The OCD Stories

In episode 314 I chat with Robert Fox. Rob is a therapist (LMHC) practicing in Woburn, USA. He specialises in internal family systems and EMDR therapy. We discuss his own OCD story, shame, internal family systems therapy, we discuss the idea of parts of ourselves, OCD as a protective part of us which may be possibly protecting exiled parts of us, what are exiled parts, he gives examples of IFS in action, we discuss anger, self-compassion, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/robert-fox-314 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 313 I chat with Dr David Burns. David is a psychiatrist, and is currently Adjunct Clinical Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He is the author of the best-selling book, Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy, as well as many other books, including the more recent book Feeling Great. David also developed the therapy TEAM-CBT. We discuss his therapy story, his own journey with anxiety, he tells plenty of stories to illustrate this, we discuss motivation for doing exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), he gives client case examples, the hidden emotion model, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-david-burns-313 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 312 I chat with Dr Steven Phillipson. Steven is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for OCD. Steven is the Clinical Director at the Center for Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy in New York. We discuss what is character indictment, the varied emotions behind OCD, confessing as a common compulsion of this theme, a different way to look at the concept of being a good or bad person, feeling like you don't deserve nice things, what the brains trying to do with OCD, how we demonstrate to the brain we are safe, Steve gives examples of character indictment OCD, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-steven-phillipson-312 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 311 I chat with Dr Sam Greenblatt. Sam is a licensed clinical psychologist. We discuss his own OCD setback and the learnings he got from it, we discuss the fear of being cancelled, cancel culture more generally, how the worry of cancel culture started with the 'me too' movement, how some people's OCD has latched on to this, using exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP) for this worry, we discuss the importance of focusing on the uncertainty not the themes, we then discuss pornography over utilisation to cope with OCD, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-sam-greenblatt-311 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 310 I chat with Sam who has kindly agreed to share her story with us. We discuss her story, a sexual assault that came before the OCD, worrying about getting an STI, pedophile themed OCD (pOCD), her compulsions, doing exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), medication and self stigma, what else helps her, where she's at now, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-sam-310 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 309 I chat with Emily Hemendinger. Emily is a lead OCD therapist at the University of Colorado Health Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic. We discuss her therapy story and mental health story including OCD and an eating disorder, cognitive flexibility, cognitive remediation therapy, working on perfectionism, social anxiety, social media and tips for the mindful use of it, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/emily-hemendinger-309 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 308 I chat with Angel Brown who has kindly agreed to share her story with us. We discuss her story, harm intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, health anxiety, her compulsions, fear of going crazy, doing exposure and response prevention (ERP), helping her family understand how to support her, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-angel-308 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 307 I chat with Eva Surawy Stepney. Eva is a research student studying for her PhD at the University of Sheffield. Her thesis title is, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and the foundations of 'evidence-based' practice in British Psychology, 1948-1990. In this episode we discuss who she is and her PhD research, her article 'guilty obsessions', the history of OCD, the history of psychoanalysis and the development of other psychotherapies such as ERP, the importance of Sigmund Freud to the early development of the conceptualisation of OCD, what separates OCD from phobias, how other emotions like guilt, doubt and disgust can be drivers of OCD, how Freud originally said this but how mainstream psychiatry focused only on fear until in more recent years where the research is showing that other emotions play a role too, we discuss the idea of trauma and potential links to OCD, the history of ERP, and the conference 'OCD in Society'. