Justin’s Blog: “The Jog”

“I feel like I really love my baby, but, I just don’t know. I have these terrible thoughts that pop into my mind. Thoughts of harming my baby. I actually vomited last night it made me so upset. I don’t know why I’m having these” “Everyone around me, including my pastor, seems to think I […]

Most of my clients hear from me at some point (when it’s appropriate for me to share) my own personal examples in dealing with obsessive thoughts.  I have gotten very stuck in obsessive thinking and resultant feelings (and still do some days).  Born through my own personal trials and individually tailored to clients who want […]

OCD in context. You may already be very familiar with references to OCD, especially in the larger culture.  “I’m soooooo OCD” is a phrase, often unhelpful to true sufferers, that reflects the current sentiments of many as to what it is.  Neat.  Picky.  High Standards.  Demanding.  This is NOT necessarily OCD in and of itself.  […]

Both in the office and in my life I offer a simple reminder: just because you tremble or are afraid or feel distressed DOESN’T mean you’re doing it wrong.  In fact, maybe it’s very right.  An unbelievably common misconception among human beings is distress = bad.  Sure, distress is uncomfortable.  Yes, it signals something feels […]

In poker, a “tell” is a sort of behavioral or observable change that, usually unbeknownst to the person, can reveal information that can be used for another player to get the upper hand.  Smirks, scratching of the nose, looking away, smiling- expert poker players work hard to conceal these (why many wear sunglasses). Notice Something […]

Teddy pumped the sanitizer bottle for the second time in three minutes.  “I know, I know, it doesn’t help when I haven’t touched anything else, but I want to be sure.  You never know these days, right?”  Freda waits to enter gatherings and meetings until everyone else has shown up- “It just helps me know I […]

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 […]

America today sees one of the highest levels of anxiety of any place in the world.[1] We are clamoring for attention online, wanting to be seen, to be loved.  Suicides by teens and young adults appear to be higher than they’ve been in years.[2]  We are the wealthiest nation on the face of the planet,[3] and we can’t […]

“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 […]

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?  […]

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 […]