Type | Obsessions | Examples |
Aggression | I fear I might harm myself | Fear of eating with a knife or fork |
Aggression | I fear I might harm myself | Fear of handling sharp objects |
Aggression | I fear I might harm myself | Fear of walking near glass windows |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of poisoning other people’s food |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of harming babies |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of pushing someone in front of a train |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of hurting someone’s feelings |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of being responsible by not providing assistance for some imagined catastrophe |
Aggression | I fear I might harm other people | Fear of causing harm by giving bad advice. |
Aggression | I have violent or horrific images in my mind | Images of murder |
Aggression | I have violent or horrific images in my mind | Images of dismembered bodies |
Aggression | I have violent or horrific images in my mind | Images of other disgusting scenes |
Aggression | I fear I will blurt out obscenities | Fear of shouting obscenities in public situations like church, temple |
Aggression | I fear I will blurt out obscenities | Fear of shouting obscenities in public places like cinema theatres, malls |
Aggression | I fear I will blurt out obscenities | Fear of writing obscenities |
Aggression | I fear doing something embarrassing | Fear of appearing foolish in social situations |
Aggression | I fear I will act on an unwanted impulse | Fear of driving a car into a tree |
Aggression | I fear I will act on an unwanted impulse | Fear of running someone over |
Aggression | I fear I will act on an unwanted impulse | Fear of stabbing a friend |
Aggression | I fear I will steal things | Fear of ‘cheating’ a cashier |
Aggression | I fear I will steal things | Fear of shoplifting inexpensive items |
Aggression | I fear that I’ll harm others because I’m not careful enough | Fear of causing an accident without being aware of it (such as a hit-and-run accident) |
Aggression | I fear I’ll be responsible for something else terrible happening. | Fear of causing a fire or burglary because of not being careful enough in checking the house before leaving |
Contamination | I am concerned or disgusted with bodily waste or secretions | Fear of contracting AIDS, cancer, or other diseases from public rest rooms |
Contamination | I am concerned or disgusted with bodily waste or secretions | Fear of your own saliva, urine, feces, semen, or vaginal secretions |
Contamination | I am concerned with dirt or germs | Fear of picking up germs from sitting in certain chairs |
Contamination | I am concerned with dirt or germs | Fear of picking up germs from shaking hands |
Contamination | I am concerned with dirt or germs | Fear of picking up germs from touching door handles |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with environmental contaminants | Fear of being contaminated by asbestos or radon |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with environmental contaminants | Fear of radioactive substances |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with environmental contaminants | Fear of things associated with towns containing toxic waste sights |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with certain household cleansers | Fear of poisonous kitchen or bathroom cleansers |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with certain household cleansers | Fear of poisonous solvents |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with certain household cleansers | Fear of poisonous insect spray |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with certain household cleansers | Fear of poisonous turpentine |
Contamination | I am excessively concerned with animals | Fear of being contaminated by touching an insect, dog, cat, or other animal |
Contamination | I am bothered by sticky substances or residues | Fear of adhesive tape or other sticky substances that may trap contaminants |
Contamination | I am concerned that I will get ill because of contamination | Fear of getting ill as a direct result of being contaminated |
Contamination | I am concerned that I will contaminate others | Fear of touching other people after you touch poisonous substances (like gasoline) or after you touch your own body |
Contamination | I am concerned that I will contaminate others | Fear of preparing food after you touch poisonous substances (like gasoline) or after you touch your own body |
Sexual | I have forbidden or perverse sexual thoughts, images, or impulses | Unwanted sexual thoughts about strangers, family, or friends |
Sexual | I have sexual obsessions that involve children or incest | Unwanted thoughts about sexually molesting either your own children or other children |
Sexual | I have obsessions about homosexuality | Worries like ‘Am I a homosexual?’ or ‘What if I suddenly become gay?’ |
Sexual | I have obsessions about aggressive sexual behavior toward other people | Unwanted images of violent sexual behavior toward adult strangers, friends, or family members |
Hoarding | I have obsessions about hoarding or saving things | Worries about throwing away seemingly unimportant things that you might need in the future |
Hoarding | I have obsessions about hoarding or saving things | Urges to pick up and collect useless things |
Religious | I am concerned with sacrilege and blasphemy | Worries about having blasphemous thoughts |
Religious | I am concerned with sacrilege and blasphemy | Worries about saying blasphemous things |
Religious | I am concerned with sacrilege and blasphemy | Worries about being punished for blasphemy |
Religious | I am excessively concerned with morality | Worries about always doing ‘the right thing,’ |
Religious | I am excessively concerned with morality | Worries about having told a lie |
Religious | I am excessively concerned with morality | Worries about having cheated someone |
Need for Symmetry or Exactness | I have obsessions about symmetry or exactness | Worries about papers and books being properly aligned |
Need for Symmetry or Exactness | I have obsessions about symmetry or exactness | Worries about calculations being perfect |
Need for Symmetry or Exactness | I have obsessions about symmetry or exactness | Worries about handwriting being perfect |
Miscellaneous | I feel that I need to know or remember certain things | Belief that you need to remember license plate numbers |
Miscellaneous | I feel that I need to know or remember certain things | Belief that you need to remember the names of actors on television shows |
Miscellaneous | I feel that I need to know or remember certain things | Belief that you need to remember old telephone numbers |
Miscellaneous | I feel that I need to know or remember certain things | Belief that you need to remember bumper stickers |
Miscellaneous | I feel that I need to know or remember certain things | Belief that you need to remember t-shirt slogans |
Miscellaneous | I fear saying certain things | Fear of saying certain words (such as ‘thirteen’) because of superstitions |
Miscellaneous | I fear saying certain things | Fear of saying something that might be disrespectful to a dead person |
Miscellaneous | I fear saying certain things | Fear of using words with an apostrophe (because this denotes possession) |
Miscellaneous | I fear not saying just the right thing | Fear of having said the wrong thing |
Miscellaneous | I fear not saying just the right thing | Fear of not using the ‘perfect’ word |
Miscellaneous | I fear losing things | Worries about losing a wallet or other unimportant objects, like a scrap of note paper |
Miscellaneous | I am bothered by intrusive (neutral) mental images | Random, unwanted images in your mind |
Miscellaneous | I am bothered by intrusive mental nonsense sounds, words or music | Words, songs, or music in your mind that you can’t stop |
Miscellaneous | I am bothered by certain sounds or noises | Worries about the sounds of clocks ticking loudly or voices in another room that may interfere with sleeping |
Miscellaneous | I have lucky and unlucky numbers | Worries about common numbers (like thirteen) that may cause you to perform activities a certain number of times |
Miscellaneous | I have lucky and unlucky numbers | Worries about common numbers (like thirteen) that may cause you to postpone an action until a certain lucky hour of the day |
Miscellaneous | Certain colors have special significance to me | Fear of using objects of certain colors (e.g. black may be associated with death, red with blood or injury) |
Miscellaneous | I have superstitious fears | Fear of passing a cemetery, hearse, or black cat |
Miscellaneous | I have superstitious fears | Fear of omens associated with death |
Somatic | I am concerned with illness or disease | Worries that you have an illness like cancer, heart disease or AIDS, despite reassurance from doctors that you do not |
Somatic | I am excessively concerned with a part of my body or an aspect of my appearance (dysmorphophobia) | Worries that your face, ears, nose, eyes, or another part of your body is hideous, ugly, despite reassurances to the contrary |
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