What is ‘Pure O’ OCD? Luke Combs shares ‘wicked’ disorder that can make you question your sexuality and religion

nypost.com:

lifting the veil on his lifelong battle with a “particularly wicked” form of obsessive-compulsive disorder. The country music star recently opened up about his battle with Pure Obsessional OCD, or Pure O, which triggers relentless, irrational thoughts — including some that veer into violent territory. “When it hits, man, it can be all consuming,” Combs told “60 Minutes Australia” in an interview. “If you have a flare-up … you could think about it 45 seconds of every minute for weeks.”OCD, which affects 2% to 3% of Americans, is marked by persistent, intrusive thoughts and repetitive behaviors.

The exact number of people with the Pure O subtype is unknown, but one estimate suggests that up to 10% of those with OCD in the UK experience this particular form.While most people associate OCD with physical rituals, like excessive handwashing or touching objects a specific number of times, those with Pure O are haunted by unwanted, uncontrollable thoughts and internal compulsions that remain mostly invisible, according to Verywell.“They cause you stress, and then you’re stressed out, and then the stress causes you to have more of the thoughts, and then you don’t understand why you’re having them, and you’re trying to get rid of them, but trying to get rid of them makes you have more of them,” Combs said.

Although Pure O sufferers don’t display obvious physical behaviors, they often resort to mental rituals to try to ease the anxiety triggered by their obsessions.

These compulsions can include replaying memories or past conversations, silently repeating mantras, and making mental lists.The obsessive thoughts themselves can vary widely as well. “I’ll be worried that I’m about to have a heart attack or a stroke, and it becomes this.