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/eva-guilty-obsessions-307 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 306 I chat with Dr Eli Lebowitz. Eli created the treatment approach SPACE which stands for Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions. SPACE is a parent-based treatment program for children and adolescents with anxiety, OCD, and related problems. Eli is director of the Program for Anxiety Disorders at the Yale Child Study Center. We discuss his therapy story, why he focused on helping families of people with OCD, what is SPACE, the negative consequences of accommodation, what SPACE consists of, the two core elements of SPACE which are to respond in a supportive manner and reduce accommodation, he gives case examples, sticking points in SPACE and ways to overcome them, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-eli-lebowitz-306 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 305 I chat with Sidney Aburi who has kindly agreed to share his story with us. We discuss his OCD story, intrusive thoughts around religion, avoiding school, the severity of his compulsions, worrying about leaving his country, studying abroad, suicidal themed OCD, sexual orientation themed OCD, his journey of finding effective therapy, panic, words of hope and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-sidney-aburi-305 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 304 I chat with Katie Strang. Katie is a therapist, who advocates on Instagram through the account OCD Illustrated. We discuss her OCD story, her themes, going to inpatient care, social anxiety, learning to take her symptoms less seriously, how she structures ERP now after therapy, we discuss how friends and family reducing accommodation can make OCD better, the value in connecting with people who have other symptoms than your own, words of hope and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-katie-strang-304 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 303 I chat with Tapio Antere. Tapio is an aspiring film director from Finland. He has kindly agreed to share his story with us. We discuss his story, sexual orientation themed OCD, health anxiety, gender identity themed OCD, going to inpatient treatment, meditation, having friends with OCD and sharing humour in tough times, how he views intrusive thoughts, words of hope, his core fear, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-tapio-antere-303 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 302 I chat with Dr Amy Mariaskin. Amy is a licensed clinical psychologist and director at The Nashville OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center. We get an update on Amy, Thriving in relationships with OCD, her book, attachment in relationships, relationship themed OCD, the importance of relationships, OCD and friendships, developing exposures to face OCD and strengthen relationships, values and committed action towards our values, disclosing OCD, and more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-amy-mariaskin-302 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. NOCD offers affordable, effective, convenient therapy available in the US and outside the US. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 301 I chat with Lucy who has kindly agreed to share her story. In this episode we talk about her story, developing an eating disorder, going to residential treatment, using substances, the effects and trauma from abusive relationships including sexual assault, suicidal themed OCD, somatic OCD, harm themed OCD, some of her compulsions, getting diagnosed, her experience of doing exposure and response prevention (ERP), worrying about coronavirus and moral scrupulosity, obsessing over medication, the powerful moments in therapy that resonated with her, the trauma of OCD, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-lucy-301 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In this special episode, Aaron Harvey interviews Crystal Anderson. Aaron chats with Crystal about her story, violent intrusive thoughts, going to inpatient treatment, getting diagnosed in her thirties, how her themes change week to week, getting intrusive thoughts about her dog, sexual orientation and existential themed OCD, they talk about race and culture and how this can impact access to care and community, they discuss advocacy, when people use the term "I'm so OCD", depression, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/aaron-harvey-crystal-anderson Thanks to OCDPeers for sponsoring this week's special edition of the podcast. To find out about their peer support groups for OCD, and to meet others head to www.ocdpeers.com

In episode 300 I took some time to reflect on the last 6 years and 300 episodes. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for listening, and to acknowledge where the shows been, and where's it's going. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/stuart-300 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

Dr Patrick McGrath head of clinical services at NOCD interviews Dr Alec Pollard Founding Director of the Center for OCD & Anxiety-Related Disorders (COARD). In this episode they talk about Alec's therapy story, what areas of OCD have his interest currently, developing an approach to help families of loved ones who refuse therapy, developing his OCD institute in St Louis, why it's exposure and response prevention (ERP) not exposure therapy, the importance of the RP of ERP, the influence of Joseph Wolpe to OCD therapy, how anger inhibits anxiety, panic disorder, learning to adapt to uncertainty, and much more. Hope that helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/mcgrath-pollard The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 299 I chat with Justin Hughes. Justin is a licensed professional counsellor in Dallas, Texas who specializes in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). In this episode I chat with Justin about some of the barriers that get in the way of Christians seeking treatment, he share's some relevant scripture, why OCD is not a spiritual problem, seeing a therapist regardless of their own