Chapter 3
Is scrupulosity more common in Latter-day Saints than people of other faiths?
NO
Common obsessions in Latter-day Saint young adults
Feeling of being unworthy or not having enough faith
Need to acquire absolute certainty about religious beliefs
Fear of breaking the law of chastity
Fear of being gay
Fears related to having found the right romantic partner
Hey, Claire, I worry about this stuff. Do I have OCD?
→ How different are your concerns from similarly situation peers in your community?
→ What can we learn about your symptoms from evidence-based psychological assessments like the Y-BOCS and PIOS-R?
→ Do you have a family history of OCD or related anxiety disorders?
→ How disruptive are these symptoms in your life? To what extent are you performing compulsive behaviors? How much are they affecting your functioning?
Common compulsions in Latter-day Saint populations
Excessive need to confess to ecclesiastical leaders, parents or partners
Ongoing and repeated need to seek reassurance from ecclesiastical leaders or loved ones
Excessive or repeated prayer
Scanning for level of faithfulness, certainty of beliefs
Mental efforts to neutralize, erase, replace or otherwise control “bad” thoughts
Avoidance triggers believed to be inappropriate though widely considered acceptable by peers
Common comorbidities
- Almost everyone with scrupulosity experiences other OCD themes, including:
- Relationship OCD
- Perfectionism
- Real event/false memory
- Identity obsessions (eg: sexual orientation or gender identity)
- Contamination
- Harm obsessions
- Sexual obsessions