Noah Kahan reveals OCD diagnosis helped explain childhood rituals and long-struggled symptoms

Kahan revealed that he was under the influence that OCD was like 'I need to wash my hands a hundred times'

Noah Kahan is opening up about how receiving an obsessive-compulsive disorder diagnosis helped him better understand behaviors and rituals he had experienced since childhood.

In conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Kahan said he previously had a narrow understanding of obsessive-compulsive disorder, assuming it only involved repeated handwashing and visible compulsions.

“I was under the influence of the idea that OCD was like, ‘I need to wash my hands a hundred times,’” Kahan explained. “But I didn’t realize how much more there was to it.”

The Stick Season singer said the diagnosis gave him a new perspective on longstanding patterns in his life.

“I started putting all these pieces together from my childhood, and these different rituals I’ve had my whole life,” he said. “It wasn’t just anxiety or being stressed. It was this real insidious disorder that I was struggling with.”

Kahan has spoken openly in recent years about his mental health, including experiences with anxiety and depression, and has used his platform to encourage more honest conversations about psychological well-being.