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Therapy in a Nutshell

Harm OCD - Intrusive Thoughts that I Might Hurt Someone

Therapy in a Nutshell

Therapy in a Nutshell -Emma McAdam

Mental Health, Health & Fitness, Education, Health & Fitness:mental Health, Self-improvement

4.8657 Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

It’s normal that intrusive thoughts are about things that you consider “Bad” but just having a thought won’t hurt you and it doesn’t mean you’re dangerous. Harm OCD is common. Learn the skills to Regulate your Emotions, join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership Course on Managing Intrusive thoughts: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/managing-intrusive-thoughts FREE Clarify Your Values Workbook: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/opt-in-2123fb37-7322-4208-a65a-2b135a653d47 Full interview w/ Dr. Green: https://youtu.be/AyXMt89_M9g Are your intrusive thoughts so intense or disturbing that they feel dangerous? You're not alone. In this video, we break down what these dangerous thoughts really mean, especially in the context of OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) and anxiety. Harm OCD is the specific thoughts that you might hurt someone. You might think "I'm afraid I'm going to hurt my child". Learn the difference between intrusive thoughts and real desires, and why your brain targets the things you care most about. Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), you'll discover practical tools like defusion, exposure, and how to stop doing safety behaviors that make negative thoughts stickier. These strategies help retrain your brain to see thoughts for what they are—just thoughts. If you’re struggling with scary, unwanted thoughts and feel trapped in the OCD cycle, this video offers clarity, compassion, and a path forward. #IntrusiveThoughts #ocd Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell Learn more in one of my in-depth mental health courses: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com Support my mission on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/therapyinanutshell Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.therapyinanutshell.com Check out my favorite self-help books: https://kit.co/TherapyinaNutshell/best-self-help-books  Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health. In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger Institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction. And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services. Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC

Transcript

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0:00.0

Welcome back to another episode of the Therapy in a Nutshell podcast. I'm Emma McAdam and I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist.

0:07.0

And this podcast is all about taking the life-changing, but usually kind of complicated topics of therapy and boiling them down into simple, easy-to-understand concepts that you can use in your daily life.

0:19.0

If you find today's episode as helpful to you,

0:21.0

please pass it on to someone else who could benefit from it as well. Each podcast episode

0:24.8

comes from a corresponding video you can find on the Therapy in a Nutshell YouTube channel.

0:29.2

Also, these podcasts are educational and don't replace the advice or direction you may be receiving

0:34.1

from a therapist or other health professionals. Now please enjoy the episode.

0:38.9

But what if my intrusive thoughts are dangerous? This is the question someone asked after I

0:43.2

published a video teaching a skill called cognitive diffusion. This is an important skill for dealing

0:48.0

with intrusive thoughts. You take these annoying, repetitive, unhelpful thoughts and you just

0:53.9

create a little space between

0:55.4

you and your brain. You can thank your brain for the thought or just say, oh, there's my word

1:00.2

machine, making words again. Now, that's a great strategy. I'm a good job. But what if those

1:06.5

thoughts are so threatening that you can't ignore them? Like, what if my thoughts tell me that I might

1:12.1

hurt myself or someone else or I might assault someone? I mean, sure, this person says,

1:18.8

maybe I could ignore a thought that says, I'm a bad person, but I can't ignore the thought that

1:25.4

says, what if someone comes in the kitchen while I'm making dinner

1:28.6

and I stab them with this knife?

1:31.3

Okay, I think a lot of people wonder this,

1:33.8

especially people with OCD,

1:35.3

what if my thoughts are different?

1:37.2

What of mine are actually dangerous?

...

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