Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) in Ventura and Online
Are You Suffering From Unwanted Thoughts and Rituals?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition characterized by persistent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors or mental acts (compulsions) that sufferers feel driven to perform. These obsessions and compulsions significantly interfere with daily functioning and lead to psychosocial distress.
Obsessions and compulsions are driven by anxiety. Sufferers may have an atypical relationship with threat, uncertainty, and attention to surrounding details.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is maintained and strengthened by ritualistic behavior, rumination, and avoidance. The good news is these behaviors can be stopped, which starves the beast of OCD.
The Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum
OCD has several related disorders that can be thought of as part of an OCD spectrum. Although the disorder was formally given it’s own category and removed from the Anxiety Disorders section of the DSM 5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) in 2013, many experts consider anxiety disorders as existing along the OCD spectrum due to the prevalence of obsessive worries often combined with compulsive reassurance seeking, compulsive avoidance, and intense difficulty with uncertainty.
Some of OCD’s related conditions don’t include anxious distress or fears something bad may happen if you don’t ritualize, but instead may involve compulsive repetitive behavior on its own. Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRB) fall into this category, as does compulsive overconsumption of digital technology, or what some call internet addiction (not a formal diagnosis recognized in the DSM at this time).
Common Presentations
Common obsessions include fears of contamination, fears of harming oneself or others, fears of losing control or losing something of great importance, worries about symmetry, orderliness, and bodily functions.
Compulsions often manifest as repeated hand washing, checking behaviors, research, arranging items in a particular manner, avoidance, and mental rituals such as rumination.
Mental rituals may include counting or praying in an excessive manner outside of a religion’s generally accepted norms, or repeatedly analyzing or reviewing the subject of one’s thoughts. Since rumination is an active mental behavior, we can learn to stop the behavior with the help of therapy.
Get Specialized Help
I offer highly effective exposure-based treatment tailored to meet the unique needs of each person struggling with OCD. I see clients in person Ventura or via Telehealth throughout the state. My compassionate approach helps you feel supported and understood as you work towards starting a new chapter. Contact to get started.
Therapy can help with many OCD themes
Contamination OCD
Religious scrupulosity
Just right OCD
Sensorimotor OCD
Harm and taboo OCD
Fear of going crazy
Health anxiety
Perinatal OCD
Relationship OCD
“Do not be afraid to face your difficulty. Turn toward it. Lean into the wind. Hold your ground.”
— Jack Kornfield
What Causes OCD?
The exact cause of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is not fully understood, but at this time it is believed to be a combination of genetic, neurological, and environmental factors. Individuals may have a history of other mental health conditions like depression, which can exacerbate symptoms.
What is effective treatment for OCD?
Treatment for OCD typically involves a combination of therapy and, in some cases, medication. Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), a form of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, is considered the gold standard treatment for treating OCD. ERP helps individuals confront their fears in a gradual and therapeutic manner, decreasing the anxiety triggered by obsessions and reducing the felt need to engage in compulsive behaviors.
Why do people obsess over certain topics or OCD themes?
Obsessional thoughts have a way of attaching themselves to what we fear or value most. For example, a new mother may obsess over her baby being harmed. Someone with high integrity and conscientious might obsess about being a good person. A person who experiences large amounts of career success might fear they’ll lose their job or something else of deep importance.
Some people fear they will accidentally do something awful or that they’re a horrible, immoral person. These thoughts are unwanted and out of character for the sufferer.
Some obsessive-compulsive sufferers try to arrange things just right, but it’s never enough. No matter how many times they do the ritual or avoid the trigger, the peace doesn’t last. The obsessional fears concerning what we care most about are strengthened.
Take Back Your Life
If you’re tired of this cycle—if anxiety and rituals cause distress—it may be time for professional help. Obsessions and compulsions have a way of making our lives small and robbing us of deeper social relationships and experiences. Over time we learn compulsive rituals and avoidance are short term inadequate solutions to our fears and actually increase the discomfort we’re trying to avoid.
FAQs
Do you offer in person therapy?
Yes, I enjoy providing therapy in person and many feel in person therapy is more effective in quickly building a therapeutic alliance and in addressing their particular OCD symptoms.
My office is located in the beach town of Ventura, California close to Santa Barbara, Ojai, Camarillo, Oxnard, Newbury Park, and Thousand Oaks. Online therapy is provided via HIPAA compliant Zoom for clients throughout the state of California.
What is your approach to treating OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?
I use exposure-based modalities with strong empirical support for recovery from obsessive-compulsive disorder and specific phobias. I practice holistically and use the following modalities when treating OCD:
Exposure and Response/Ritual Prevention (ERP), a form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Motivational Interviewing
Existential, meaning, and values-based principles
SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions)
Is exposure therapy trauma-informed?
Yes, the consent-based, gradual, and flexible nature of ERP, where exposure pacing is determined by the client’s comfort level, may be suitable for clients with a trauma history. Current studies suggest OCD and PTSD may be treated concurrently using ERP and Prolonged Exposure (PE). Co-occurring mental health disorders may be treated concurrently or sequentially. The American Psychological Association (APA) has designated Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Exposure-based therapy as the first line treatment for trauma.
Will I have to engage in exposures that are against my religious beliefs?
No. As an ERP therapist who strives to practice cultural humility, I would not intentionally ask you to do anything that was against your religion or deeply held beliefs. Since treatment planning is collaborative, you will help design exposures. No exposures will be forced on you from the top down. I work with many people of faith and respect the diverse beliefs and practices of my clients.
Can I keep my other therapist to process childhood adversity or weekly challenges while in treatment with you for OCD?
Yes, you can keep your existing therapist to talk through weekly difficulties and to process other issues, if you prefer. If you are using insurance to pay for treatment you will need to check their policy on having two therapists. I can also work with you on co-occurring mental health issues like depression and/or trauma history. To provide the best care, I will request to consult with your other therapist or medication prescriber about your treatment (with an appropriate release).
How many therapy sessions will I need for OCD recovery?
Recovery is a highly individualized process and it’s not possible to quote an exact number of sessions. The length of time for a successful course of ERP treatment depends on variables like severity of symptoms, co-occurring mental health conditions, life stressors, commitment to change, how frequent you come to therapy, how much home practice you do outside of therapy, and our working alliance. Outside of research settings, ERP is generally 20-35 once or twice per week sessions, however you may need more or less. The number of sessions varies based on your personal circumstances.
Do you see children and adults for treatment?
Yes. I treat child and teen anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and compulsive screen use. While I will see teens individually, the child therapy I practice is parent-based and family-centered.