faith, the concept of common grace, we discuss miracles, uncertainty and Christianity, doing exposure and response prevention (ERP) without crossing the client's religious and personal values, dealing with the guilt and shame of having had certain intrusive thoughts, speaking with family member's who are hesitant about therapy, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/justin-hughes-299 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In this episode peer support specialist Chrissie Hodges interviews Chance McNeely. Chrissie chats with Chance about his story, how culture can develop/influence themes, childhood trauma, their upbringings, struggling to speak up as children, self-compassion, trauma from OCD, shame, peer support, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/chrissie-hodges-chance-mcneely Thanks to OCDPeers for sponsoring this week's special edition of the podcast. To find out about their peer support groups for OCD, and to meet others head to www.ocdpeers.com

In episode 298 I interviewed Dr Jason Krompinger. Jason is a clinical psychologist at the OCD institute at McLean hospital. I chat with Jason about his therapy story, case formulation vs diagnosis, barriers to accessing exposure and response prevention (ERP), perfectionism, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), functional analytic psychotherapy (FAP), we discuss the role of the 'self', and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/jason-krompinger-298 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In this special edition of The OCD Stories former guest and OCD advocate Catherine Benfield interviews Steve Brumwell. Steve is a writer and director, he is currently working on his short film about OCD called 'Waving'. In this episode they discuss Steve's story, hiding the disorder, how a documentary helped him understand what was going on, they discuss harm intrusive thoughts, becoming a parent, self-harm, how his OCD interfered with some of his therapy, men's mental health, they talk about his short film 'Waving', and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/catherine-benfield-steve-brumwell The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 297 I interviewed Kimberley Quinlan. Kim is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who treats people with OCD and related disorders, Eating Disorders and Body Focused Repetitive Disorders. She runs her own podcast called Your Anxiety Toolkit. She also runs CBTschool.com. In this episode we talk about her new book 'The Self-Compassion Workbook for OCD', the roadblocks to self-compassion, applying self-compassion to Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP), some of the exercises and practices in the book, why Jon Hershfield wrote the foreword to the book, Kim guides us through a self-compassion practice, how self-compassion can help you lean into fear, setting boundaries as an act of self-compassion, feeling like you don't deserve compassion, we discuss self-criticism, when Kim has had to practice self-compassion for herself recently, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/kim-quinlan-compassion-297 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

Full episode out this Sunday. We discuss her new book 'The Self-Compassion Workbook for OCD: Lean into Your Fear, Manage Difficult Emotions, and Focus On Recovery'. Kimberley's new book: https://amzn.to/3kSiUd2 Disclaimer - this podcast is not a replacement for therapy. Please seek treatment from a trained professional.

In episode 296 I interviewed Dr Nicola Petrocchi. Nicola is a licensed CBT psychotherapist based in Rome, Adjunct Professor of Psychology at John Cabot University (Rome) and student counsellor. We discuss his therapy story, what is compassion-focused therapy (CFT), the evolutionary view of the mind, how CFT fits in with other therapies, his study: what it is, what it found. We talk about viewing OCD from a compassionate lens, the science behind compassion, we discuss different types of guilt, different exercises in CFT, working with the inner critical voice, we discuss some of the resistances to doing CFT, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/nicola-petrocchi-cft-296 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 295 I interviewed Jamie Lewis who has kindly agreed to share his story with us. I chat with Jamie about his story, building up the courage to speak to a doctor, pure O, somatic OCD, relationship OCD, perfectionism, derealisation, working with Dr Steven Phillipson, we talk about Steve's podcast episode 'brain voice vs gatekeeper voice', peer support, the concept of irrelevance, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-jamie-295 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 294 I interviewed Jon Hershfield. Jon is a psychotherapist and the director of The Center for OCD and Anxiety, at Sheppard Pratt. He is the author of six OCD books, including his most recent book the 2nd edition of, "The mindfulness workbook for OCD". I chat with Jon about what's new with him, what is false memory OCD, real event OCD, the problem with compulsively reviewing memories or thoughts, how this theme of OCD links into moral scrupulosity, some of the compulsions linked to this theme, dealing with the uncertainty, rumination, when you're worried to go to therapy, mindfulness around this theme, why the difference between a false memory or a real one doesn't matter and why we shouldn't try to figure it out, why drinking alcohol can make OCD worse, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/jon-hershfield-false-memory-294 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 293 I interviewed Micah Howe who has kindly agreed to share his story with us. I chat with Micah about his OCD story, growing up as an evangelical Christian, his early memories of anxiety, fears of perfection, worries of offending people, how OCD impacted his faith, hoarding behaviours, scrupulosity, health anxiety, the process of getting therapy, advocacy, medication, setting up an IOCDF affiliate in IOWA, words of hope, and much more. