OCD Treatment in New Jersey

What Is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

People with OCD experience recurring, unwanted thoughts, ideas or sensations referred to as “obsessions”. To get rid of the obsessions, they feel driven to do something repetitively, referred to as compulsions. The compulsions can vary from person to person and vary in intensity.

Therapists require specialized training to provide OCD treatment in New Jersey. Our therapists at Mind by Design have attended training’s, seminars and workshops to ensure that our services provide optimal outcomes for our clients.

We provide CBT and ERP, along with Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy. Read more about our VR Therapy treatment here: Virtual Reality Therapy in Mental Health Treatment

Two most common treatment approaches for OCD are:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a type of therapy that focuses on the connection between our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. CBT helps people identify and change negative patterns of thinking and behavior that may be causing them distress or preventing them from functioning at their best.

CBT in the therapy room

Your therapist will work with you to identify negative thought patterns, such as all-or-nothing thinking or catastrophic thinking. The therapist will then help you learn how to challenge and reframe these thoughts, so they are more balanced and rational.

Additionally, you and your therapist may work on developing new behaviors and coping strategies to replace negative ones.

CBT is a practical and goal-oriented therapy that often involves homework assignments, such as keeping a thought diary, to help you apply what you learn in therapy sessions to your daily life. The goal is to empower you to make long-lasting changes that can improve your quality of life and mental health.

Exposure & response prevention (ERP)

ERP works by helping you confront your obsessions without performing the accompanying compulsive behavior. The idea is that by gradually facing your fears and avoiding compulsive behaviors, you can decrease the hold that your obsessions have over you and reduce the anxiety associated with them.

ERP in the therapy room

Your therapist will with with you to create a list of your obsessions and the associated compulsions you use to cope with them. Your therapist will then help you gradually face your fears by exposing you to the obsessive thoughts or situations in a controlled and safe environment, and will help you learn how to resist the urge to perform the compulsive behavior.

For example, if you have an obsession about contamination, your therapist might have you touch a doorknob and then refrain from washing your hands for a certain period of time. Over time, you’ll learn that the anxiety associated with your obsessions decreases as you resist performing the compulsive behavior.

ERP can be a challenging therapy, as it requires you to face your fears head-on, but it is also an effective and evidence-based treatment for OCD that can lead to significant improvement in symptoms.

Alternative Approach:
Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy

Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) is a type of therapy that uses virtual reality technology to treat conditions like Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). With VRET, a patient can experience virtual simulations of real-life situations that trigger their obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors.

VRET can be a helpful tool for those who have trouble facing their fears in real life, or for those who need a more gradual and controlled exposure experience. It’s important to note that VRET should be used as a supplement to, not a replacement for, traditional ERP therapy and should only be used under the guidance of a mental health professional.

VR in the therapy room

All of our clients using VRT are provided with a headset to use at home and while in therapy sessions. You work with your therapist and are slowly introduced to the immersions and begin exposure therapy. The virtual environments are tailored to your exact needs. For example, if you have an obsession about contamination, you might experience a virtual scenario in which you touch a virtual doorknob and then navigate a virtual environment without performing the compulsive behavior of washing your hands.

The goal of VRET is to help you gradually face your fears and learn how to resist the urge to perform compulsive behaviors, just like in traditional ERP therapy. However, VRET allows you to do this in a controlled and safe virtual environment, which can be less intimidating and more manageable than real-life exposure therapy.