5 Things Every Latter-day Saint Teacher Should Know About Teaching Members with OCD and Anxiety
Beginning September 6, 2026, Sunday classes in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will look a little different.
Under the new schedule, Sunday School, Relief Society, Elders Quorum, Young Women, and Aaronic Priesthood quorum meetings will all be held every Sunday, with Sunday School and quorum or class meetings lasting 25 minutes each. The Church has explained that the changes are intended to increase focus on Jesus Christ, strengthen gospel learning in the home, and increase fellowship and belonging at church.
For teachers and leaders, the new schedule creates more frequent opportunities to connect with class members—and to think carefully about how we teach.
For members who experience obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), particularly religious or moral OCD (often called scrupulosity), some common approaches to gospel teaching can unintentionally increase anxiety rather than foster faith. Small changes in the way we talk about Heavenly Father, repentance, revelation, testimony, and uncertainty can make our classes more welcoming to members whose minds process these topics differently.
Here are five things every Latter-day Saint teacher should know.
1. Their understanding of Heavenly Father may be different.
OCD and anxiety can influence the way someone understands the character of God.
A person struggling with scrupulosity may intellectually believe that Heavenly Father is loving and merciful while emotionally experiencing Him as constantly disappointed, hypercritical, or nearly impossible to please.
As a result, messages intended to encourage greater commitment can sometimes reinforce an already frightening picture of God.
Teachers can help by consistently emphasizing Heavenly Father’s patience, mercy, consistency, and love for His children. Rather than relying primarily on fear, warnings, or possible negative consequences to motivate behavior, we can help class members develop a relationship with God rooted in trust and in the grace of Jesus Christ.
2. They may experience repentance differently.
For someone with OCD, repentance can easily become an endless process.
Did I confess everything? Was I sorry enough? Did I explain exactly what happened? What if I forgot something? How do I know Heavenly Father has really forgiven me?
Instead of bringing freedom, repentance can become a compulsive attempt to achieve absolute certainty about forgiveness or worthiness.
President Russell M. Nelson has taught about finding joy in daily repentance. We can similarly teach repentance as a Christ-centered process that helps us turn toward the Savior, grow, and move forward.
Be cautious about suggesting that someone must experience a particular feeling before they can trust that they have repented. Likewise, avoid adding rigid steps or requirements to repentance that the Church itself does not require.
For someone with scrupulosity, the invitation to move forward can sometimes be just as important as the invitation to change.
3. It may be difficult for them to “feel” the Spirit in conventional ways.
We sometimes describe the Spirit using physical or emotional experiences: warmth, peace, calmness, clarity, or a powerful feeling that something is right.
Those experiences can be meaningful. But they are not universal.
Anxiety can make peaceful physical sensations difficult to access. OCD can also cause someone to repeatedly monitor their thoughts, emotions, or body for evidence that they have “felt the Spirit correctly.”
That checking can actually make anxiety worse.
Consider emphasizing that Heavenly Father knows each of His children perfectly and is capable of communicating with them in ways they can understand. Spiritual experiences do not have to look identical from person to person.
We can encourage members to develop their own relationship with God rather than constantly comparing their spiritual experiences to someone else’s.
4. Language about “knowing” or certainty can be difficult.
“I know the Church is true.”
“I received a confirmation.”
“I knew without a doubt.”
These familiar expressions of testimony can be meaningful. For someone with OCD, however, the pursuit of that same level of certainty can become consuming.
OCD frequently demands an impossible standard: Be completely certain before you move forward.
Faith asks something different.
Faith allows us to choose, trust, hope, and act even when we do not possess perfect certainty.
Teachers do not need to stop using the word know. But it can be helpful to make room for other authentic expressions of faith: “I believe.” “I trust.” “I hope.” “I have experienced…” or “I am choosing to follow Christ.”
A faithful life does not require the elimination of every doubt, question, or uncomfortable feeling.
5. Reassurance may not always be helpful.
Imagine a class member repeatedly asking:
“Do you think I’m worthy?”
“Do you think I prayed correctly?”
“What if I’m not studying the scriptures enough?”
Our instinct is usually to reassure them: Of course you’re worthy. You’re doing enough. Don’t worry about it.
For most people, that may be perfectly appropriate.
For someone with OCD, however, repeated reassurance can become part of the compulsive cycle.
The person experiences uncertainty, seeks reassurance, feels temporarily better—and then the uncertainty returns. They ask again, receive reassurance again, and gradually become more dependent on someone else providing certainty.
Being careful about reassurance does not mean being cold or withholding support.
You can listen. You can validate that uncertainty is uncomfortable. You can express compassion. You can help someone identify what they value and encourage them to move forward without resolving every possible doubt.
And when these patterns are causing significant distress or interfering with daily life, you can encourage appropriate professional support from a clinician who understands OCD and scrupulosity.
Creating More Welcoming Gospel Classrooms
The Church describes the September schedule change as an opportunity to focus more deeply on Jesus Christ while strengthening gospel learning and belonging.
That makes this a particularly good time to think about how we teach—not simply what material we cover.
You do not need to be an OCD specialist to make your classroom safer for someone with scrupulosity. You do not need to identify which class members have anxiety or change every lesson because someone might have OCD.
Often, it is much simpler.
Teach a God who is patient and merciful. Teach repentance as an invitation to turn toward Christ and move forward. Leave room for different experiences with revelation. Make space for faith that coexists with uncertainty. And remember that compassion does not always require providing certainty.
Those small shifts can help create the kind of Christ-centered classroom where more members—including those quietly struggling with OCD and anxiety—can feel that they belong.
Start Working With an OCD Therapist in Provo, UT
You don't need to be an OCD specialist to make your classroom a place where every member feels they belong. Small shifts — teaching a patient, merciful God, framing repentance as an invitation to turn toward Christ, and leaving room for faith that coexists with uncertainty — can make a real difference. And when scrupulosity is causing significant distress, professional support can help. If you or someone in your class is struggling with OCD or anxiety, you can start your therapy journey with Mountain Home Center for Religious and Moral OCD by following these simple steps:
Meet with a skilled therapist
Start working with a clinician who understands scrupulosity to find compassionate, faith-sensitive care.
