Dr. Thea Gallagher joins me in this episode to talk in more depth about exposure and response prevention (EX/RP) therapy for OCD. Specifically, we discuss the importance of ritual prevention, why we need to overshoot normal when treating OCD, the rationale for imaginal exposure, and so much more.

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About Dr. Gallagher:

Thea Gallagher, PsyD is a licensed clinical psychologist and an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at NYU Langone Health in New York City. She is an expert in the treatment of anxiety and related disorders, including OCD, a frequent media contributor, and co-host of the Mind in View Podcast.

Exposure and response prevention (EX/RP) therapy is a highly effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In this episode, I talk with Dr. Lily Brown about the rationale for EX/RP, as well as what this therapy entails and strategies for maximizing the gains that people make in this treatment. If you struggle with OCD or care about someone who does, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

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About Dr. Brown:

Licensed psychologist Lily Brown, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as the Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s internationally renowned Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. Dr. Brown specializes in exposure-based treatments for anxiety disorders and has published extensively on anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and suicide risk and prevention.

Although the term OCD is often thrown around as an adjective, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is actually a frequently misunderstood and potentially debilitating mental health condition. Contrary to what many of us think, OCD involves much more than just washing, cleaning, and arranging things. Join me for this 10th episode in honor of OCD Awareness Week to learn about what OCD is and some of the many ways in which it can present. And because increasing awareness is key to helping those with OCD find the help and support they need, please also consider sharing this episode widely.

In this episode, I talk about suicide risk and prevention in individuals with anxiety disorders. Although we don’t often talk about suicide and anxiety together, research consistently shows that the presence of an anxiety disorder significantly increases one’s risk of dying by suicide. Listen in to hear me talk about why this is the case and steps that we can take to reduce the risk of suicide. I also talk about what to do if you or someone you know is thinking about suicide and conclude with some words of hope and light.

Resources:

-National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255

-Safety Plan Template

-Linehan Risk Assessment and Management Protocol (LRAMP)

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Terri Bacow about her forthcoming book Goodbye Anxiety: A Guided Journal for Overcoming Worry, which will be available for purchase in December of this year. Specifically, we discuss common triggers for anxiety — including uncertainty, perfectionism, adversity, social comparisons, long to-do-lists, the possibility of failing, and our inner critics — as well as science-informed strategies for skillfully coping with these triggers and changing the way in which we view and experience anxiety.

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More about Dr. Bacow:

Terri Bacow, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist and a member of the clinical faculty in the department of psychiatry at the Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She has a private practice in New York City and specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety and mood disorders, ADHD, life transitions, maternal mental health, and parenting.

Does anxiety boss you around and dictate what you do and don’t do? If so, this episode is for you. Tune in to listen to my conversation with Dr. Joel Minden about his book, Show Your Anxiety Who’s Boss, and his three-step approach to managing anxiety. As you’ll hear, Dr. Minden shares a number of science-backed tools for developing a new relationship with anxiety and I hope that our conversation helps you begin to do just that.

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More about Dr. Minden:

Joel Minden, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist in California specializing in CBT for anxiety and related disorders, including OCD, depression, and relationship problems. He is the Director of the Chico Center for Cognitive Behavior Therapy, a lecturer in the Department of Psychology at California State University Chico, and author of the CBT and Me blog on Psychology Today.

With the delta variant of COVID-19 making more and more kids sick, many parents are feeling anxious right now about how to best protect their kids. In this episode, I talk with Annie Andrews, MD who is an Associate Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina in the Department of Pediatrics as well as the Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship Director there. Dr. Andrews is a board certified pediatrician, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, an expert in gun violence prevention, and a fierce advocate for children. Listen in to hear us discuss what we know about the delta variant and kids, what remains unknown, and strategies for navigating this uncertainty and the anxiety that comes with it.

In this episode I talk with Drs. Sheila Rauch and Carmen McLean about their new book, Retraining the Brain: Applied Neuroscience in Exposure Therapy for PTSD. Listen and learn about the many ways in which findings from the field of neuroscience can be brought into the therapy room to bolster PTSD treatment outcomes.

Dr. Sheila Rauch is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Emory University School of Medicine and serves as deputy director of the Emory Healthcare Veterans Program and director of mental health research and program evaluation at the VA Atlanta Healthcare System. For over 20 years, Dr. Rauch has been conducting PTSD treatment research, providing PTSD treatment, training other providers in treating PTSD, and publishing extensively on PTSD and anxiety disorders. She co-authored the second edition of the Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD therapist guide, as well as the manual for conducting prolonged exposure in intensive outpatient programs. She also co-authored the book PTSD: What Everyone Needs to Know, which is a scientifically-supported, accessible and reader-friendly resource for understanding PTSD and its treatment.

Dr. Carmen McLean is a clinical psychologist in the dissemination and training division of the National Center for PTSD at the Palo Alto VA Healthcare System and a clinical associate professor (affiliate) at Stanford University. She is a certified prolonged exposure therapy provider and supervisor and has published over 100 scholarly articles and book chapters on topics related to PTSD and anxiety. Her research aims to increase the reach of exposure therapy for PTSD by examining implementation barriers and using technology and condensed delivery of exposure to address barriers to treatment access.

I hope that you are finding this podcast helpful and would love to get your feedback! Please email me at [email protected] with any comments or suggestions that you might have. And if you have any questions or topics that you’d like me to address in future episodes, please send those along as well. I look forward to hearing from you!