How is OCD treated?
So you’re starting to think that some of the intrusive thoughts, anxiety, fear, and behaviors you can’t seem to get any control over might be related to OCD. This realization might feel overwhelming, and you might not be sure what comes next. Is there a way to find some relief and feel better from something so consuming?
What Does OCD Treatment Look Like?
After seeing what treatment for OCD looks like, you might keep hearing or reading that the next best step for OCD is therapy, specifically a type of therapy and treatment called ERP or Exposure Response Prevention. But what does that even mean? What does that entail? Something about exposing yourself to your fears? No, thank you. But before you swear it off entirely, let’s dive in and look closer; maybe it won’t be so bad!
What is ERP therapy ?
ERP, or Exposure and Response Prevention, is a type of therapy that essentially helps “retrain your brain” to become less reactive to your thoughts, especially the ones that feel sticky, obsessive, and scary. ERP helps with this by teaching your brain that the things that trigger your OCD may not be as frightening, threatening, accurate, or even as likely to happen as they may seem.
Let’s break it down a little more. The “E” or exposure piece of this therapy can look similar to what the phrase facing your fears entails. This exposure is usually to the fearful things or ideas that your OCD is going on and on about in your mind. Your exposure in ERP would be exposing yourself to the things that cause fear or anxiety. Exposing yourself to something you don’t want to can sound pretty scary, uncertain, and intimidating. However, one of the most important things to remember about ERP is that you are walking through this process with a highly trained clinician specializing in this type of treatment.
OCD treatment can help you learn Tools and skills to overcome!
San Diego, Ca based OCD treatment is available
ERP- OCD treatment helps you learn in small steps
It is also important to remember that these exposures start and increase with gradual control. In ERP, this process is called creating a “hierarchy” or “ladder.” This process is a valuable, almost centerpiece, for your OCD treatment! Before starting any exposures, you will work carefully and closely with your therapist to create exposure plans specific to you.
The “R” or Response in ERP speaks to the types of “responses” you might have toward your OCD thoughts and fears. Are you avoiding something that triggers your OCD thoughts? Are you doing a little ritual in your head or as an outward behavior when you feel triggered? Or maybe you have to check something when these thoughts come up? These are a few examples of the response of compulsive behavior to your OCD. The “P,” or prevention piece, is working to prevent or not do these responses in the face of feeling triggered and all the emotions and feelings that come with it.
When you put it all together, ERP is quintessentially facing your triggers and not responding with any kind of behavior you might have done in the past to try to get rid of any anxiety and uncomfortable feelings.
Evidenced Based OCD treatment
Examples of ERP treatment
So what does this look like? Here’s a simple example of how ERP might apply to someone’s OCD that focuses on contamination or a fear of getting sick or spreading germs
If you struggle with contamination OCD, your exposures might start with touching something that is just a little unsettling or dirty/contaminated to you, like a TV remote, and the response prevention would be not needing to wash your hands or disinfect the remote immediately. The goal is to be able to sit with your thoughts that might come about getting sick or spreading germs upon this exposure and still actively engage in whatever activity you were doing before, like enjoying a TV show!
Over time, and with maybe more frequent exposures or exposures that require you to stay around a triggering activity for a little bit longer, you might work yourself up to exposures of things that you think are dirtier and still be able to resist the compulsion and engage in response prevention.
ERP Treatment for OCD
This gradual exposure is where your brain can start retraining itself: by not doing compulsions, you help send the messages to your brain that, actually, your anxiety and fear can lessen on their own without your help, and the bad things you’re afraid of, well, they don’t exactly happen. Experiencing this process over and over again is where the OCD cycle can break, you’ll start finding freedom within your mind again, and you will learn to trust in yourself and not fear.
OCD treatment- ERP evidenced based therapy
OCD never has to be something you have to face on your own, and neither does its treatment. While ERP can be challenging and not exactly fun, it does not have to be scary, inaccessible, or something you must learn on your own. Starting treatment is one of the most critical steps to healing, and we want to congratulate you on making this decision for yourself! Many people with OCD experience ERP as the form of treatment that really helps make a long-lasting difference in their lives: by learning the skills to face your fears head-on with a trained ERP clinician, you can work together to take better control over your OCD in a way that feels supported, safe, and tailored for you.
San Diego OCD treatment - Available in person
Here at Resilience Counseling we are specialize in ERP treatment. If you are considering treatment options and are curious about what ERP and OCD treatment could be like for you, please book a free call to learn more and speak to one of our clinicians!
