Jenna Ortega opens up about her experience with OCD

Jenna Ortega has lifted the lid on what it's like to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

The Wednesday actress revealed in a cover interview with U.S. Vogue magazine that she realised there was something different about the way her mind worked when she was only seven years old.

Jenna, now 24, shared that she used to wake up early, before her five siblings, and perform a specific routine before school every morning.

"I had to open the bedsheet a certain way, and open the drawer one way, and brush my hair in a slow-paced way," she said.

The Scream actress believes that her behaviour was an early manifestation of OCD, a mental health condition featuring unwanted, intrusive thoughts and repetitive acts, or compulsions.

"There's a lot of different trains rolling in my brain at the same time," she added.

The actress admitted that if she's tired, jet-lagged or anxious, "I just bite the bullet and do the routine", to help ease her distress.

According to Ortega, her routine involves repeating the words "take care" a certain number of times over the course of the day, entering a set with her left foot first, and holding her breath and counting to 71.

The Klara and the Sun star has tried medication and therapy and has also attempted to reframe OCD as a game, which she believes has helped "take some of the pressure off".

While her acting career can be stressful, it also offers her an escape when the cameras are rolling.

"You have to breathe. That's another reason why I like my job," she explained.

Ortega has been open about her experience with OCD in the past. In a 2025 interview with the U.K.'s Heart radio, she gave insight into her evening wind-down routine.

"I have pretty intense OCD. Repetitive thoughts and counting everything multiple times and having to do the same action over and over," she said.

"Sometimes my nights consist of just being really exhausted and going up and down the stairs six times because that's what I think I need to do to make sure no one breaks into my home."