OCD consists of intrusive thoughts and obsessions that cause distress, prompting sufferers to perform compulsions to alleviate anxiety which paradoxically reinforces the need for those compulsions.

“for the OCD sufferer these thoughts get very sticky and they cause us great distress unlike the non-sufferers we we resort to compulsions and compulsion could be anything it could be touching or tapping or thinking through certain problems or whatever the compulsion uh doesn't matter”

Engaging in compulsive actions reinforces and strengthens the underlying obsessions rather than providing meaningful relief.

“And the compulsions unlike other sorts of behaviors provide brief relief to the obsession but then very quickly reinforce or strengthen the obsession.”

OCD is characterized by intrusive thoughts and repetitive compulsions that interfere with a person's daily life, distinguishing it from mere habits or routines.

“what starts making it OCD is if you get this like anxiety from not washing your hands or you have these intrusive thoughts that are telling you you're going to get sick or you're going to die because you're not washing your hands that's when it starts becoming OCD”

Compulsive behaviors are ineffective strategies that eventually become isolating and paralyzing.

“And the problem is that over time those strategies that you develop, those compulsive behaviors you develop to try to deal with these obsessive thoughts, they they become quite isolating at times quite paralyzing and overwhelming on their own as well.”

He claims that his obsessive-compulsive disorder made him feel like he was constantly struggling against himself and forced him to engage in rituals to cope with his fears.

“it was basically I couldn't almost do I couldn't do anything really it was just that's all I did”

Safety culture can be exploited by individuals to mask a desire for control and to signal moral superiority.

“the problem is that it can be gamed by people who want to exert power and who can use their putative moral superiority as a justification and I do think that this is this is a kind of epidemic.”

A culture of germophobia and an obsession with total safety makes society less safe, not more.

“well, it seems to me that a safety culture, all things considered, probably makes us globally less safe, but that seems particularly the case uh in relationship, let's say, to germophobic safety culture given what happened in the pandemic.”