Helping you take control back from OCD
Evidence-based ERP therapy in Sydney and Australia-wide
OCD is more than just being neat or organised. It involves unwanted and highly distressing intrusive thoughts, urges, or images, as well as compulsive behaviours or rituals that take over your day. Using evidence-based strategies, including exposure and response prevention (ERP) and ACT-informed approaches, I help clients in-person in Surry Hills, Sydney, and Australia-wide (via Telehealth), to manage OCD and regain control over their lives.
What is OCD?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a common but often misunderstood mental health condition. It involves intrusive thoughts, which are unwanted thoughts, urges or images that are highly distressing — and compulsive behaviours, which are performed to reduce the anxiety caused by these thoughts. OCD can be exhausting, isolating, confusing, and severely impact quality of life, but with the right approach, OCD is manageable and treatable. OCD can show up in many different ways, and no two people experience it in exactly the same way. While OCD always follows the same pattern, the specific thoughts, fears, urges, compulsions, and rituals involved can differ, and many people can even experience more than one type over time.
Some of the more common subtypes of OCD can include:
Contamination OCD – e.g., fears about germs, illness, or toxins
Harm OCD – e.g., intrusive thoughts about accidentally or deliberately harming others or yourself
Relationship OCD (R-OCD) – e.g., persistent doubts about a relationship, one’s feelings, or a partner’s suitability
Sexual or Paedophilic OCD – e.g., unwanted sexual thoughts or images that are distressing and inconsistent with one’s desires
Scrupulosity (moral or religious) OCD – e.g., excessive concern about morality, sin, or doing the “right” thing
Pure-O OCD – e.g., intrusive thoughts accompanied by mental compulsions and rituals such as rumination or mental checking
Health OCD – e.g., persistent fears about having or developing a serious illness, despite reassurance
Just-Right OCD – e.g., an intense need for things to feel perfect, correct, complete, or “just right”
Symmetry OCD – e.g., distress when objects, movements, sensations, or thoughts feel uneven or incomplete
Existential OCD – e.g., intrusive, unresolvable questions about reality, meaning, or existence
Real-event OCD – e.g., persistent doubt about whether something inappropriate or harmful occurred in the past
Somatic OCD – e.g., distressing hyperawareness of bodily sensations such as breathing, swallowing, or blinking
OCD Treatment
Treatment focuses on reducing compulsions and helping you respond differently to intrusive thoughts:
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)
Exposure-and-Response Prevention (ERP) is considered the gold-standard treatment for OCD due to its high effectiveness for reducing OCD symptoms. It involves gradually facing feared situations or intrusive thoughts while learning not to engage in compulsive behaviours.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
ACT-informed strategies help you develop psychological flexibility and distress tolerance, which is the ability to notice intrusive thoughts, urges, and bodily sensations without becoming stuck in them or letting them control your actions. They support you to observe your experiences with curiosity and perspective, rather than trying to get rid of them, while guiding you to take meaningful action in line with your values and what matters most in your life.
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) can help you identify patterns in thinking and behaviour that maintain OCD, and provides additional practical strategies to respond differently to intrusive thoughts and urges.
What to Expect From Therapy
Starting therapy for OCD can feel daunting, but the process is structured, collaborative, and tailored to you. Together, we will:
Explore your OCD patterns, triggers, and personal goals so therapy is relevant to your life
Learn and practice strategies that help you notice OCD patterns without getting caught up in them, while taking action in line with what matters most to you
Use Exposure-and-Response Prevention (ERP) to face feared situations or intrusive thoughts in a safe, realistic, and achievable way
Track gradual progress, helping you respond differently to OCD and regain practical control in day-to-day life
FAQs about OCD Treatment
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OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) is when the brain gets stuck in a cycle of unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviours or mental acts (compulsions).
These thoughts and behaviours are often distressing and time-consuming, but they are not a reflection of who you are.
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Compulsions are the brain’s way of trying to reduce anxiety or uncertainty. Even though they give short-term relief, they actually reinforce OCD over time, making the cycle stronger.
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The brain often exaggerates risk, which is a core part of OCD. Treatment such as Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) helps you learn that even if you don’t do the compulsion, bad outcomes are rare. You gradually build confidence that you can cope with uncertainty.
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Life sometimes brings difficulties and setbacks, and we usually have the ability to cope with them. OCD makes it sound like the worst-case scenario will happen and that we won’t be able to manage it.
In reality, you have a 100% track record of surviving past difficulties. Treatment helps you learn to tolerate uncertainty and handle challenges without relying on compulsions.
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Learning about OCD does not cause new OCD themes. OCD tends to focus on things that feel important or threatening, often following your values, and may shift focus over time.
Becoming aware of different types of OCD might make you notice thoughts you already have, but awareness alone does not create OCD. The cycle is maintained by compulsions and avoidance, and treatment teaches you to respond differently rather than avoid thoughts or experiences.
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ERP works by helping your brain experience triggers without performing compulsions. This can feel distressing at first because the brain is used to responding with safety behaviours.
Over time, repeated exposure teaches the brain that anxiety naturally rises and falls, and feared outcomes often do not happen.
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Initially, anxiety may spike when confronting triggers. This is normal and expected. With repeated practice, your brain learns that anxiety is temporary and manageable, and it gradually decreases.
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Everyone is different. Some people notice changes in a few weeks, while for others, it takes several months. ERP requires a lot of work between sessions, and this is where the real progress happens. The more effort you put in outside of therapy, the more you get out of it.
Progress is measured by learning new ways to respond to OCD, not by never feeling anxious.
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It is common to slip up, especially early in treatment. Each time you experience an urge without performing the compulsion, you are practising the new learning. Slip-ups are part of the process, not a failure.
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Mindfulness helps you notice thoughts, urges and sensations without reacting automatically. Acceptance teaches you to allow discomfort without trying to eliminate it, which reduces the power of obsessions and compulsions.
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Some people benefit from medications, especially if OCD is severe. However, therapy, particularly ERP, is highly effective on its own. The choice depends on your symptoms, goals and personal preference. If you consider medication, please speak to your referring medical practitioner (e.g., your GP or psychiatrist).
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OCD may not completely disappear because previously learned behaviours and thought patterns cannot be unlearned.
However, treatment teaches your brain new ways to respond that can outweigh old patterns. You gain tools to manage triggers, tolerate uncertainty, and live a meaningful life without being controlled by OCD.