Intrusive Thoughts vs. Intuition: How to Tell the Difference
Many people come to therapy asking a version of the same question:
“How do I know if this thought is my intuition… or if it’s anxiety or OCD?”
This question makes a lot of sense. We’re often told to “trust our gut,” “listen to our intuition,” or “follow our instincts.” But when you live with anxiety or OCD, your inner world can feel loud, urgent, and confusing. Not every thought feels trustworthy, and that can be exhausting.
Let’s slow this down and look at the differences between intrusive thoughts and intuition, and why telling them apart can be especially hard when anxiety or OCD is involved.
What Are Intrusive Thoughts?
Intrusive thoughts are unwanted, unexpected thoughts, images, or urges that pop into your mind without invitation. Everyone has them. The difference is how much meaning and importance they’re given.
In OCD and anxiety, intrusive thoughts often:
Feel disturbing, alarming, or “wrong”
Clash with your values or sense of self
Come with a strong emotional charge (fear, disgust, guilt, panic)
Demand certainty or immediate action
Get stuck on “what if” scenarios
Common intrusive thoughts might sound like:
“What if I hurt someone?”
“What if I’m secretly a bad person?”
“What if something terrible happens and it’s my fault?”
“What if this thought means something about who I really am?”
The key feature is this: intrusive thoughts are driven by doubt and fear, not wisdom or clarity.
What Is Intuition?
Intuition is often quieter and steadier. It’s not perfect or magical, but it tends to feel different in the body and mind.
Intuition often:
Feels calm, neutral, or grounded
Doesn’t demand immediate action
Doesn’t rely on catastrophic “what ifs”
Comes without intense anxiety or urgency
Aligns with your values without needing certainty
Intuition might sound like:
“This doesn’t feel like the right fit for me.”
“I need more rest right now.”
“I feel drawn toward this opportunity.”
“Something feels off, and I want to explore it gently.”
Importantly, intuition does not try to scare you into compliance.
Why OCD and Anxiety Blur the Line
OCD is sometimes called “the doubting disorder” for a reason. It creates a false sense of importance around thoughts and feelings, convincing you that you must figure them out, analyze them, or neutralize them.
Anxiety and OCD can:
Mimic urgency and intensity, which people mistake for intuition
Create fear-based “gut feelings” that are actually nervous system responses
Push you to seek certainty or reassurance
Tell you that not acting is dangerous or irresponsible
When your nervous system is activated, it can feel like intuition, but it’s actually threat detection, not inner wisdom.
A Helpful Rule of Thumb
While this isn’t a perfect test, many people find this distinction useful:
Intrusive thoughts feel loud, urgent, and fear-driven.
Intuition feels quieter, steadier, and allows room for uncertainty.
Another key difference:
Intrusive thoughts demand an answer right now.
Intuition allows you to pause.
Why Trying to “Figure It Out” Can Backfire
If you struggle with OCD, constantly analyzing whether a thought is intuition or intrusion can become part of the OCD cycle itself. The more you check, the more uncertain you feel.
Instead of asking:
“Is this thought real or not?”
A more helpful question might be:
“How am I relating to this thought right now?”
You can acknowledge a thought without deciding what it means or whether it deserves action.
Learning to Respond Differently
In therapy, especially approaches like ERP, ACT, and Inference-Based CBT, the goal isn’t to perfectly distinguish intuition from intrusive thoughts every time. The goal is to change your relationship with thoughts altogether.
That might look like:
Allowing thoughts to exist without engaging
Practicing uncertainty without solving it
Noticing urges without acting on them
Letting values guide behavior, not fear
Over time, this creates more space and trust within yourself, not because you’ve eliminated doubt, but because you no longer need certainty to move forward.
A Final Thought
If you’ve ever worried, “What if I can’t trust myself?”, that worry itself is often part of anxiety or OCD, not a reflection of your character or intuition.
You are not broken for feeling confused by your thoughts. With support, practice, and the right treatment approach, it becomes possible to live a full life even when your mind feels loud.
And sometimes, learning not to answer every question is the most grounded response of all.
