# 163. Relationship OCD, Shame, and Recovery: Learning to Live With Uncertainty

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-ocd-whisperer-podcast-with-kristina-orlova-1214844/163-relationship-ocd-shame-and-recovery-learning-to-live-with-uncertainty
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-ocd-whisperer-podcast-with-kristina-orlova-1214844/163-relationship-ocd-shame-and-recovery-learning-to-live-with-uncertainty.md
Podcast: [The OCD Whisperer Podcast with Kristina Orlova](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-ocd-whisperer-podcast-with-kristina-orlova-1214844)
Published: 2025-12-19T17:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://ocdwhisperer.podbean.com/e/163-relationship-ocd-shame-and-recovery-learning-to-live-with-uncertainty/
Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/swhu3smn88cripja/ep_163_ZACK_A_only6s47n.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-ocd-whisperer-podcast-with-kristina-orlova-1214844/episodes/163-relationship-ocd-shame-and-recovery-learning-to-live-with-uncertainty
Duration seconds: 1605

## Resource

💔Can OCD convince you that you’re incapable of love? In this episode of The OCD Whisperer Podcast, Kristina Orlova speaks with Zack Tucker, OCD advocate and creator of OCDestigmatize. Together, they explore relationship OCD, health anxiety, shame, and what real recovery actually looks like when OCD never fully disappears—but stops controlling your life. Zack opens up about: • Relationship OCD and the fear of “not really loving” partners • How intrusive thoughts destroyed past relationships and self-esteem • Promiscuity, avoidance, and using control to cope with emotional pain • ERP, exposure, and redefining what recovery truly means • Living with OCD long-term while still building love, confidence, and meaning Whether you’re navigating OCD yourself or supporting someone who is, this episode offers hope, perspective, and reassurance that you can live fully—even with uncertainty. 📲 About Zack Tucker (guest): • popular mental health Instagram page owner • OCD survivor • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ocdestigmatize/ ✂️ TIMESTAMPS: [00:00] – Meet Zach & Why He Started Speaking Publicly About OCD[01:22] – Relationship OCD: Believing You’re Incapable of Love[02:42] – How OCD Destroys Relationships Without Anyone Seeing It[04:22] – Real Doubt vs OCD Doubt: Why Relationship OCD Feels So Convincing[05:57] – The First Breakup That Wasn’t Caused by OCD[08:17] – What Recovery Actually Looks Like (Thoughts Still Exist)[10:12] – From POCD to Health OCD: When Themes Shift but Fear Stays[12:12] – Living With Real Risk: Health OCD, Rabies, and Uncertainty[15:32] – Vietnam as Exposure Therapy: Facing Every Fear at Once[17:42] – Why Recovery Isn’t Cold Turkey (And Why Self-Compassion Matters)[20:07] – Ending Shame by Putting OCD on the Internet[22:02] – What He’d Tell His Young…

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