Child OCD vs Autism: Understanding the Key Differences

AT Parenting Survival Podcast: Parenting | Child Anxiety | Child OCD | Kids & Family

Natasha Daniels: Child Therapist, Child Anxiety and OCD Expert, Parenting Coach and Parent

Parenting, Ocd Therapy, Ocd In Children, Ocd, Anxiety, Child Anxiety, Child Ocd, Kids & Family, Mental Health, Education, Health & Fitness, Self-improvement

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 27 May 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Is it autism or OCD? Sometimes the behaviors can look so similar, it’s hard to tell. In this episode of the AT Parenting Survival Podcast, I break down the key differences between autism and child OCD — and why understanding the distinction is crucial for getting the right support.

You’ll learn:

Why repetitive behaviors show up in both autism and OCD (but for very different reasons)
How motivation, awareness, and sensory issues help differentiate the two
Why misdiagnosis can delay effective treatment
What to do if your child has both autism and OCD

If you’re feeling confused or overwhelmed, you’re not alone — and getting clarity is the first step toward helping your child thrive.

To learn more about how to support kids with OCD, regardless of an Autism diagnosis, check out my online course, How to Teach Kids to Crush OCD.

***

This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to

https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:

https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):

https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:

www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:

www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival

http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival

http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival

http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Welcome to the AT Parenting Survival Podcast, where you get help and guidance through the chaos of parenting a child with anxiety or OCD.
0:12.0	This show is for educational purposes and is not intended to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.
0:18.5	Here's your host, child therapist, Natasha Daniels. Well, hello there,
0:23.2	and welcome to another episode of the AT Parenting Survile Podcast. Today, I want to talk to you
0:28.7	about a question that I get so often, which is, what is the difference between childhood OCD and autism? What is autism versus what is OCD?
0:43.7	Understanding the differences is really important because a lot of children, teens, young adults, humans in general, have both things going on.
0:56.7	And you're going to approach them differently.
1:03.6	So understanding the difference between OCD and autism is really critical for so many of us raising kids with anxiety and OCD and that they're autistic. So we're going to dive into that
1:09.4	today, talk about why there is some
1:12.4	overlap, why they look similar, how to tell the differences between them, and then what do you
1:17.4	do about it? Because it's always at the end of the day, okay, what do I do about it? Before we jump in,
1:23.2	I do want to thank No CD for sponsoring this episode. NoCD offers affordable, effective,
1:28.4	convenient therapy, and they're available in the U.S. and outside the U.S.
1:32.1	You can schedule your free 15-minute consultation to see if no CD is a right fit for you and your
1:38.2	child. Just go to treat myocd.com. That is treat myoced.com. I'll leave a link in the show notes as well.
1:46.2	So let's jump into today's topic. I have so many parents in my AT parenting community who have
1:52.7	autistic children that are also struggling with anxiety and OCD. And specific to OCD, it's vastly different. And it can be confusing. And you can be getting
2:06.1	conflicting information from therapists when you're dealing with a therapist that specializes in
2:12.0	autism versus a therapist that specializes in OCD. And it's really rare to find one that can specialize in both.
2:20.2	I did have a podcast interview where I talked to Dr. Rebecca Sacks, who is one of the only
2:26.0	therapist that I know that is very well versed in both arenas. You can check out that podcast
2:32.5	episode. That was episode 219. But if you go to my website
	...

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