OCD Therapy · NYC
OCD doesn’t always look like washing your hands.
It often looks like reviewing a conversation a hundred times to make sure you didn’t say something wrong. Or needing to know, right now, whether you really love your partner. Or rituals around safety, contamination, harm, or how you actually feel.
The thoughts are intrusive. The compulsions feel necessary. Most of the time you know they’re not rational and you still can’t stop.
What OCD often actually looks like
- Intrusive thoughts that feel completely against who you are
- Relentless doubt: do I really love my partner, did I do something wrong
- Fears around harm, contamination, or safety
- Needing things to feel even, right, or complete
- Checking and reassurance-seeking that never quite settles it
If you’ve felt like you can’t tell whether what you’re experiencing is anxiety or OCD, that’s a good thing to bring to a consult. They overlap and they’re treated differently.
How OCD treatment works
OCD has one of the most effective evidence-based treatments in the field: a structured approach that combines cognitive-behavioral work with exposure and response prevention. The goal isn’t to make the intrusive thoughts go away (they don’t, fully, for anyone). The goal is to change your relationship to them so they stop running your life.
In session, I’ll share what I’m noticing about the OCD pattern, ask questions about the rituals, and gently push you toward the exposures when you’re ready. The work is structured and somewhat predictable. You’ll always know what we’re working on and why, and nothing happens that you haven’t agreed to. Most clients start to feel real change in the first 8 to 12 weeks.
My background
I’m a clinical instructor at Columbia University’s Department of Psychiatry, with a decade of clinical work that includes treating OCD across the full range: high-functioning adults, teens with intrusive thoughts, and complex presentations with comorbid anxiety, depression, or trauma. OCD treatment is some of the most rewarding work I do, because the gains tend to be clear and durable.
Common questions
What if I’m not sure it’s OCD?
That’s common. A consult call is a good place to talk through what’s happening and figure out whether OCD-specific treatment makes sense.
Is this ERP?
Exposure and response prevention is part of OCD treatment, yes. We build it gradually, you’ll always know what we’re working on and why, and nothing happens that you haven’t agreed to.
Do you work with kids and teens with OCD?
Yes. A lot of my OCD experience comes from my work at Columbia / NYP with younger clients.
How long does it take?
Most clients start to feel real change in 8 to 12 weeks. Full treatment is usually 4 to 9 months, sometimes longer for more complex cases.
If OCD has been running things, let’s start changing that.
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