Intensive Treatment for OCD

Unfortunately, access to experts who specialize in the treatment of OCD and other anxiety disorders is limited. You might have to travel a great distance to find quality psychological services for these problems. And, it might not be practical to drive such distances on a weekly basis (or more frequently) for therapy sessions. You might also have a particularly severe case of OCD that requires more than just once-weekly treatment sessions.

Dr. Abramowitz offers an intensive outpatient treatment program for people with OCD who live out of town and are willing to travel to Chapel Hill, North Carolina for therapy, or who live locally and need to have treatment sessions on a frequent basis.

Here is how intensive treatment works...

1. An initial consultation (in person or by telephone) is required to make sure that the patient is a good match for the program. During the consultation Dr. Abramowitz will assess your symptoms and describe treatment in greater detail.

2. The treatment program itself is 3 weeks long and it involves individual outpatient therapy sessions (exposure and response prevention). All sessions are 60-90 minutes with Dr. Abramowitz. Sessions are scheduled on Monday-Friday for the 3 weeks (no weekend sessions). Patients are given practice assignments to work on daily between sessions.

3. Patients are responsible for their own accommodations and for their own transportation to and from treatment sessions. A list of motels/hotels that are close to our clinic can be found here.

4. Patients who wish to bring a significant other who can help with therapy are welcome to do so. This person is welcome to attend some of the treatment sessions and will be taught how to help with therapy.

5. At the end of the program Dr. Abramowitz will work with you to find a professional closer to home who can help with maintaining improvement. Moreover, Dr. Abramowitz will continue to be available by telephone (or follow-up visit if necessary) to help you stay well.

For further information contact Dr. Abramowitz.

The research article below describes a study by Dr. Abramowitz and colleagues evaluating the effects of intensive exposure and response prevention therapy for OCD:

• Franklin, M. E., Abramowitz, J. S., Kozak, M. J., Levitt, J. M., & Foa, E. B. (2000). Effectiveness of exposure and ritual prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder: Randomized compared with nonrandomized samples. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68, 594-602.