Justin’s Blog: “The Jog”

How much do you charge? This is a very loaded question, indeed.  I’m going to give you straight answers to how much therapy actually costs, and why.  If you are a consumer of health services, you’ve likely asked it many times between doctors, dentists, and insurance plans.  Therapy is no different, yet it is unique […]

The unforgivable/unpardonable sin (also called the eternal sin or blasphemy against the Holy Spirit) can induce some level of fear for even the most convinced of Christians.  To the person who gets stuck on the concept, such as in OCD, Generalized Anxiety, and/or scrupulosity, misery would not be too strong of a word to describe it.  Personally, I suffered for several years […]

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

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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, […]

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 […]

The Bible has a lot to say about fear and anxiety.  In fact, some variation of “do not be afraid” is the most common directive in Scripture, occurring in some fashion more than ‘do not steal,’ ‘do not kill,’ and even ‘love your neighbor.’ How Does Anxiety Work? When we study these constructs in research, […]

  What is Exposure Therapy? Exposure therapy is a psychological treatment that is practiced in Behavioral and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).  It is indicated as a first line treatment for a number of disorders such as Panic PTSD BDD GAD Even recent evidence for depression It is considered the “gold standard,” or best treatment for […]

In Vivo Exposure Directly facing feared objects or situations, examples include: Getting on a flight, touching a doorknob that feels “contaminated,” not going back to check a lock, or going to a social gathering. Good exposure attempts to match the content and detail of a person’s fear as close as possible. So, for example, if a […]

Do I want this, or do I not?  Is this my actual desire, or what I don’t want?  Does this thought or desire define me?  What if it’s terrible or horrible? Sometimes the things I think about are because I value them or desire them. Sometimes the things I think about are because I don’t […]

Photo by Leio McLaren on Unsplash “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.” – Helen Keller I don’t want to live […]