Stuck in the Loop: Overthinking, Reassurance-Seeking and Checking

You send the text, then reread it and then maybe reread it again. You lock the door, walk away, and suddenly wonder if you actually locked it. You have a thought you hate, then spend the next hour trying to prove it means nothing. You ask for reassurance, feel better for a minute, and then the doubt comes back in a slightly different way, demanding even more reassurance.

If this sounds familiar, you may not think of it as OCD. You may call it overthinking, anxiety, spiraling, perfectionism, relationship stress, health anxiety, or being “too in your head.”