OCD
Mental Health & Outpatient Mental Health Clinic located in Green Bay, WI
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental health condition that consumes hours of your life, affecting your emotional and social well-being. At Spectrum Behavioral Health LLC in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the team of highly skilled mental health clinicians provides evidence-based therapy for people who are struggling with OCD. The outpatient mental health clinic treats all people ages 6 and up. Call the office or schedule an appointment online today. In-person, phone, and video appointments are available.
Contrary to what many say, you can’t have “a little OCD.” Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness in which you have recurring unwanted thoughts or sensations that trigger anxiety. To get rid of the obsession and relieve the anxiety, you engage in repetitive behaviors (compulsions).
People with OCD may realize their thoughts and actions aren’t realistic, but they feel like they have no control over them. And their obsessions and compulsions take up hours of their day.
OCD symptoms generally fall into two categories: obsessions and compulsions. However, you can have OCD without engaging in compulsive behaviors.
Obsessions are concerns or worries that most people have, but these issues are exaggerated in people with OCD. Fear of germs, fear of harm, and unwanted thoughts about taboo subjects (sex or religion) are examples of obsessions.
Compulsions are the repetitive actions or thoughts you engage in to remove the obsession from your mind and the anxiety it causes. The acts are repetitive and done in a specific order.
Examples include excessively washing your hands, constantly checking locks or appliances, or repeating routines that you expect to prevent something bad from happening.
Researchers are still trying to understand what causes someone to develop OCD. However, they theorize it may occur from a combination of factors, including genetics and environment.
There’s also some evidence that people with OCD have abnormalities in the structure of their brain that affect its function, leading to obsessive thoughts and repetitive behaviors.
The team at Spectrum Behavioral Health LLC conducts a thorough evaluation before making any specific therapy plans. They take a patient-centered, integrative, and holistic approach to care, creating plans that benefit your whole health so you can heal and grow.
The team may use a form of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) called exposure and response prevention (ERP) to help you manage your OCD.
During this form of therapy, your provider exposes you to your fears in a safe environment. You may experience anxiety during exposure, but your therapist encourages you to avoid engaging in your compulsive behaviors.
ERP allows you to stay in your anxious state so you can see that nothing bad happens when you fail to engage in your behavior. This helps decrease the effect your unwanted thoughts or sensations have on your feelings.
OCD is challenging, but help is available. Call Spectrum Behavioral Health LLC or book an appointment online today.