There are two parts of OCD: the obsessive and the compulsive, and each can manifest in completely different ways. Personally, I’m confronted primarily with the obsessive part. Sometimes it’s is as simple as checking the locks in my apartment, which is in line with other stereotypical depictions of OCD, like obsessively turning light switches on and off to “prevent” bad things from happening. But mostly, for me, struggling with the “O” in “OCD” means that when a scary, irrational thought enters my head, instead of letting it go, I latch onto it. Typically, it evolves; the bad thought can spiral into an image I can’t shake. I obsess. For some people who struggle with this, they can’t get rid of the thought that they might be ill, or that they’re going to be hurt in a violent situation. In my case, thoughts that something bad might happen to someone I love seep into my head, and if I can’t stop those thoughts and get rid of them, they disruptively blossom.