CBT Center for Anxiety & OCD

03/30/2020

Recognizing Growing Anxiety & When to Seek Help

09/30/2019

Lower Gwynedd Office Waiting Area

09/30/2019

09/30/2019

We are proud to announce the opening of our second office in Lower Gwynedd, PA. This office, in addition to our Media, PA office, will allow us to continue bringing expert CBT treatment to children and adults experiencing anxiety, OCD and related conditions. Individual and Intensive Outpatient Treatment as well as Support Groups are offered at both locations.

09/30/2019

Free Ask the Experts OCD Panel on 11/7/19. All are welcome to attend.

09/30/2019

CBT Center for Anxiety & OCD hosts ongoing support groups for individuals with OCD and their family members in their Lower Gwynedd, PA & Media, PA offices. Adults (18+) are welcome to join the OCD Support Group. Family members and friends are welcome to join the Family OCD Support Group. The groups run simultaneously in separate rooms. These are open groups and members may join at any time. Members do not need to be a client of the Center to attend.

08/08/2019

We are proud to announce the opening of our second office in Lower Gwynedd, PA. This office, in addition to our Media, PA office, will allow us to continue bringing expert CBT treatment to children and adults experiencing anxiety, OCD and related conditions. Individual and Intensive Outpatient Treatment as well as Support Groups are offered at both locations.

08/01/2019

We are proud to announce the opening of our second office location in beautiful Lower Gwynedd, PA. In conjunction with our Media, PA location, this office will allow us to better serve more clients in our region. We will to continue to bring expert CBT treatment to children and adults experiencing anxiety, OCD and related conditions.

10/05/2018

CBT Center for Anxiety & OCD is proud to announce two new support groups. Groups will be held the 1st & 3rd Thursday of every month from 7-8:15pm.

11/17/2017

“Stop feeling sorry for yourself.” Unfortunately, this can be a common message passed down from prior generations. Self-compassion is not a state of feeling sorry for ourselves and it is quite different from self-pity. Self-compassion is being sensitive to our own suffering while remaining connected to the feelings of others. Self-pity on the other hand, occurs when we believe and feel like we are the only one suffering. We feel alone and believe that our experience separates us from others. Having self-compassion is a state of appreciation, love and understanding that we offer ourselves during a moment of suffering. We do this for ourselves because all human being deserve compassion. Research shows that having self-compassion has a positive impact on feelings of anxiety, sadness, anger and suffering. Kristin Neff does a wonderful job helping us to understand the difference between self-compassion and self-pity or self-indulgence in this article.

http://self-compassion.org/what-self-compassion-is-not-2/

10/25/2017

Anxious thinking often is like fake news. It tells us to worry (LOTS) about things that aren't even likely to come true. Here's a great article on how "OCD is Fake News"

https://ocdla.com/ocd-fake-news-5740

OCD is just fake news that your brain makes up. From the OCD Center of Los Angeles. Helping clients in California and around the world since 1999.

10/19/2017

Loved ones of those with OCD often feel lost in how best to help. Here's a great article highlighting some key points to keep in mind. This article focuses on ways to strengthen relationships between individuals with OCD and their family members, and to promote understanding and cooperation.

https://iocdf.org/expert-opinions/expert-opinion-family-guidelines/

10/13/2017

Paralyzing anxiety among our youth is on the rise. These are incredibly capable young people who struggle because they so badly need to "get it just right" and fear anything short of perfection. Making any academic and/or social mistake is seen as catastrophic and depression can follow soon after. The article also looks at effective intensive treatment where youth practice exposure therapy by confronting their fears (e.g., purposely doing "weird" things, talking to strangers, making mistakes) and seeing that their anxiety levels do come down over time and that they can handle whatever happens as a result. Rigid, perfectionistic thinking is on the rise among teens and this article does a great job bringing these critical issues to light.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/11/magazine/why-are-more-american-teenagers-than-ever-suffering-from-severe-anxiety.html

Parents, therapists and schools are struggling to figure out whether helping anxious teenagers means protecting them or pushing them to face their fears.

