I had a great 20 minute coaching call today about anxiety and OCD behavior.

It was interesting to note that the worst case scenario feeling for me, one of the reasons that I do what I do action-wise, is guilt. I don’t want to feel guilty if something goes wrong, someone gets hurt, and/or something happens because I wasn’t vigilant enough in monitoring the physical environment for safety. What I “do” that I think will prevent this feeling is wash my hands over and over, check the environment for danger constantly, check to make sure the door is locked over and over etc…

This strong avoidance of guilt is a childhood holdover. I was yelled at a lot and blamed for things that often were not my fault, but I grew to feel responsible for others – their feelings, safety, etc…. Now I feel overly responsible and am overly cautious in my environment as an adult.

Any suggestions for how to let this go? It feels a lot like simply allowing the urge to do something and letting it be an urge without acting on it. And exploring the feeling of guilt, knowing that it’s just a feeling and not an indicator of my lack of worthiness. Am I on the right track?