Hit and run OCD treatment is a must for those struggling with it, due to its limitations and the suffering it can cause. It’s a different type of driving anxiety, not based on the typical phobia of feeling trapped in traffic at a light or between exits.
It’s also not about a general fear of getting into an accident. Because you may never have spoken with anybody else who struggles with a hit and run obsession, it may be hard to believe that it’s actually quite common for those with OCD.
A great depiction of hit and run OCD is on the reality TV treatment show “Obsessed”, (formerly on A&E, now streaming on Hulu!) on which I served on cast as a featured anxiety and OCD treatment specialist.
Below are a few photos from the show of myself and a young man named Paul I was treating for hit and run OCD. It’s an inspiring episode (Season 2).
We treat all OCD symptoms. Time to begin your path to freedom. Contact Dr. April at
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Is hit-and-run OCD common, really?
As mentioned, hit and run OCD speaks to a unique form of driving anxiety, which requires driving ocd treatment. The main element that separates it from a typical driving phobia and moves into the realm of an OCD obsession is its foundation.
The foundation of hit and run OCD is in the category of harm obsessions. Harm obsessions are very common for those with OCD, although there are many different forms of obsessions that can impact people.
Harm obsessions take many shapes, though they’re often focused on a fear that others will come to harm by your choices.
Harm obsessions can be based on a fear of engaging in harmful acts towards loved ones or even strangers, fear of harm coming to loved ones, fear of harm coming to oneself or even purposefully causing harm to oneself!
When it comes to hit and run OCD, specifically, the obsession tends to be a fear of hitting pedestrians while driving on residential streets, in parking lots and near schools with the often added fear of not realizing it.
As an example, an obsession could be, “What if I run over a child near their school because I didn’t see them. They’re so little!”.
Hit and run OCD is defined by ….
Hit and run OCD is defined by obsessions focused on fear of potentially having hit a pedestrian or run someone over while driving (including animals).
Those with this obsession can’t seem to stop worrying about whether they’ve hit somebody with their car, despite a lack of evidence demonstrating otherwise.
Part of what “drives” this obsession (sorry, that pun was unavoidable!) is that those suffering with hit and run OCD want absolute certainty that there’s no chance they may have hit someone.
Difficulty dealing with uncertainty and those “what if” thoughts is one of the foundations of all OCD obsessions!
Why it’s called Hit and Run OCD
A coinciding obsession in addition to anxiety over possibly having hit someone is a fear of maybe having hit someone and not remembering it or having driven away without helping “this person” they may have hit. Hence, the moniker of hit and run OCD.
Again, this type of obsession often falls under the category of OCD harm obsessions. However, some argue it could also fall under the category of scrupulosity-based obsessions, due to those with hit-and-run OCD struggling with beliefs of hyper-responsibility and fear of negligence.
Common obsession based fears of those with hit and run OCD include:
• fear of going to jail for your own negligence
• Fear of causing your family to suffer in the event you have hit someone and go to jail
• Fear of the guilt or shame you would experience if you ever hit or run over someone
• Frequent thoughts of a hit and run incident ruining your life
• Fear that you can’t count on what you see or, conversely, don’t see with your own two eyes. Meaning that you can look at an empty road and still fear you may have hit someone. This can lead to compulsive checking, including continuing to drive around the block or looking back repeatedly for certainty.
• Fear of being ostracized by your community and losing friends, should you be charged with a crime.
Call us now at 310-429-1024 if you’re ready for hit and run OCD treatment.
Definition of Obsessions and Compulsions in OCD, including Hit and Run OCD
The symptom list below includes both obsessions and compulsions.
Once one struggles with hit and run OCD obsessions and compulsions, they then typically try to avoid what triggers their fear. This is true for all people not properly treating an anxiety disorder.
Remember, the two foundational symptoms of OCD are obsessions and then, more often than not, compulsions.
Obsessions are intrusive, repetitive thoughts that one can’t seem to stop thinking. And they can cause immense suffering.
Compulsions are behaviors or mental rituals designed to reduce the anxiety triggered by the obsession.
Common Hit and Run OCD symptoms can include:
• Fear of driving in busy parking lots were there are lots of pedestrians (Ex. Grocery store parking lot)
• Fear of driving past school zones for fear of hitting a child
• Time spent outside of driving, obsessing over whether you may have hit somebody either that day or recently.