10/07/2017

Warning: Parenting a Gifted Child May Be Hazardous to Your (Mental) Health. Studies have show that parents of gifted children experienced stress and depression levels similar to parents of developmentally delayed children. Parents of gifted kids may feel even more alientated however, when their complaints about the challenges like keeping their "voracious reader's brain fed" is seen as bragging by other parents. You are not imaging it. The stress is real and your are not alone.
http://thegraysonschool.org/parenting-gifted-child/

Parenting is already a journey full of ups and downs, but gifted children do not always feel like a “gift” in terms of ease of raising them.

10/07/2017

An excellent article about Body Dysmorphic Disorder. If you or you know someone who is overly worried about the way they look, encourage them to seek help. We need to continue to bring awareness to this disorder.

http://swarthmorephoenix.com/2017/10/05/letter-to-the-editor-worried-about-how-you-look/

I wish that my son could tell his own story, but he can’t, so I will try for him, perhaps to give courage to others who are in the grip of the illness that cut his life short at the age of 24.

09/20/2017

"I feel like such a failure as a parent" is a comment I hear from parents from time to time. Parents of children with ADHD can especially feel this way AND, mom's of girls with ADHD can REALLY feel this way at times. Of course parents who feel this way are not failing their children and their children are not failing them. A child with ADHD is just being a child with ADHD - disorganized, stubborn, emotional, irritable, forgetful and strong willed. For many mothers who are highly organized, perfectionistic and, in other realms of their lives, controlled, having a child with ADHD can be frustrating. Heres a great article on the intense struggles between mothers and daughters who have ADHD.

https://www.addcenters.com/articles/intimate-bonds-intense-struggles-mothers-and-daughters-with-adhd

ADHD Center Chicago provides comprehensive, affordable treatment of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) for children, adolescents, and adults.

08/19/2017

Waiting Room

08/19/2017

Orchid Children: Raising a highly sensitive child can be stressful for parents. These children may be shy, less likely to want to separate, anxious, more reactive, and more sensitive to sounds, smells and touch. They may ask a lot of questions, need more of you, and in general, be just more intense all around. A relatively new hypothesis, the orchid-dandelion hypothesis aims to understand why some children seem to grow up okay in almost any environment, like a dandelion, and why other children seem to thrive under good parenting but wilt under bad conditions, like an orchid. If you have an “orchid” child, one who is more sensitive than others, your child will have a greater response to your parenting – be it punishing, inconsistent and cold or be it warm, empathetic, and engaged. This finding seems to be even greater when it comes to parenting orchid boys. But have hope and stay motivated in knowing that all your hard work in parenting your orchid child will pay off. When parented with consistency, warmth and engagement, orchid children will grow up to be just as resilient as dandelion children with the added bonus of being more prosocial, sensitive, creative and even excel in life beyond many dandelions. Here are two good articles on raising an orchid child in a dandelion world.

http://daviddobbs.net/smoothpebbles/orchids-dandelions-abloom-best-of-wired-nc-10/

https://www.parent.co/raising-orchid-child-dandelion-world/

Can Genes Send You High or Low? The Orchid Hypothesis A-bloom by David Dobbs Originally posted March 2012* A few years ago, Arial Knafo, a psychologist at Jerusalem University, wanted to see…

06/30/2017

Social anxiety at work can be debilitating. Worrying about your performance, skipping meetings, avoiding small talk or being just plain quiet can all be part of the presentation of social anxiety at work. It can lead to missed promotions, missed salary increases as well as feelings of shame and isolation. Avoidance is the main strategy people with anxiety at work engage in and it certainly reduces your anxiety....in the moment. Avoidance continues to work, until it doesn’t. In the long run, avoidance only serves to increase your anxiety as your perception of the social danger and your perceived incompetence increase. Here is a great article by Reid Wilson, author of “Stopping the Noise in Your Head” on techniques to help you cope with social anxiety at work. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/06/19/these-techniques-can-help-you-cope-your-social-anxiety-work-events/408364001/

