Risk aversion evolved to protect us from predators and starvation. But in modern life, those same strategies often backfire. This essay traces the evolutionary roots of risk avoidance, its reinforcement through early family environments, and its expression in obsessive‑compulsive personality styles—revealing how ancient survival tactics undermine meaning, creativity, and desire today.
A recent OCPD diagnosis can feel overwhelming, but change is possible. Using the RAILS framework—Respect yourself, Acknowledge the costs of maladaptive perfectionism, Identify protective strategies, Let go and feel, and Set priorities—you can begin shifting from rigid, unhealthy patterns toward a healthier, more flexible obsessive‑compulsive personality.
Humfrey the Husky dishes out canine wisdom and humorous observations about living with a human who has OCPD, showing how dogs can sniff out our emotional blind spots better than we can. We can all benefit from a dog’s eye view of OCPD.
The metaphor of being taken over in The Matrix is particularly apt for those with obsessive-compulsive personality, which has been compared to a “living machine” because it can be very mechanical. There’s good reason why there are so many stories of machines taking over. And it’s not just about AI and computers. They describe what can, and often does, happen inside of us.
The machine that’s draining your energy is inside of you, not outside.
It takes courage to make a marriage work. The courage to admit you’re wrong. The courage to say you’re right. The courage to take chances in communication, generosity and vulnerability. And most of all, the courage to objectively look at what’s happening emotionally inside of us. This post explores projection and projective identification, two psychological processes that can make or break a relationship.
Ever felt like something was “just not right” even when nothing is wrong? Psychologists call these Not Just Right Experiences (NJREs)—a subtle but powerful force behind OCD and OCPD. Learn what they are, why they matter, and how to manage them before they hijack your peace of mind.
We’ve got perfectionism all wrong. The real problem isn’t high standards—it’s the illusion of perfectibility and harsh judgment that have been grafted onto it. Perfectionism began as a guide toward purpose, but centuries of distortion turned it into an enforcer of impossible ideals. Instead of banishing perfectionism, we can reclaim its adaptive side—commitment, persistence, and pursuit of excellence—while stripping away conceit and control. By befriending adaptive perfectionism, acknowledging its shadow, and clarifying our purpose, we transform it from a tyrant into a trusted partner. This episode brings together science and Jungian psychology for an unconventional approach to dealing with perfectionism.
Explore practical insights and nuanced strategies for working with clients who have obsessive-compulsive personality traits. Drawing on 33 years of experience, this post addresses common challenges, misconceptions, and ways to foster meaningful change—while offering a behind-the-scenes look for those in therapy.
This essay explores how perfectionist and obsessive-compulsive personalities construct “fortresses” to avoid humiliation, embarrassment, and shame. Through vivid stories and cultural examples—from Steve Jobs to Michael Jackson—it identifies four compulsive types (Boss, Workaholic, People-Pleaser, and Obsessor) and shows how their strategies both protect and imprison them.
A related and more specific unhealthy motivation that can seize people who are obsessive-compulsive and perfectionist is trying to avoid humiliation, embarrassment and shame. It’s a very limiting life strategy.
The very common but unrecognized disease of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) has a long and inglorious history—though they didn’t call it that 3000 years ago. They would have called it hubris, because the people who had this disease believed they knew everything and had the gall to try to control everything.
But they also had Anake to help them with this problem. When people recognized the goddess of compulsion and fate, they chilled out and let go of their fantasies of control. But while we might be familiar with Zeus, Apollo, and Dionysus, today we are oblivious to Ananke, and the limits she imposes. But these limits don’t go away.
And in our efforts to avoid them we become diseased.
The Healthy Compulsive book is now available in paperback in addition to hardcover and e-book format:
Healthy Compulsive Book
© 2026 · Gary Trosclair, The Healthy Compulsive Project