Can talk therapy help OCD?
Behavioral therapy can be very effective. A special type of behavioral therapy called “exposure-and-response prevention” is especially popular. In this approach, you are exposed directly to one of your obsessions. But then you are prevented from doing the ritual that helps you get rid of your anxiety (temporarily, that is). For instance, your mental health professional may encourage you to touch something that you think is dirty. But you will not be allowed to wash your hands. After you’ve done this work for about 10 weeks, your symptoms will begin to disappearalthough maybe not completely. Some mental health professionals suggest follow-up sessions after the first round of treatment to make sure that your symptoms don’t come back again. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is also helpful to some people with OCD. This kind of therapy helps people change their beliefs and thinking patterns. Traditional psychotherapy, which helps people explore and understand their problems, is usually not that
