertainty in the service of their values. 

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ACT-Enhanced ERP for Just Right OCD may involve:

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  • Leaving objects slightly crooked

  • Allowing asymmetry

  • Touching one side without touching the other

  • Leaving small tasks unfinished...on purpose!

  • Resisting urges to adjust, fix, or repeat

  • Practicing willingness to have the feeling of incompleteness, so long as it serves one's values

 

Research on NJREs suggests that ERP is most effective when individuals intentionally make contact with the feeling of wrongness and then refrain from correcting it.

 

In other words: Feel it. Notice it. Carry it. Don't obey it.

Hershfield's ACT-Enhanced approach to treating just right OCD

Many people spend years trying to eliminate the "off feeling" produced by Just Right OCD. ACT-Enhanced ERP takes a different approach. ​Instead of asking, "How do I get rid of this feeling?" ACT asks, "What would I be doing if I stopped waiting for this feeling to disappear?"

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That question often becomes the turning point. Meaningful living rarely requires things to feel perfect before we put one foot in front of the other.

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Just Right OCD is one of the most misunderstood forms of OCD. From an outsider's point of view, it may look like someone with OCD is just picky, perfectionistic, or particular. On the inside, however, many people are battling an exhausting sense of incompleteness that constantly demands correction.

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Recovery does not come from finally making everything feel right.

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Recovery comes from learning that the feeling of wrongness can exist, and that your life can move forward anyway.

Services That Target OCD Using Evidence-Based Approaches are Accessible in Kentucky, Indiana, and Many Locations Today

At River City OCD Clinic, our clinicians specialize in ACT-enhanced ERP for OCD, perfectionism, anxiety disorders, PTSD, and OCD-related disorders. We offer individual therapy, group therapy, and intensive outpatient programming (IOP). Telehealth service is provided throughout Kentucky and Indiana by most of our therapy team. Dr. Street Russell can provide telehealth services all states participating in PSYPACT (learn more by visiting Dr. Street Russell's profile page). Dr. Street Russell also provides professional consultation​ for therapists in need of OCD training.

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