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Therapist Question & Prayer Request

Aug 20, 2010
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Hi,

I have been dealing with severe OCD and also scrupulosity for a while now. I have found a Christian Therapist in my area. I emailed and asked her if she had experience treating people with severe OCD and scrupulosity. She mentioned that she had worked with some. For some reason I have a feeling that she may offer more talk therapy with some therapy applicable to an OCD patient rather than intensive specialized OCD therapy... It's just a feeling I have, feelings can be wrong. I plan to call her tomorrow to ask further questions to see if she is really equipped to help someone in my case.

If she is more talk therapy style with experience working with people who have OCD and scrupulosity rather than a therapist that provides intensive therapy targeted at OCD, do you think I should still go to her (seeing that she has a Christian worldview), or do you think I should try to find someone who has the experience intensively treating severe OCD? What if I cannot find a therapist who holds a Christian world-view for the therapy. It's important that my therapist understands where I am coming from, and I am most comfortable with a therapist that has the same motivations as me in terms of wanting to be right before God.

Have any of you had therapy and faced any of these types of therapists or situations? Do you have any advice on a therapist?

Please pray for me to be able to get treatment and for a therapy situation which will give the most healing the fastest that will also be pleasing to God?

Thanks.
 

Kristen.NewCreation

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I would share your concerns and ask about the types of techniques or interventions that she might offer. Talk therapy is part of it in my experience. It helps us to look at our thinking... but there is a behavior component too. Just talk with her and ask your questions.
 
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gracealone

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Hi Flower,
Don't let your feelings stop you from giving her a chance to help you. You won't know until you actually go to her what type of therapy she uses. Although talk therapy can reveal things about our nature which kind of line up with OCD'ish behavior, you are right in understanding that it doesn't solve the problem. For instance my therapist was able to show me that bottling hurt feelings/emotions without expressing them created a tremendous amount of stress which can ignite OCD in a person who is predisposed to it. And some folk with OCD do this because confrontation is so uncomfortable to them. But that didn't really help me to manage the obsessions.
I would ask her if she uses Exposure and Response Prevention to help her OCD clients. I would also ask her if she is familiar with the kind of OCD which is referred to as Purely Obsessional where the compulsion involves rumination, solving, countering thoughts, reassurance seeking etc.
In regard to whether or not your therapist must have a Christian world view to understand where you are coming from, this in my opinion, can be based in our fear that somehow the therapist might suggest something that could put our faith in jeopardy. This, of course, is the OCD talking.
Most OCD therapist's don't even have OCD and yet they are able to treat all sorts of themes by using ERP. What I mean is that they may not be able to feel or relate to why a person is so terrified that a door might be unlocked or a germ might be on their hand but they can still treat the obsession. In the same way a therapist may not be able to relate to our theme of losing our salvation because it's not an issue with them, but they can still treat the obsession. A lot of heart surgeons don't have heart disease but they can be experts at treating it. In the same way a lot of OCD therapists don't have OCD but they too can be experts at treating it. So, if this therapist doesn't have the tools to help you, you shouldn't hesitate to find a therapist Christian or Non-Christian that can help you. Worrying about them being a Christian is generally related to the overall theme of angering God or doing something to put our relationship with Him at risk. Having the courage to see a Non-Christian OCD expert actually punches the OCD right in the face because it shows that you aren't going to give it's threats any validity. Hope that makes some sense.
I'll pray for you... and I'm so proud of your courage to seek out help.
Mitzi
Hi,


I have been dealing with severe OCD and also scrupulosity for a while now. I have found a Christian Therapist in my area. I emailed and asked her if she had experience treating people with severe OCD and scrupulosity. She mentioned that she had worked with some. For some reason I have a feeling that she may offer more talk therapy with some therapy applicable to an OCD patient rather than intensive specialized OCD therapy... It's just a feeling I have, feelings can be wrong. I plan to call her tomorrow to ask further questions to see if she is really equipped to help someone in my case.

If she is more talk therapy style with experience working with people who have OCD and scrupulosity rather than a therapist that provides intensive therapy targeted at OCD, do you think I should still go to her (seeing that she has a Christian worldview), or do you think I should try to find someone who has the experience intensively treating severe OCD? What if I cannot find a therapist who holds a Christian world-view for the therapy. It's important that my therapist understands where I am coming from, and I am most comfortable with a therapist that has the same motivations as me in terms of wanting to be right before God.

Have any of you had therapy and faced any of these types of therapists or situations? Do you have any advice on a therapist?

Please pray for me to be able to get treatment and for a therapy situation which will give the most healing the fastest that will also be pleasing to God?

Thanks.
 
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