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-micah-howe-293 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 292 I interviewed Nathan Peterson. Nathan is an OCD specialist who practices in Allen, Texas. He works with OCD, anxiety, tics and Tourettes, and BFRB's such as hair pulling and skin picking. He has a YouTube channel where he posts weekly videos about OCD and other anxiety related disorders. I chat with Nathan about his therapy journey, the difference between doing an exposure (ERP) vs. being exposed, examining the day ahead to find opportunities for proactive ERP and identifying compulsions, why it's important to actively do ERP vs being exposed, the importance of reducing compulsions to help our brains learn new information around the things we worry about, ideas for sticking to ERP homework, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/nathan-peterson-292 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 290 I interviewed Dr Steven Phillipson. Steven is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for OCD. Steven is the Clinical Director at the Center for Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy in New York. We discuss two of the most common spike themes of OCD: What if this never goes away, and how do I know this is OCD and not an authentic concern?, he normalises the process of OCD and the emotions that fuel it, the mistakes some people make in their recovery mindset, when OCD pops up in your mind when you wake, we discuss the idea of irrelevance, the recovery mindset, he shares plenty of examples and illustrations, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-steven-phillipson-290 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 289 I interviewed Malia who has kindly agreed to share her story. I chat with Malia about her story, her earliest OCD memory, emetophobia, somatic obsessions, medication, how the themes of OCD changed over the years, postpartum OCD, depersonalisation/derealisation, feeling guilty because of the thoughts, going through intensive outpatient treatment, how her husband also meet with other family members for OCD support, how her mindset of OCD has changed, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-malia-289 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 288 I interview Dr Elizabeth Forrester. Liz is a consultant clinical psychologist in London. I chat with Liz about her therapy story, her research into rumination, normalising intrusive thoughts, the difference between thinking and thought, the process of rumination, examples of rumination, healthy vs unhealthy distraction, what actually is exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-liz-forrester-288 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 287 I interviewed Saleha Hansbhai who has kindly agreed to share her story. I chat with Saleha about her story, her earliest OCD memory, violent intrusive thoughts, religious themed OCD, seeking reassurance, checking, confessing, getting multiple incorrect diagnoses, having suicidal thoughts, medication, later on experiencing suicidal themed OCD, getting hospitalised, eventually getting the right diagnosis, starting Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP), going to the IOCDF conference, meeting others with OCD, relapsing, how her father now uses her experience to educate others in the Muslim community who are suffering, why she shares her story, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-saleha-287 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 286 I interviewed Marion Maw who has kindly agreed to share her family story and advocacy in New Zealand. In this episode I chat with Marion about her daughter's OCD story, and her parent story, moral worries (scrupulosity), getting therapy for her daughter, what she learned as a parent of a child experiencing OCD, sharing common feelings together, getting started in advocacy, the advocacy initiatives she's involved with in New Zealand, how she uses her unique experience to advocate, her experience of advocating, words of hope and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-marion-286 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 285 I interviewed Dr Michael Greenberg. Michael is a licensed clinical psychologist. In this episode I chat with Michael about his reflections on his first episode, Michael's articles, what is somatic/sensorimotor OCD, depersonalisation/derealisation, how rumination can maintain somatic symptoms, the difference between awareness and attention, he reads his exercise from the article 'how to stop paying attention', the 6 things that get in the way when trying not to ruminate, how he treats somatic OCD, removing analysis and avoidance, we discuss mindfulness and why it may not be good for OCD in Michael's opinion, practicing reducing rumination, and much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-michael-greenberg-285 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