• Fearing police sirens might be an indicator that you’re about to be arrested for a hit and run incident where you caused someone harm and fled the scene.
• Fear of driving past cyclists or joggers on the road.
• Avoiding certain streets for fear of hitting someone (ex. Residential areas)
• Compulsively getting out of your car to check if you have hit someone or returning to certain areas that you’ve just driven to check if there’s any evidence of your having injured someone.
• “Hit and run OCD call police?!” A compulsion to watch or read the local news for hit and run stories to rule out if there had been an accident you may have caused. And if the authorities are searching for that hit-and-run driver!
• Avoiding nighttime driving due to a fear that you can’t see as well in the dark or obsessively fearing you might have hit someone due to lack of light.
• Avoiding driving around parts of your surrounding area that you deem crowded just in case there might be more pedestrians
• Limiting your driving to only your comfort zones or even stopping driving all together
• Fear of driving at the speed limit and the compulsive behavior of driving very slowly.
• Repeatedly checking the rearview mirror to determine if you might’ve missed a pedestrian and hit them.
• Being intensely hyper-focused on your driving to avoid any experience where a distraction increases your chances of hitting a pedestrian
• Fear of ambulance sirens due to a concern they’re based on your having hit someone without awareness.
• Compulsively stopping the car to check after having hit a pothole or driven over a speed bump for fear it may have been a pedestrian
• Difficulty backing out of your driveway or a parking space
• Anxiety is triggered when an animal runs past the car or is nearby
• Circling back to the same route just driven and driving it repeatedly looking for a dead body or witnesses to a hit and run - with you being the driver!
• Parking your car, getting out and looking under cars, on lawns and all along the road for evidence of an injured person
• Checking your car for dents for any damage that might signify you hit someone
• Checking the car for any blood on the fender or bumper
• Driving frustratingly slowly to the annoyance of passengers or other drivers on the road
• Asking passengers if you hit someone while driving
• Fear of speed bumps that encourage the obsessive fear of possibly having hit or run over someone without knowing
• Not listening to music or podcasts while driving for fear of not hearing someone scream after being hit
• Reducing driving based activities
• Discontinuing to drive
• Fear of going to jail, ruining your family’s lives, along with the life of the victim
• Fear of the guilt and responsibility of having hit someone with your car and that it would be intolerable, signifying the end of your life
• Fear of the judgment of others and being labeled a criminal or evil
Contact us now at 310-429-1024 for help with hit and run OCD, harm-oriented obsessions, hyper-responsibility obsessions and more!
Anxious Driving = Difficulty Dealing with Uncertainty
The element of uncertainty plays a very big role in hit-and-run OCD and all other forms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. A key indicator of difficulty coping with ucertainty are obsessions beginning with the partial phrase “What if . . . ?”.
“What if” thoughts can be debilitating for those suffering with a hit-and-run OCD obsession. The most common “What if” thought in this context is, “What if I hit a pedestrian and didn’t see it happen?”
With regard to all anxiety issues and OCD, difficulty dealing with uncertainty is one of the pillars that encourages and maintains an anxiety issue.
Life is filled with uncertainty. In fact, in life, nothing is ever 100% certain, though sometimes we can get to 98 or even 99%!
For example, we might be 98% sure our car will still be there in the driveway where we parked it last night.
But cars can be stolen, even when highly unlikely. And because driving can involve so many variables at once, including potential for human error, people make mistakes that account for all sorts of accidents. This leaves lots of room for “What if …?”.
Those with hit-and-run OCD generally want to be 100% certain they’ve not put anybody in harm or hurt anyone, in any way. To some degree, their desire is to engage in perfect driving to avoid the possibility of anyone coming to harm by their hand (or, specifically, their car!).
As with most obsessions, in an effort to cope with fear, people with hit-and-run OCD develop compulsive behaviors.
These compulsive behaviors can become debilitating when it comes to driving, due to the limits to freedom they can cause. They’re also incredibly time consuming, if one with hit-and-run OCD continues to drive.
Are you constantly afraid you might have hit a pedestrian, even if there is no evidence of this? Call us at 310-429-1024 for hit and run OCD treatment now!
Why do I have hit and run OCD?
For those with hit and run OCD, the origin of the obsession doesn’t really matter as far as having an impact on resolving or removing suffering.
However, understanding that OCD is a neurobiological condition that you’ve been born with is helpful towards acceptance of intrusive thoughts as just “thoughts”.
