Once upon a time, there was a woman named Katie who was an engineer at one of the biggest tech companies in the world. She was smart, talented, and had a passion for technology. But she also had a secret that she kept from everyone at work.
Katie suffered from OCD.
Every day, Katie would have intrusive thoughts that would take over her mind and disrupt her work. She was afraid that if she made a mistake, something terrible would happen. This fear of making a mistake was so overwhelming that she would spend hours checking her work, making sure every line of code was perfect.
Her colleagues would often tease her about her meticulous nature, but they had no idea of the struggles she faced. They thought she was just a perfectionist, but little did they know, it was a battle for Katie to keep her OCD under control.
One day, Katie was working on a critical project on a tight deadline with her team. As the deadline approached, her intrusive thoughts became more frequent and intense.
“What if I made a mistake?”
“Maybe I put an error in the code on purpose.”
“I can’t trust myself.”
“The entire company will go bankrupt because of me.”
Katie was so focused on checking her work that she couldn’t keep up with the pace of the team. Her team members started to get frustrated with her, thinking she was slowing them down.
But Katie couldn’t help it. She needed to check and recheck her work to make sure it was perfect. It was a never-ending cycle that consumed her thoughts and time. She was scared to tell her team about her OCD, so she just pushed through, trying to ignore the intrusive thoughts and hoping no one would notice.
However, the stress of trying to keep up with the team and battling her OCD began to take a toll on her. She started to feel burnt out and her personal life suffered as well. She was unable to relax or enjoy her free time because her mind was constantly racing with intrusive thoughts.
But as the pressure mounted, Katie’s body started to respond in a negative way. She felt more vulnerable and her intrusive thoughts became even more intense. She was struggling to keep up with the pace of the team and the stress was taking a toll on her both physically and mentally.
It wasn’t until Katie got sick that one of her colleagues finally asked her if she was okay. It was then that she decided to mention something about her condition. Her colleague was understanding and recommended that she go to therapy, but unfortunately, she couldn’t find an appointment before the project deadline.
Desperate for help, her colleague reached out to a friend who was a clinical psychologist. The psychologist recommended using an evidence-based app as a temporary solution. Despite her initial skepticism, Katie decided to give it a try.
To nobody’s surprise, the app couldn’t help Katie and her team complete the project on time. But it helped Katie feel more understood. It allowed her to take a closer look at her negative thinking process. She was able to debunk some of her maladaptive beliefs and develop a better understanding of her OCD.
Although it wasn’t a cure, the app was a step in the right direction and gave Katie hope that she could manage her OCD and find a better work-life balance.