Finding a Therapist for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

[Daniel E.]

Finding a Therapist for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
By Charles H. Elliott, Ph.D.
PsychCentral blog: Anxiety & OCD Exposed
May 20, 2009

We recommend that people with OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) get help from a therapist with experience and training in cognitive behavioral therapy. Specifically you want a therapist trained in a technique called exposure and response prevention. Many of our readers with OCD have asked for directions on finding a good, well trained therapist. Here are a few web sites that list therapists. Of course, we don’t know all of the names on these lists, but generally the therapists will have training in this area.

Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies This site has listings of therapists all over the world. The Association encourages the study, practice, and development of scientifically validated treatments in the area of cognitive behavior therapy (which the specific technique, exposure and response prevention is based upon).

Academy of Cognitive Therapy This organization certifies therapists who have been trained in cognitive therapy. Many, if not most of these therapists are also well schooled in cognitive behavior therapy.

Obsessive Compulsive Foundation This nonprofit organization delivers education to the public and professionals about OCD. You can find lots of articles and information about books and workshops. A list of therapists trained in treating OCD is also available.

When therapists are on one or more of these lists, there is a greater likelihood that they have had experience and training in the treatment of OCD than those not on the lists. But you should still inquire about specific expertise in treating OCD. However, all therapists do not choose to be listed in this manner. Some may have full practices, or prefer to have referrals directly from a particular source. Professional associations at the state level (in social work, counseling, psychology, and psychiatry) also often provide referrals.

However, much as you want expertise in treating OCD, there are a few additional things to consider when working with a therapist. After you’ve made a selection and begun your work, you want to ask yourself a few questions such as:

• Do you feel comfortable talking about everything with your therapist?
• Does your therapist allow you to express your feelings about therapy?
• Do you feel understood by your therapist?
• Does your therapist seem nonjudgmental for the most part?
• Does your therapist help you to establish goals of therapy?
• Do you feel that there is a plan for helping you achieve these goals?

For many, getting psychotherapy can be a somewhat scary proposition. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness, but one of great courage. It can take additional courage to decide that you need to find a different therapist. But if your answers to the above list of questions are not uniformly positive, that’s probably what you should do. First try to raise your concerns with your therapist. If the answers don’t feel right, a second opinion never hurts. The last thing you want to do with OCD is to work with someone for a long time and feel judged, not heard, or not have a reasonable set of goals and plans for getting you where you want to go.

Charles H. Elliott, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and a Founding Fellow in the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. He is the coauthor of many books, including Obsessive Compulsive Disorder For Dummies.

 

[Daniel E.]

Questions to ask prospective therapists are in this book excerpt:

The OCD Workbook: Your Guide to Breaking Free - Google Books

 

[Daniel E.]

How to Find Help for OCD - Psychology Today

 

[Daniel E.]

Finding a therapist for "Pure O" OCD: 5 Things to Watch Out For

 

[Daniel E.]

Top Mistakes Made by Therapists Treating OCD

 

[turninpoint]

This article may help: https://www.turningpointpsychology.ca/ocd-clinic

 

[Daniel E.]

What we would like our therapists to know | OCD-UK

www.ocduk.org

By the OCD-UK Young Ambassadors

• "What I found helpful was looking back and acknowledging how far you’ve come and how much you’ve changed. Not only in terms of rituals but also the gained confidence and new characteristics. This motivated me to keep going as I realised that my quality of life had improved so much already because of therapy and I wanted it to continue improving. What I didn’t find so helpful was the lack of contact between therapists and schools. Both my therapist and school were great but I think that it would’ve been useful for my school to have had more knowledge on my therapy and how it was impacting me."
  
  
• “My helpful suggestion for therapists would be to try to maintain contact with their patients daily so that they feel supported and can stay motivated. I started having some one-to-one therapy in January, which I have since stopped, but many of my appointments were cancelled and my therapist rarely contacted me outside of sessions, even if I had sent them a message. I felt like they did not really care how I was doing therefore I lacked motivation to achieve my targets.”
  
  
• "It is helpful when the therapist/whoever making it clear there is absolutely no judgement from them and reminding you their job is to help you - you’re not a burden on them. Something not so helpful is when assuming things about a person’s OCD. Nobody has the exact same OCD and understanding it manifests itself in many different ways."
  
  
• "One positive I have from therapy is when they validate and recognise how scared/exhausted you are. It is hard when they misunderstand your anxiety as a desire."
  
  
• "You often only have a certain number of sessions to complete your therapy in and this strict timeline does not allow for changes to the schedule of your therapy. So I often find that after a few sessions of therapy, when I am more comfortable and have got to know the therapist better, there is no time for me to talk about something that has played a major part in my OCD worsening or a traumatic incident for example. This leads to my therapy basically being wasted and ineffective because there wasn’t enough time to get to the root of my issues."

 

[Daniel E.]

Another way to find an OCD therapist is to ask a psychiatrist who specializes in OCD. My psychiatric nurse practitioner (who serves all of Arizona by telehealth) works with a few such therapists.