If you’re struggling with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), you’re not alone. More than 1% of all Americans 18 and older have OCD, a condition we treat frequently here at Boston Neurobehavioral Associates.
Our psychiatry and psychology specialists offer telehealth services throughout Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Illinois to guide patients through effective OCD treatment in the privacy of their own homes.
We believe that January is a great time for a fresh start, and that can include OCD symptom relief with the help of a four-step model.
Our treatment philosophies are rooted in the biological source of OCD. The four-step model essentially helps you recognize obsessions and compulsions, manage your fears, and better control your fear responses.
Read on to learn what those steps are and how they work.
Re-labeling unhealthy thoughts and urges starts with recognizing and acknowledging them.
For example, if you’re having the overpowering urge to wash your hands, check that the stove is turned off, or ensure that the locks are engaged, even if you’ve already done those things, label that urge as what it really is: a compulsion.
Re-labeling leads you into step 2, reframing. With this step, you reframe unhealthy thoughts and urges as part of your OCD, not as ordinary harmless thoughts.
Reframing requires you to start reminding yourself that those unhealthy thoughts and urges are happening because of a brain chemistry imbalance. They’re false alarms.
And, it’s important to remind yourself that you’re not enslaved by your brain: you don’t have to carry out compulsions just because your brain is telling you to do so.
The refocus step helps you turn your focus away from unhealthy thoughts and urges. It involves shifting gears: directing your attention to something that distracts you without harming you.
You can call a friend, exercise, start a new arts and crafts project, or choose anything that seems fun and absorbs a lot of attention.
While the unhealthy thoughts and urges may still be there, refocusing helps you put your attention and energy into something healthy instead, so those brain signals recede to the background.
The final step, revaluing, involves valuing deceptive brain messages in a different way than you did before. Essentially, this means using everything from the three previous steps to arrive at an understanding: those deceptive brain messages have no value, and you can ignore them.
An important part of revaluing is understanding that when you value deceptive brain messages too highly, those messages are reinforced and grow more powerful.
When you’re living with OCD, practicing these steps on a daily basis is very important. This four-step model can combine with expert mental telehealth care to help you — not your OCD — grow more powerful.
The new year is the ideal time to take charge of your compulsions and win. At Boston Neurobehavioral Associates, we’re here to support you through easily accessible telehealth. Phone our nearest office, or connect with us online today.
