Justin’s Blog: “The Jog”
120+ Articles Driven by Research and Practice
A Biblical Rationale for Exposure Therapy
“You want me to do what?!” Many of my clients, and particularly for the sake of this article, Christian clients, are a bit surprised when I ask them to practice exposure. Repeating scary, terrible thoughts on paper or aloud. Doing things that feel risky. It seems as a clinician I’m disrespecting your beliefs and don’t […]
Read More >Flip the Script- A Guide To Imaginal Exposure
Imagine intentionally telling yourself- again and again- “Maybe I’ll get sick and die.” Or, “I’ll have a sudden urge to kill someone.” Or, “Maybe I blasphemed God and will go to hell.” What if your therapist asked you to repeat these things to yourself? Does that sound like negative self-talk? A cause for grave concern? […]
Read More >Face Fear, Flee Temptation
“You need to pray about that.” “Resist those thoughts; they are from the enemy.” “Don’t think on such things.” I often hear confusion from Christians on how to engage- or not engage- with fear based thoughts, urges, and sensations. This led me to do a deep dive into Scripture to see if there are […]
Read More >the OCD Stories member only release
In advance of the full episode of the OCD Stories podcast being released Fall 2020, Stuart Ralph released a special members only listen. I hope you’ll check it out. COMING SOON- the OCD Stories podcast episode with Stuart Ralph
Read More >Developing a Growth Mindset
When we recently moved to the house we are currently in, we got an extra bonus with some “smart home” features. Far from a ‘techie,’ I quickly got frustrated in the first week. When I didn’t know how most of it worked, I began to become irritable. This is not a growth, learning, or curiosity […]
Read More >I Am Second guest post: 21 Tips For Thriving
I Am Second honored me by asking to provide an article on the topic: 21 Ways To Thriving Mental Health from an Anxiety Specialist. Hit Hard By the Pandemic Katherine* was hit hard by the pandemic, and she didn’t understand why. “I mean, my routines and orderliness can be a little overboard, but I’ve never had […]
Read More >Thriving Mental Health Alongside COVID-19
One of my first questions to a professor in my earliest IOCDF BTTI (Exposure Therapy training) at Massachusetts General Hospital was, “What happens if someone actually gets sick after a contamination exposure?” I haven’t forgotten the simplicity of the answer that went something like this: “People get sick all the time. Yes, that might create some additional […]
Read More >10 Tips for Effective ERP (Exposure & Response Prevention)
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), the gold standard treatment for OCD, can be fairly straightforward once understood. However, certain nuances are crucial for facilitating learning, growth, and maximal fear disconfirmation (fancy terms for successfully overcoming fearful responses). Here are 10 tips- click on the picture for a downloadable version: Be prepared to feel uncomfortable- a […]
Read More >Walk by Faith, Not By Coronavirus
I am honored to be surrounded by incredible people who exhibit incredible strength and faith in the most trying circumstances. These past few weeks as the Coronavirus has led to increased fears, panic, product hoarding, and expressed racism, I have seen the stellar example of many clients and friends wading these uncertain waters with confidence, […]
Read More >Supporting Your Loved One With OCD
Join My List To Get The Full Guide If you have a child, significant other, or friend who has OCD, you likely know the suffering it can create. Or maybe you don’t; that’s okay. The unfortunate reality for most clients once they appear in my office is that OCD has culminated in tremendous levels of […]
Read More >To Counselors Who Aren’t OCD Specialists
An editor for the American Counseling Association reached out to me about OCD from a Specialists’ perspective. (I was so proud of them for doing their research with multiple specialists!!). The following are excellent questions that may help inform their ACA magazine article in February 2020. Whether they utilize any of these or not, I hope they […]
Read More >Understanding OCD
This post was originally published on 02/13/2014 on my wordpress and is newly updated. Photo by whoislimos on Unsplash “Why can’t I stop thinking about this?” “Why can’t I stop? I know it doesn’t make sense.” William went to the Middle East after his unit was deployed from Ft. Hood. Most of what he heard […]
Read More >Mindfulness Exercise (Exposure-Friendly)
This video above and guide below were specially formulated to help you be mindful in an “Exposure-Friendly” way. This one’s a bit different from the average mindfulness practice you might be familiar with. The reason it’s called “Exposure-Friendly” is that it is specially designed to help a person be mindful of whatever they are experiencing, […]
Read More >Perfectionism, OCD, and Me
Thanks to Jonathan Hoxmark on Unsplash for this beauty! Perfectionism and OCD What is perfectionism? Oxford dictionary defines it as “refusal to accept any standard short of perfection.”[1] That’s automatically problematic.[2] Perfectionism leads to a circumscribed focus, stress, and suffering for not only individuals, but for loved ones nearby who feel the weight of being perfect. Is […]
Read More >Sugar! My Journey to a Healthier Relationship with Food
“Ah sugar, ah honey honey. You are my candy girl, and you’ve got me wanting you.” The Archies may have been describing a relationship with their lyrics, but that’s been me with my relationship to actual sugar. I love added sugar.[1] 5 years ago, I easily would: Down 3-4 large glasses of Dr. Pepper with a great […]
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