This is a live interview I did with Catherine Benfield at the OCD Action conference. We discuss her story, maternal OCD, getting support from her husband, starting her advocacy journey, raising awareness of perinatal OCD among midwives, working on kindness and self-compassion because of the way she felt about herself, her blog Taming Olivia, changing the perception of OCD, becoming an executive producer on a short film about OCD, and much more. Hope it helps. Find out more about Catherine: Catherine's first appearance on the podcast: https://theocdstories.com/episode/catherine-benfield-perinatal-and-postnatal-ocd-ep114/ and her second appearance: https://theocdstories.com/episode/catherine-benfield-stigma-reduction-the-bbc-ocd-ep154/ Taming Olivia blog - https://www.tamingolivia.com/ Resources mentioned: Find out more about OCD Action - https://ocdaction.org.uk/ Living with perinatal OCD - Journal of Midwifery https://www.magonlinelibrary.com/doi/full/10.12968/bjom.2018.26.11.700 Ruji Rahman podcast episode - https://theocdstories.com/episode/ruji-rahman-cbt-compassion-and-uncertainty-ep156/ Maternal OCD charity - https://maternalocd.org/ Ethan Smith on the podcast - https://theocdstories.com/episode/ethan-smith-if-i-can-then-you-can-too-ep118/ Functional Analytic Psychotherapy episode - https://theocdstories.com/episode/nate-gruner-283/ The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 284 I interviewed Gen Skeja who has kindly agreed to share his story. I chat with Gen about his story, sexual intrusive thoughts, sexual orientation OCD, moving abroad to avoid the thoughts, finding out about OCD, reading about OCD, interviewing therapists to find a good match, panic attacks, the process of therapy, and much much more. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-gen-284 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 283 I interviewed Nate Gruner. Nate is a staff Behavioral Therapist at McLean OCD institute. We talk about his therapy story, what is functional analytic psychotherapy (FAP), the interpersonal aspects of therapy, the importance of the therapeutic relationship, how FAP can be useful for OCD, he gives client in-session examples, using FAP, ACT and ERP together, doing exposures to build intimacy, we discuss clinically relevant behaviours (CRBs), and much much more. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/nate-gruner-283 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 282 I interviewed Dr Michael Twohig, Dr Patricia Zurita Ona and Jonny Say. Michael is a licensed psychologist and researcher, Patricia is a clinical psychologist, and Jonny is an integrative counsellor. In this episode I chat with Michael, Patricia and Jonny about their backgrounds and what brought them to acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), where ACT adds value to OCD treatment, how they use ACT alongside exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), we discuss the compulsion of rumination and how ACT can target it, how ACT targets other difficult emotions that can go alongside OCD, how ACT can work on other issues alongside OCD, how values can be useful to guiding life decisions, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/act-for-ocd-282 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 281 I interviewed Dr Sam Greenblatt. Sam is a licensed clinical psychologist. I chat with Sam about the effectiveness of exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP), the habituation model of ERP, why habituation isn't always needed, what is the inhibitory learning theory model of ERP, why has it improved on the habituation model, how inhibitory learning theory looks in a therapy session, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/sam-greenblatt-281 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 280 I interviewed Brian Sullivan who has kindly agreed to share his story with us. I chat with Brian about his story, divorce, bullying, depression, medication, suicidal ideation, working with the wrong therapist, then finding a helpful therapist, hospitalisation and how Brian found that helpful, what Brian has learned in therapy about OCD and life, going back to studying, we talk about Asexuality, words of hope, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-brian-280

In episode 279 I chat with Sheryl Paul. Sheryl is a counselor informed by Jungian depth psychology, and author of the book The wisdom of anxiety. In this episode we chat about her story, transitions such as marriage, birth, death and the anxiety they can bring. We discuss the highly sensitive person, we talk a lot about relationship anxiety, we explore differing views of OCD and the integration of certain therapies with CBT, we discuss a Jungian view of OCD, the spirituality and beauty of ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention) and facing fear as an innate human skill, the timetable of healing, emptiness, the Jungian idea of gathering gold, and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/sheryl-paul-279 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 278 I chat with Eeva Edds. Eeva is a licensed professional counselor. In this episode, we talk about her therapy story, what is caregiver burnout, how to prevent caregiver burnout, self-care, understanding your loved one's experience of OCD, understanding accommodation, how the loved one can help the person with OCD, self-compassion, values, and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/eeva-edds-278 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 277 I interviewed Kyle who has kindly agreed to share his story with us. In this episode, we talk about his story, health/contamination worries, panic attacks, work stress, worries of harm coming to