I have a friend with OCD and while I'm no clinician, it seems to me that the most relevant factor, for her, is that she can't consciously (or subconsciously) decide what is relevant and what is not. Her mind can snap onto something and it just can't let it go. When she comes to visit, I hide the dogs' treat jar because it's clear and has lots of treats in it and her mind gets caught on the idea of "how many dog treats are in there?" She MUST count them. She's learned skills to be cope with it, but that's her world. In some ways, she's playing the video game of life on a harder mode than I am.

I'm lucky because I can be aware of the question, but also say, "that's irrelevant."

The vastness of the universe, the short span of my life, the massive multiplicity of human minds on earth at the same time. It's all cool and interesting, but is irrelevant to me. I can meditate on those things, and get lost in them, but then put them in back on the shelf with the full jar of dog treats. I don't need to count the dog treats. I don't need to do anything with the vastness of the universe. What is relevant to my short span of life is what I try to improve as much as I can, within the limits of my ability. Relevancy is different for everyone. It's pretty much up to you to decide for you, right?