The difference between someone without OCD and someone with OCD isn’t the thoughts themselves. Everyone has irrational thoughts at times.
Although, those with OCD have what can be considered a neurological processing issue that encourages thoughts to become “stuck”, when wrestled with.
And you run the risk of developing an obsession like hit and run OCD when you resist or fight with “what if thoughts” focused on possibly having hit a pedestrian.
If you then choose to avoid aspects of driving or engage in compulsive behaviors of checking you then solidify the obsession.
OCD Hit and Run Beliefs
To move beyond the curiosity of why you have hit and run OCD and towards treating it, it is essential to identify what beliefs encourage your obsession.
With that in mind, there might be a few belief patterns you struggle with that could have led to your hit-and-run OCD.
For example, if you believe you’re a horrible person if you hurt anybody in any way, shape or form, it’s easy to see how you could develop a hit-and-run obsession with OCD.
Obviously, in the world of relationships, we can hurt people’s feelings without having any intent and even when we do nothing wrong!
Of course, the stakes feel far higher when it comes to hit and run OCD because your fear is of injuring or killing a pedestrian – not hurting their feelings (though I guess that would happen, too)!
Another belief that can create, reinforce and maintain a hit-and-run obsession is that you think you must be a perfect driver.
Or, at the very least, that it’s not okay to make mistakes while driving.
But take a look around. How many drivers do you see nearly hitting a pedestrian, almost sideswiping a parked car or cutting off other drivers on the freeway?
Not that I support driving recklessly or driving errors, but clearly you don’t have to be a perfect driver to live your life as a driver safely enough.
Good enough driving is sometimes good enough.
Another possible belief that can lead to a hit-and-run OCD obsession could be that it’s beyond intolerable if people are upset or angry with you. This is a common concern or fear for those who have driving anxiety or driving OCD.
Those with OCD driving fear just don’t want other drivers angry with them. Of course, other drivers can be angry with you no matter what you do!
As long as you’re driving safely enough and not really putting other people at risk with reckless driving, then why care so much about what other people think?
Caring too much about what other people think also happens to be a symptom of social anxiety.
So, for those with hit-and-run OCD, this struggle with the belief that it’s terrible if someone’s upset with you might be another fear phobia to explore.
When does OCD become maladaptive?
Well, OCD is never adaptive. It’s not a syndrome that adds to life. However, it can only limit you when caught up in symptoms of obsessions and compulsions.
On the adaptive side, I suppose one could argue that having OCD, like any syndrome, can encourage empathy for others who struggle. So, that’s adaptive in a way.
That said again, OCD symptoms are always maladaptive.
Unless you can resolve them with OCD treatment or ignore them to the point that you’re no longer symptomatic. Otherwise, they’ll interfere with life.
OCD obsessions can affect your work and your relationships, in addition to limiting your experiences in life and sense of freedom.
I suppose one could argue that a driver with this OCD type is far more careful than others not to hit anyone! So, you might ask, “Isn’t that positive and adaptive?”. But often times less is more!
Balanced healthy driving requires both defensive and offensive driving.
Sometimes offensive driving can keep you and others safer!
Compulsive behaviors that accompany a hit and run ocd obsession interfere with regular, healthy driving. As a result, it takes you much more time to get to where you’re going!
The suffering your fear brings, due to obsessions and OCD compulsions, interfere with life and make this obsession extremely maladaptive.
Paranoid About Hitting a Pedestrian
Many people with hit-and-run OCD live in fear of being distracted while driving, as it tends to trigger one’s paranoia over possibly having hit a pedestrian during a moment where they may have “zoned out” or weren’t paying attention.
Those without hit and run OCD understand that driving becomes primarily a rote skill once one learns it and gains driving experience.
Driving becomes based, in part, on muscle memory.
Of course, though it’s important to be present while driving in order to pay attention, it’s clearly not required to be hyper-focused in order to drive in a “good enough” and “safe enough” fashion.
A natural focus on the road and all that driving brings, including other drivers and pedestrians, is usually more than good enough.
And this also incorporates common practices that are safe, like checking your rearview mirror in a reasonable manner.
Scrupulosity, Harm OCD and Hit and Run OCD Obsessions
This form of OCD, as mentioned, typically falls under the category of scrupulosity or harm OCD. It also can fall into the category of checking OCD because it’s similar to checking locks on doors or windows to reassure your’re not putting anyone in danger.
