OCD Therapy
Are You Or Your Child Suffering With OCD?
Does your Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) feel like a bully who’s invaded your brain and taken over your life? Do intrusive thoughts related to contamination, harm, symmetry, religion, death, or other anxiety-triggering themes constantly flood your mind? To relieve distress, do you or your child engage in repetitive rituals—like hand-washing, checking, or counting—or mental compulsions, such as reviewing and analysis?
The symptoms of OCD can impact every aspect of your life. Not only are you burdened with disturbing thoughts that may feel foreign and don’t align with your values, but you are consumed by repetitive rituals that can take up hours of your day, causing delays and continuous stress.
You might struggle to manage your time properly as obsessions and compulsions threaten to disrupt daily routines, tasks, and deadlines. Or maybe you feel compelled to seek constant reassurance, whether by searching for answers online or from family and friends which causes frustration and strained relationships.
Avoidance Could Be Robbing You Of Happiness And Normalcy
Perhaps you commonly avoid social situations or going out in public due to fears of germs, personal safety, or not behaving or saying things perfectly. Sadly, your fear of contamination may lead to isolation and negatively impact your quality of life. As avoidance causes your world to become increasingly smaller and limited, you are deprived of the people and activities that bring you joy.
If you or your child is struggling to cope with the debilitating effects of obsessive-compulsive disorder, therapy is available that can help. By learning how to tolerate the discomfort of anxiety, you can gain mastery over intrusive thoughts and rituals and restore your sense of self.
Reach out today!
The Cause Of OCD Remains Unclear
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the “lifetime prevalence of OCD among U.S. adults is 2.3 percent. And among adults with OCD, approximately one half—50.6 percent—will have a serious impairment.” [1]
While so far, science hasn’t been able to pinpoint its exact cause, OCD can be linked to genetics or related to trauma. Additionally, its symptoms can be exacerbated by stress, social isolation, and poor sleep hygiene and often overlap with other mental health conditions, such as anxiety, depression, and trauma.
The Origins Of OCD Are Less Important Than Its Treatment
When we suffer from OCD, we may believe we must first know what’s causing it to treat it properly. Unfortunately, OCD is good at developing sneaky ways of staying active in our lives. This misguided belief is yet another example of how OCD keeps us stuck in its loop, causing us to resist seeking help when we so desperately need it.
If you are ready to gain the upper hand on OCD and embark on treatment, knowing the “why” doesn’t matter. It’s far more important to begin therapy with a willingness and desire to change. With the support of a knowledgeable therapist, you can gain a better understanding of obsessive-compulsive disorder so it’s no longer in control.
Therapy Can Help You Gain Mastery Over Obsessive-
Compulsive Disorder
When OCD negatively impacts your quality of life every day, it’s natural to feel helpless. You may worry you suffer from treatment-resistant OCD, especially if you’ve tried therapy before to no avail. Perhaps you’re wondering what would be different if you tried OCD counseling again.
When it comes to OCD, not all treatments are the same. At Theory and Method, our therapists are trained in Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP), the gold standard treatment for children, teens, and adults suffering from OCD. [2] By offering a therapy that specifically addresses obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms, you can finally break free from the fear and anxiety that’s been keeping you trapped.
What To Expect In Sessions
Therapy will be individualized to suit your specific needs. In addition to building rapport with you or your child, we will explain what treatment will look like, answer questions, and manage expectations. We strive to set a pace that will challenge you—moving neither too slowly nor too quickly—and will make adjustments whenever necessary.
The goal of treating OCD will be to lessen the distress associated with obsessions and reduce engaging in compulsions. However, in our initial assessment, we will explore the core themes of your OCD and determine what your specific goals for therapy are. Psychoeducation will also be provided before treatment begins so that you better understand what keeps OCD in place and what modifications you can make to diminish its symptoms.
When treating OCD in children, parents and caregivers play an active role. They will also receive psychoeducation about OCD, learning how they can respond supportively when their child is anxious and reduce any accommodations they may be making that could unknowingly exacerbate symptoms.
Exposure And Response Prevention Therapy (ERP) For OCD
Living with OCD can feel like there’s a tiger in the room with you that constantly needs to be fed. With Exposure and Response Prevention therapy, you will learn that the way to get OCD under control is to let the tiger starve.
Utilizing ERP in a safe and comfortable environment, you will be guided by your OCD counselor to resist engaging in the compulsions you have come to rely on to alleviate fears and anxieties. Through a gradual process of exposure, both in sessions and at home, you will accept that anxiety does not last forever and will decrease over time, thereby reducing the intensity of the urges to perform rituals.
In addition to ERP, your therapist may include other evidence-based treatments, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), EMDR, and mindfulness.
Evidence-based treatment can help you find relief from symptoms. With the right support, you can develop a sense of resilience and confidence in managing OCD long-term, allowing more bandwidth for the things you care about and the people you love.
But Maybe You’re Not Sure If Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Therapy Is Right For You…
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If you or your child has tried obsessive-compulsive disorder therapy with no beneficial results, you’re not alone. NOCD reports that “receiving an OCD diagnosis and effective treatment can take 14 to 17 years on average for adults.” [2]
At Theory and Method, we are pleased to offer Exposure and Response Prevention. We can tailor this effective form of OCD treatment to meet your specific needs, allowing you to make progress more quickly. With ERP therapy techniques, you can decrease OCD thoughts and behaviors and get back to the life you’ve put on hold.
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While it may feel like these rituals keep you safe, they don’t. Engaging in compulsions may provide temporary relief from anxiety, but they won’t in fact prevent harmful outcomes.
Unfortunately, compulsions merely reinforce the cycle of anxiety that keeps you stuck. Utilizing ERP, we can gradually dismantle the endless loop of obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors that have taken over your life. ERP therapy, the gold standard treatment for OCD has been shown to improve daily functioning and reduce the depression associated with OCD. [3]
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Experiencing intrusive thoughts is a universal human experience. However, when you have OCD, they get stuck in a loop, making them feel more significant than they actually are.
No matter how distressing, they are just thoughts and don’t reflect your actions or intentions. In therapy, we can help you understand the nature of obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors so you can better differentiate the disorder from you as a person.
If You’re Ready For Things To Change, We’re Here For You
Breaking the cycle of OCD is a decision you won’t regret. If you would like to find out more about obsessive-compulsive disorder therapy with us, please click here to schedule a free 15-minute call.
[1] https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd
[2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6343408/
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