06/09/2017

There is an elephant in the room. That elephant comes in many forms: death, rejection, divorce, miscarriage, cancer, unemployment, addiction, mental illness, just to name a few. Talking about loss and hardship can be very difficult, both for those experiencing it and for our friends and family. Many people want to be supportive but don’t know what to say. The discomfort is palpable. Sitting there together. Hello elephant. You may think that asking questions will be upsetting to the person and that it’s just best to keep the conversation light rather than bring up the “difficult” topic. Trust me. You are not upsetting the person by causing them to think about their hardship. They are already thinking about the elephant; like, all the time. Bringing up the topic doesn’t upset the person in the way you may think. Yes, it may cause them to tear up, but this emotion is a sign of a helpful release and human connection. Human connection is so necessary in the face of adversity! So, please, don’t be afraid to ask your colleagues, your neighbors, or your friends about the adversity they are facing in their life. They NEED you to ask. Asking shows you care. Ask, “How are you doing?” Ask, “How are you doing today.” Just ask about that elephant in the room. Here’s a terrific website on facing building resilience and finding meaning in the face of adversity. https://optionb.org/

Read and share personal stories, join groups for solidarity and support, and find information from experts to help you and your loved ones build resilience.

06/07/2017

Stinking thinking. We all have it at times. “No one has my back!” “My life sucks.” “I should have left the house earlier.” "I’m such an idiot!” ”Things will never change for me.” ”He thinks I’m a loser.” We’ve all experienced these kinds of thoughts from time to time but for some people, these kinds of thoughts occur on a regular basis and lead to significant anxiety and depression. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) aims to identify these thoughts so that we can make conscious decisions about whether we want to continue thinking this way. Cognitive distortions are the exaggerated and biased ways of thinking about oneself, our experiences, the world and our future. Cognitive distortions interfere with how we perceive an event. For many of us, there are specific ways we tend to distort our thinking (e.g., having lots of should, jumping to conclusions, all or nothing thinking, minimizing our successes). These irrational thoughts subsequently lead to unpleasant emotions (e.g., sadness, hopelessness, irritation, anxiety, anger) and unhelpful behaviors (e.g., procrastination, inactivity, avoidance, yelling, over-sleeping, over-eating). Being aware of these common thinking distortions can allow us to shift our thinking to more rational and helpful thought. This in turn leads to more calm and balanced emotions and healthier behavior. Here’s a good article with some of the most common cognitive distortions. https://psychcentral.com/lib/15-common-cognitive-distortions/

What's a cognitive distortion and why do so many people have them? Cognitive distortions are simply ways that our mind convinces us of something that isn't really true. These inaccurate thoughts are usually used to reinforce negative thinking or emotions -- telling ourselves things that sound ration...

06/03/2017

Oh no, I can’t handle this! Anticipatory anxiety can be a difficult part of any anxiety disorder or OCD. Anticipatory anxiety is the anxiety that we experience in anticipation of anything that worries or scares us. Like all aspects of anxiety, anticipatory anxiety is paradoxical. That is, any attempt we make to avoid it will only make it stronger. Anticipatory anxiety is a big bully and tells us things will be catastrophically horrible! Yet, it is not actually a true predictor of how we will feel in the actual situation. Often, anticipatory anxiety is much worse than the anxiety we feel in the actual situation. Moreover, while anticipatory anxiety is real anxiety, it is very different from the anxiety that occurs when we are faced with the actual situation. In fact, situation anxiety and anticipatory anxiety are believed to be generated in different parts of our brain. Anticipatory anxiety can occur very quickly but may take quite some time to subside. Indecision may also play a role in our experience of anticipatory anxiety in that as our indecision increases, so may our anticipatory anxiety. The anxiety can become more debilitating as we get closer and closer to the feared trigger and we may have much more difficulty using distraction to put off deciding what to do. Here’s a great article by Dr. Marty Seif on How to Tame Your Anticipatory Anxiety. http://www.drmartinseif.com/resources/anticipitory-anxiety.html

Anticipatory Anxiety is the anxiety that we experience in anticipation of exposure to our frightening triggers. If you are claustrophobic, when you worry about taking an elevator later in the day, that is anticipatory anxiety. If you have a fear of contamination, when you worry about having to sit...