This compulsive checking is meant to reassure that you won’t or haven’t hurt anyone.
However, the more you engage in compulsive behavior to reduce anxiety incurred by the obsession, the more it creates a feedback loop where you’re locked into performing the compulsion. Why?
Because the compulsive resistance or avoidance continues to trigger the fearful obsession by teaching your brain there is a danger to fear.
Hence, the only perceived solution when you’re unaware of proper OCD therapy is to maintain your checking rituals and the obsession itself, keeping you caught in suffering.
For expert hit and run OCD treatment call us at The April Center NOW!
310-429-1024
Mental Rituals and Hit and Run OCD
There are also mental rituals that can keep you stuck in reinforcing your hit-and-run OCD compulsive behaviors.
These include repeating certain thoughts and phrases with the desire to calm yourself or distract you. For example, one might repeat certain prayers.
Another might focus on thinking positively while repeating positive phrases, such as, “I’m a good driver. I wouldn’t hit anyone” (By the way, affirmations never work to reduce anxiety – more on that in another blog article!).
A quick note:
Although it can be helpful to categorize your OCD into one main obsessional form, it’s not all that necessary. In fact, it tends to become a semantic discussion.
The reality is that for all forms of OCD, the treatment remains the same. Exposure therapy (the main behavior component of CBT) along with the modifying of false beliefs (our main treatment within the cognitive component of CBT).
The April Center for Anxiety offers gradual exposure therapy treatment for hit and run OCD, so you’re not absolutely terrified as you make progress!
Call us now at 310-429-1024
How do I stop intrusive thoughts when driving with hit and run OCD?
The trap of OCD is in the effort to stop intrusive thoughts. The desire is understandable because seemingly the thoughts are creating discomfort for you.
However, the reality is that it’s more about belief then about the thoughts themselves. Good people don’t want to mow pedestrians down!
So, a thought of possibly doing so can create fear for many good people with OCD.
But, in addition to engaging in exposure therapy, it’s crucial that you modify false beliefs that encourage your intrusive thoughts while driving.
You might ask, “What false beliefs commonly create hit and run intrusive thoughts?” Here is a list:
Common false beliefs associated with hit and run driving OCD:
- Only terrible people would hit a pedestrian
- Good drivers never make errors
- There is a high likelihood I could have gravely injured someone and not have felt, seen or heard anything at all
- I have to drive perfectly to avoid hitting a pedestrian
- Being distracted at any moment at all - in any capacity - while driving, is putting all people at great risk
These are all beliefs that would encourage intrusive thoughts.
So, modifying these false beliefs to reality-based beliefs would be effective in eventually reducing intrusive thoughts as there is no fear without belief.
However, the behavioral side of treatment in CBT is required once your brain is involved in perpetuating you’re anxiety with intrusive thoughts. And once you unintentionally teach your brain through avoidance that there is something to fear, your brain learns this lesson very quickly.
And floods your system with what you experience as danger signals, when you are confronted by what you fear.
Exposure is the key behavioral strategy in cognitive behavioral therapy and focuses on exposing you gradually to your fear until your brain adapts (habituates) and becomes desensitized to the fear of running over a pedestrian.
The goal, of course, being reduction in your suffering. The byproduct is that this brings you back to the baseline inherent risk everyone takes while driving.
Part of achieving this risk acceptance is the acknowledgement that we are not infallible human beings and that accidents happen! Yes, it’s a scary thought for many, but a sad reality.
So, it’s vital to practice and accept that we do the best we can out there in the world to be careful, protect ourselves and not hurt others in the process.
Not accepting this reality described above can lead to hit-and-run OCD and a host of other anxiety issues.
Can a car accident trigger OCD?
A car accident can trigger OCD, but most likely not in the way you think. The hallmarks of OCD are obsessions and compulsions.
Following a car accident, it’s somewhat understandable if you now fear getting on the road, worried about the possibility that another accident could occur.
However, that wouldn’t trigger driving OCD.
OCD is a neurobiological condition, meaning that the issue is housed in the brain.
At given moments throughout the OCD life cycle, there can be some biological triggers leading to more sensitivity to obsessions.
However, typically, it’s not an event that triggers OCD, but one’s response to the event.
A car accident can be a traumatic event for many, depending upon the severity.
