Christian Faith and OCD, Scrupulosity, Intrusive Thoughts, Compulsions, ICBT

Carrie welcomes back John Bennett from Episode 76 for a powerful conversation about how a multiple myeloma diagnosis in 2019 has shaped his faith, perspective on heaven, and daily purpose, with encouragement for anyone walking a long road of suffering.

Episode Highlights:

What John discovered when he stopped fighting his diagnosis and chose to embrace it instead.

How to keep going when OCD, anxiety, or suffering feels like a long-term battle.

Why focusing on today can bring more peace and reduce anxiety

How acceptance can help you walk with God in the middle of pain

What it looks like to find purpose and live out your faith even with limitations or ongoing struggles

How God uses suffering to build endurance, deepen your faith, and remind you that your healing story isn’t finished yet

How suffering that never fully goes away can still become one of the greatest gifts in your life.

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
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Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In this episode, Carrie dives into why salvation doubts can feel so real for Christians with scrupulosity and how OCD can pull believers into convincing fear-based stories about their faith.

Episode Highlights:

Why salvation doubts can be common among Christians
How scrupulosity creates fear-based faith narratives
The difference between grace based salvation and works based thinking
Spiritual seasons and why feelings of closeness with God change
Understanding the OCD bubble through Inference-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (ICBT)

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In this episode, Carrie welcomes returning guest Michael Kheir, author of Waging War Against OCD, to discuss forgiveness, repentance, and how Christians with OCD can break free from cycles of fear and guilt in their relationship with God.

Episode Highlight:

How scrupulosity twists the meaning of repentance and confession 

The difference between Holy Spirit conviction and OCD condemnation 

Why obsessive confession often comes from fear rather than faith 

How understanding justification vs. sanctification changes the way we view our sin 

What the fruit of the Spirit can teach us about recognizing God's voice
How to stop confessing sins that God has already forgiven

Connect with Michael Kheir: wagingwaragainstocd.com

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In this episode, Carrie explores how scrupulosity can quietly turn Scripture into fear and pressure while offering a more peaceful, grace-filled way to reconnect with God’s Word.

Episode Highlights:

Why Scripture can feel triggering when you struggle with scrupulosity

How shame cycles form around Bible avoidance

Simple ways to begin reading again without pressure

Why understanding everything isn’t required for spiritual growth

How rigid beliefs about Bible reading can fuel OCD

Practical ways to reconnect with God’s Word in peace

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In this episode, Carrie continues exploring why scrupulosity can feel so layered and difficult to untangle. She examines the hidden fears, spiritual experiences, and beliefs about God that may be quietly fueling the struggle.

Episode Highlights:

How scrupulosity often attaches itself to other OCD themes

What it means to identify the “primary obsessional doubt” beneath the surface

Why theology and personal history both matter in recovery

How early relationships can shape your view of God

Why healing may require examining both belief systems and identity

What it looks like to move from an identity rooted in fear to one rooted in being loved

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

As we continue the Scrupulosity Series, Carrie unpacks the hidden layers that make religious OCD uniquely complex, especially when spiritual doubt, fear of sin, and confusion about God’s character get tangled in the OCD cycle.

Episode Highlights:

Why scrupulosity (religious OCD) is more complex than other OCD themes and why it often feels harder to treat

How church culture and biblical counseling can unintentionally reinforce the OCD cycle

Why reassurance about salvation, sin, or blasphemy can actually make scrupulosity worse

How mental health stigma in Christian spaces delays proper OCD treatment

The difference between intrusive thoughts, temptation, and actual sin from a biblical perspective

How black-and-white theology and fear-based thinking keep religious OCD stuck

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

We’re kicking off the Scrupulosity Series by starting at the foundation, God’s love.

In this episode, Carrie explores how shame, church hurt, and feelings of unworthiness can cloud our view of Him, and how Scripture invites us to receive the steady, unchanging love of Christ that nothing can take away.
Episode Highlights:

How scrupulosity distorts your view of God’s character and keeps you stuck in fear

Why embracing God’s love is foundational to healing from religious OCD

Common reasons we reject God’s love, including church hurt and shame

The difference between accepting God’s forgiveness and compulsively seeking reassurance

Practical ways to notice evidence of God’s love in everyday life

How speaking Scripture daily can help renew your mind and strengthen your identity in Christ

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In this episode, Carrie sits down with Nathan Clarkson, an actor, author, and podcast host, to talk about how scrupulosity, guilt, and contamination fears shaped his faith and how grace slowly rewrote that story.

Episode Highlights:

• Nathan’s early experience with OCD and how it shaped his faith
• How contamination OCD and scrupulosity often intertwine
• Why OCD creates a distorted, harsh view of God
• The difference between OCD guilt and true conviction
• What it means to accept God’s forgiveness—even when it doesn’t feel true
• How healing can grow in small, almost unnoticed steps when you walk with God and safe people
• Nathan’s book I’m the Worst

https://www.amazon.com/Im-Worst-Freedom-Admitting-Faults/dp/0825449871

Connect with Nathan: 

Instagram: @nathanjclarkson

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

Carrie explores three common objections to Inference-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (ICBT) and explains why OCD treatment is not one-size-fits-all. 

Episode Highlights:

Why OCD treatment is not one-size-fits-all and must be tailored to the whole person


How ICBT addresses the unique reasoning process behind OCD obsessions


Why struggling with OCD does not mean you’ve lost the ability to think or reason well


The difference between obsessional reasoning and everyday, present-moment reasoning


How trusting sensory data can help break free from “what if” thinking


Why ICBT is not about arguing with OCD, but expanding beyond its narrow story


How faith, identity in Christ, and ICBT work together to bring hope—especially for scrupulosity

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks. 

In today’s episode, Carrie sits down with Heather O’Brien—minister, author, speaker, and host of the Heal With God podcast—to discuss how to discern God’s voice when OCD and scrupulosity create fear and confusion.

Episode Highlights:

How Scripture and the Holy Spirit work together to bring clarity and peace

Why you don’t have to be afraid of “missing” God’s will in everyday decisions

What it looks like to break agreement with lies and replace them with God’s truth

Why God’s guidance produces peace, not pressure, urgency, or shame

How Christian community can support healthy spiritual discernment

Connect with Heather O'Brien:

https://calledtopriesthood.com/

https://heatherobrien.net/

Explore the Empowered Mind: Christian ICBT for OCD: https://carriebock.com/training/ 

Carrie's services and courses: carriebock.com/services/
                                                       carriebock.com/resources/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/christianfaithandocd/
and like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/christianfaithandocd for the latest updates and sneak peeks.