his kids, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Inference Based Therapy (IBT), what else helps him, opening up to his wife, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-kyle-277 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 276 I interviewed Rachel Huber. Rachel has kindly agreed to share her story with us. In this episode, we talk about her OCD story, maternal (Postpartum) OCD, worrying about the health and safety of her children, her therapy journey, and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/story-rachel-276 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 275 I interviewed Dr Steven Phillipson. Steven is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for OCD. Steven is the Clinical Director at the Center for Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy in New York. In this episode, we talk about his thinking around the brain voice vs gatekeeper voice, knowing the difference between the brain voice and the gatekeeper voice, we do a role play using one of the areas that cause me anxiety, he uses this role play to demonstrate the brain voice vs the gatekeeper voice, the idea of writing the headline with the gatekeeper, the paradox of anxiety, self-compassion for the brain voice, and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/dr-phillipson-brain-voice-gatekeeper-voice-275 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 274 I interviewed Shai Friendland. Shai is a clinical psychologist in Johannesburg, South Africa. He specialising in the treatment of OCD. In this episode we talk about his OCD story, contamination worries, what led him to become a psychologist, we talk about OCD in South Africa, increasing advocacy in the country, living with uncertainty, words of hope, and much more more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/shai-friedland-274 The podcast is made possible by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 273 I interviewed Dr Michael Twohig. Michael is the co-director of the USU ACT Research Group, a licensed psychologist in the state of Utah, and a Professor of Psychology at Utah State University. In this episode I chat with Michael about his research and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) story, his experience of training under Dr Steven Hayes, what is ACT, why he studied ACT initially as a sole intervention for OCD and what he found, he breakdowns the 8 session ACT protocol he used in his research, we talk about psychological flexibility and why it's important, we talk about cognitive defusion, integrating ACT with Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), how bringing in values into therapy can helpful, some of the metaphors he likes for OCD, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/michael-twohig-273 The podcast is made possible by and sponsored by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 272 I interview Elke Atzpodien. Elke shared her story in episode 102 back in 2017, and she has come on to give us an update. In this episode I chat with Elke about an update on her story, her experiences of Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP), group therapy, support groups, meeting Margot her therapy buddy, mixing exposure homework with valued activities, stopping asking for reassurance, how her husband had also suffered and decided to go to therapy to help process the 20 years of experiencing OCD in the home, her peer support training, stigma and self stigma, dealing with OCD during supporting her father through cancer treatment, the ideas of OCD treatment that helped her, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/elke-272 The podcast is made possible by and sponsored by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 271 I interview Dr Ben Sedley. Ben is a clinical psychologist from New Zealand. He has authored two books, and runs a private practice called ACT Wellington. In this episode I chat with Ben about his therapy journey, what is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), how Relational Frame Theory (RFT) underpins ACT, how ACT can be useful for OCD, Ben gives examples of how ACT enhances ERP, ACT's view of suffering, we talk about grief and OCD, his and Lisa Coyne's book 'Stuff that's loud' an ACT book for teens with OCD, his book 'Stuff that sucks', the importance of listening to teens, the ACT metaphors Ben likes, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/ben-sedley-271 The podcast is made possible by and sponsored by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories

In episode 270 I chat with Laura Johnson. Laura is the creator of OCD Doodles and has kindly agreed to share her story with us. In this episode I chat with Laura about her story, her earliest experience, existential and superstitious worries, how as a kid seeing a school shooting on TV triggered worries of harm coming to her family, how OCD impacted her family as a child, contamination worries, relationship worries, drinking alcohol to self-medicate, seeking help, taking medication, her treatment journey from getting the wrong types of therapy, her negative experiences of working with a coach, finally getting therapy with a qualified therapist experienced in OCD, feeling guilty around harm OCD, parenting while dealing with OCD, and much much more. Hope it helps. Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/laura-johnson-ocd-doodles-270 The podcast is made possible by and sponsored by NOCD. To find out more about NOCD, their therapy plans and if they currently take your insurance head over to https://go.treatmyocd.com/theocdstories