The key in preventing one’s OCD from being triggered by a car accident would be to get back out on the road immediately, without unnecessary avoidance of driving.
What causes hit-and-run OCD?
A traumatic car accident can lead to an OCD obsession over the possibility that you might have hit a passenger, which is defined as “hit and run OCD”. However, this isn’t an automatic process.
Obsessions are created by resistance to thought and avoidance of experiences – potential or real.
So, in terms of irrational fear (AKA “obsessions”), it’s not what happens that creates it, but whether you resist and avoid.
All ocd obsessions begin with the belief that what you fear is intolerable. That you can’t handle it. But that’s not the complete origin of your OCD struggle with an obsession.
The next step must be avoidance, often in the form of compulsive behavior for those with OCD.
In other words, in an effort to control the fear you might hit a pedestrian without noticing you compulsively check the rearview mirror repeatedly.
You might also frequently begin pulling over to the curb and getting out of the car to check under it.
Unfortunately, these compulsions only serve to increase your obsessional fear of having hit someone. Without hit and run OCD treatment, those who struggle sometimes give up driving.
But, either way, the suffering and limitations hit and run OCD can cause can be extremely debilitating.
“Hit-and-run OCD ruining my life”
Many people with hit and run OCD feel that it’s ruining their life due to the time-consuming nature of their compulsions over time, suffering with obsessions over possibly having hit someone also takes a toll.
The time hit and run OCD compulsions take interferes with regular driving and the ability to complete tasks, not to mention the discomfort they continue to cause.
Hit-and-run OCD symptoms also impact your sense of confidence and ability to handle life.
They can effect your relationships too, as they become a barrier to being present and to driving with freedom from anxiety.
No wonder those struggling with hit and run driving OCD feel like it’s ruining their life!
If you have hit and run OCD, call us for treatment now at 310-429-1024
Here’s the good news! At The April Center For Anxiety, we help people achieve freedom so they can refocus on living the life they desire.
Hit-and-run OCD success stories:
Because OCD symptoms are treatable with CBT, there are many hit-and-run OCD success stories.
Hit and run OCD - along with all other forms of OCD and anxiety - is what we have been treating successfully at The April Center For Anxiety Attack Management since we opened nearly 20 years ago.
All OCD success stories sound similar, as they all signify relief from the hit and run OCD obsessions that plagued those who struggled.
For an example of a great hit and run OCD success story, take a look at my work with Paul on the A&E hit TV show “Obsessed” (if you haven’t already).
You can watch the full episode and the entire series online - currently streaming on Hulu!
Hit and Run OCD Treatment
(also known as Driving OCD Treatment)
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the key for all anxiety disorders. It’s the only scientifically proven form of treatment.
The anxiety treatment applied to hit-and-run OCD is the same CBT administered to all forms of OCD, in addition to phobias and panic disorder.
The variation in terms of exposure therapy for anxiety is primarily focused on the content of your anxiety and differences in intensity.
Exposure therapy, ERP, is the key strategy involved and applied under the behavioral component of CBT.
Exposure therapy is ultimately about assisting one’s brain to reach adaptation to the fear-based stimuli, so that it becomes indifferent to the stimuli or stimulus.
On the cognitive side of CBT, we address specific false beliefs you’re unintentionally maintaining that encourage anxiety.
In layperson’s terms, to overcome fear one must face fear. From this standpoint, it’s simple.
In our anxiety treatment, we help people gradually face their fear of hitting a pedestrian through many assignments.
All anxiety assignments are focused on what is tolerable now in order to make steady progress, rather than a treatment that creates a one step forward, two steps backward pattern.
Progress is made with gradually increasing challenges as you find facing your fear more achievable through desensitization.
You also build confidence as you reduce your anxiety!
No need to be absolutely terrified of exposure therapy! Once your brain starts to adapt to driving, without engaging in compulsive checking of the road or car for an injured pedestrian, you’ll begin to tolerate uncertainty better.
It’ll all get easier with just a little bit of work.
Struggling with uncertainty is one of the foundations of all anxiety issues.
An indicator that you’re having difficulty dealing with uncertainty is an obsession that typically begins with the question “what if…”.
Call us now at 310-429-1024 to begin your hit-and-run OCD therapy. We offer teletherapy online and over the phone for all driving OCD issues.
You can overcome your hit and run OCD symptoms with the proper help!