How to Use Psychotherapy to Treat OCD

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) affects millions of people worldwide. An anxiety disorder, OCD causes a person to obsess on certain thoughts and/or perform compulsive rituals. Someone suffering from OCD often feels as if they have no control over these things. Fortunately, it is possible to use psychotherapy to treat OCD in many cases.

Instructions

Use Psychotherapy to Treat OCD

• 1

  Find a psychologist who specializes in cognitive psychotherapy. To maximize effectiveness, cognitive therapy must be done under the supervision and guidance of a trained professional.

• 2

  Practice ignoring your compulsions. For example, if you feel the need to turn the bathroom lights on and off ten times before leaving the room, try leaving the room without doing this. Your therapist will help you do this more often through positive reinforcement and other methods.

• 3

  Expose yourself to your fears. Some OCD compulsions involve not touching things that you see as "contaminated." This could be anything that someone else has touched or something that looks dirty. Your therapist may ask you to go ahead and touch these things in spite of your compulsions.

• 4

  Expect to experience some discomfort at first. Ignoring your compulsions will cause you anxiety and distress at first. As you continue to practice, however, this feeling should pass.

• 5

  Know that many people respond quickly to psychotherapy. This is due to the continual practice of ignoring the compulsions. The more often you practice something, the faster it will become easier for you.

• 6

  Know that as you gradually learn to ignore your compulsions, your obsessions will likely cause you less distress. Part of performing the compulsive activities as a part of OCD is to alleviate anxiety from the obsessions. When you no longer feel the need to perform the compulsions, your obsessions will probably not enter your mind as often.