Sometimes a mantra is a few words on a sticky note.

Sometimes it’s something you repeat when your brain is particularly loud.

And sometimes… apparently, it becomes a song.

As therapists who work with OCD, we know that understanding something intellectually doesn’t necessarily make it easier to practice. You can know that a thought isn’t a fact, understand that reassurance-seeking feeds OCD, and believe in tolerating uncertainty—and still find yourself checking, analyzing, Googling, confessing, and asking, “But what if…?”

Because OCD isn’t defeated by having the right answer.

It’s about learning a new response to uncertainty.

And sometimes, a song can help that new response stick.

From words to something you can feel

There’s something different about a phrase when you put it to music.

A melody can bring the words back to you. Rhythm gives them a place to land. Repetition can make them easier to access when you’re anxious or caught in an OCD loop.

And suddenly, you’re practicing the skill rather than just thinking about it.

Think about how many song lyrics you can remember from 20 years ago without ever intentionally memorizing them.

You probably couldn’t recite a random paragraph you read once in 2006.

But give it a melody?

Somehow your brain says, Oh, I know this one.

Music combines words, rhythm, repetition, emotion, and memory. That combination can make a message easier to retrieve later—especially when the message has personal meaning.

And that’s where a song-based mantra can become especially useful.

The goal isn’t to create a catchy song so someone can distract themselves from anxiety.

It’s to create something they can carry into the moment when OCD shows up.

Instead of simply reading a mantra, you’re engaging multiple ways of learning and remembering it. The words, the rhythm, the melody, and the emotion all work together to help the message stick.

Now comes the fun part: putting your words to the tunes that stick with you!

So we wrote an OCD song……

to the tune of “Better That Way” by Charles Wesley Godwin & Luke Combs.

The result is a playful reminder that we’re not trying to eliminate every uncomfortable thought or feeling. We’re practicing taking thoughts less seriously, allowing uncertainty, and choosing what matters anyway.

Because sometimes the most helpful response to OCD isn’t another explanation.

Sometimes it’s a little music, a little willingness, and a reminder to let go.

And that’s a mantra worth singing.

Here’s a taste of the lyrics:

I’m better when I take my thoughts less seriously
I’m better when I call out my OCD
I’m better when I let that “what if?” hang
Without getting caught up in the same old game

I’m better when I don’t check one more time
I’m better when I let uncertainty ride
Better when I say, “Maybe, maybe not”
And quit trying to solve every thought I’ve got

I’m better when I let the feelings come and go
I’m better when I don’t need to know

Better when I let my brain make noise
And know I still get to make a values-based choice

Yeah, I’m better that way!

Now it’s your turn!

We’d love to hear your song-based mantras.

Use the actual words from a song that help you—or change the lyrics to make them your own.

Whatever works for you.

Because sometimes the words we need to hear are easier to remember when we can sing them back to our brains.

P.S. We heard Luke Combs has OCD and has spoken openly about it…. if anyone out there has some fancy connections maybe we can ask him to sing it for the OCD community!