Treatment Approaches
Emotion regulation, mindfulness, and values-based therapy for obsessive-compulsive conditions
Face-to-face connection in a comfortable Ventura office. A good fit for clients who live locally and prefer in-person therapy for OCD and anxiety conditions.
Online therapy with HIPAA-compliant Telehealth from anywhere in California. Great for busy schedules and people who live outside Ventura County. Hybrid options are available.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and OCD
It's normal to feel some discomfort in standard Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) treatment for OCD. In fact, all effective psychotherapy should be somewhat challenging as you learn to be present with emotions previously avoided. Good therapy should encourage new and more adaptive ways of approaching life's stressors, which may be uncomfortable at times. Although traditional ERP welcomes the discomfort involved in growth, some clients initially need additional emotion regulation skills to feel ready to participate in ERP. DBT can be used to gently strengthen emotion regulation and distress tolerance skills to supplement ERP. This integrative approach is endorsed by the International OCD Foundation as an evidence-based adjunctive therapy to improve response to the gold-standard ERP treatment. DBT does not replace ERP, but rather it is used to enhance or compliment treatment.
DBT works by helping clients shift towards more effective ways of responding to difficult emotions. It can help you feel a sense of slowing down to make a deliberate choice to stop compulsions while learning to tolerate, and in some cases, change, the full range of emotional experience. Combined with the trusting therapeutic relationship, DBT can help you feel grounded as you use your agency to stop unhelpful patterns of coping, such as compulsions, rumination, and avoidance.
Research supports the use of DBT to augment traditional ERP. Studies show with regular practice between therapy sessions, DBT can help to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression associated with OCD. DBT may also improve self-compassion and the ability to feel present while mindfully making the necessary changes to break old cycles and reach your goals.
THERAPY FOR PERFECTIONISM AND OVERWORKING
Do you find yourself hyper-focused, exhausted, and burned out from the never-ending quest for order and perfection? Does your work ethic or constant striving for improvement stress you out even though you mostly believe it is the right way of doing things? Do your friends and family feel neglected because of your workaholic tendencies? It may seem impossible to maintain high standards while tending to other important areas of your life, but it is possible to correct course. With specialized therapy for perfectionism you can move closer to a life that feels more balanced and fulfilling.
Holistic therapy approaches can help with self-limiting perfectionism, workaholism, difficulty with emotions, and improved interpersonal relationships by addressing lifestyle and core beliefs. Treatment is ideal for people who see themselves as driven, "Type A" personality, concerned with order, and have a tendency to come across as anxious or controlling. These personality traits may be adaptive in some areas, but often high achieving people seek therapy when their relationships suffer.
Many obsessive-compulsive people fall into habits of unhelpful perfectionism to meet their exceptionally high and detailed oriented standards. Thinking and working are often used to avoid social and emotional intimacy. Therapy may be helpful for high achievers who struggle with feelings and have difficulty separating their self-worth from productivity.
With a values-based lens, therapy can help you grow in self-awareness while committing to changing patterns of behavior that get in the way of your well-being and social connectedness. With help, you can learn to modify patterns that are no longer working for you or your loved ones.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
If you're struggling with compulsive or impulsive eating, Dialectical Behavior Therapy or DBT, is an evidence-based treatment that can help bring relief. DBT for Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is a structured protocol designed specifically for emotionally-driven problem eating behaviors.
DBT is rooted in the philosophy of dialectics, or the idea that two seemingly opposite ideas can both be true. For example, you can accept yourself as you are and take very intentional steps to change. You can commit to stop binging and forgive yourself [and start again] if you slip.
DBT for binge eating was designed with the assumption that out-of-control eating is a function of problems with affect regulation. In other words, binge eating is caused, maintained, and the outcome of intense negative emotions. DBT works by helping you stop compulsive overeating behaviors while teaching new skills to manage emotional states like anxiety or loneliness. In DBT for binge eating, the goal of treatment is to stop harmful eating behavior and develop a new relationship with your emotions so you no longer turn to food as a coping mechanism when life feels hard. Learn more about binge eating & emotional eating therapy or schedule a consultation.
In the pretreatment stage we begin to build our therapeutic alliance, which involves developing trust and a shared understanding of your challenges. In this stage we will discuss my therapy approach and agree on the methods used to address your challenges. I will discuss the affect regulation model of DBT, including the impact of biological emotional sensitivity and growing up in invalidating environments on the development of impulsive behaviors. Prior to the active stage of treatment I create the therapy frame that includes outlining the logistics of how our therapy will work, and obtaining a commitment or a consent to the goals of treatment.
Meet Your Therapist
I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and the founder of Ventura OCD Therapy. I provide specialized, evidence-based care for OCD, anxiety, and related conditions. I see clients at my office in Ventura County and online throughout California.
Articles and News
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Compulsive reassurance seeking online—through Reddit, Google, or ChatGPT—has become increasingly common with OCD. Learn how digital reassurance fuels the obsessive-compulsive cycle…