05/24/2017

Unwanted thoughts. We can all get them at times at times. What if the plane crashes?! What if I don’t get into college?! What if my child doesn’t get better?! What if I throw up?! When a person has OCD, these thoughts are intrusive, repetitive and distressing. People are often unclear about what to do in response to their unwanted thoughts and want to know, “what is the correct way to respond to my thoughts.” Ultimately there is no “perfect” answer. OCD want us to be certain about bad things not happening AND it may also want us to be certain about the “right” way to respond to these unwanted thoughts. Fearing that we may not respond exactly correctly to our thoughts, feeds into the overvalued ideation so common in OCD. The idea that thoughts have power and meaning unto themselves is the very idea we are working to confront. Thoughts are thoughts, they are not dangerous. While there is no best practice when responding to our thoughts, there are ways of responding that may be more helpful than others. Here’s a wonderful article that takes a closer look at responding to unwanted thoughts with nothing, mental noting, agreeing with uncertain potential, agreeing affirmatively and distraction.
http://www.ocdbaltimore.com/how-to-respond-to-unwanted-thoughts/

One of the questions that often comes up both in my clinical practice and in the online support groups I contribute to is, “How do I respond to my thoughts?” Or more specifically, “What is the

05/23/2017

Change your attitude! This can be a very important step in overcoming panic. Many specialists believe that when learning to cope with panic and other anxiety symptoms, the most important step of all is to manage your attitude. This entails your relationship with panic and anxiety. It is the judgment you place on the experience of panic (e.g., this is bad, I hate this, it needs to stop) and the beliefs about how you should act when feeling anxious (e.g., stay in control, don’t let anyone notice). Instead, your goal is to slowly inoculate yourself to the experience of panic using paradox. That is, moving closer to what you would have avoided. Move toward the panic. Attitude can be everything. Some may not use any “strategy” at all. You don’t necessarily need to practice any specific breathing skills, you don’t need to “learn to relax” and you don’t necessarily need to “use coping strategies”. Instead, DECIDE to be WILLING to feel the panic. I get it. Easier said than done; but, every step you take toward deciding to feel the sensations (i.e., the “noise” in your body), brings you closer to that essential attitude change of acceptance and a decrease in the suffering brought on by “fear of the fear”. Learning to say, “I am not ashamed,” “I want to face the symptoms to gain skills,” “It’s OK to be anxious,” and “I can tolerate uncertainty” can make all the difference. Here is some terrific information on changing your attitude about panic.

http://www.anxieties.com/48/panic-step3 #.WSJf58uGNMs

A free self-help site for people suffering from an anxiety disorder, including panic attacks, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), fear of flying, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxieties and phobias, simple phobias, PTSD, and information on the use of medications

05/19/2017

Body image issues are very much a part of our culture. One lesser known preoccupation with a person’s body is Muscle Dysmorphia or MD. Muscle Dysmorphia is a form of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). Other common terms used for MD are “Reverse anorexia” or “Bigorexia”. MD more often affects males, with symptoms frequently beginning in the late teens or early adulthood. In Muscle Dysmorphia, the person is preoccupied by thoughts that their body is too small, not muscular enough or not lean enough. In many cases, their physique may be quite normal or even more muscular than the average person. People with MD perceive their musculature in a very distorted way and may engage in excessive checking (e.g., looking in the mirror) and comparing (i.e., seeing how their muscles compare to others). They may exercise more than others, eat in extremely healthy ways or count calories. This is different than a person who chooses a healthy lifestyle. The defining feature of MD is that the person is PREOCCUPIED by thoughts that their musculature is not what they think it should be. Here’s a great article about this lesser known condition. https://bdd.iocdf.org/expert-opinions/muscle-dysmorphia/

by Roberto Olivardia, PhD; Aaron Blashill, PhD; & Jonathan Hoffman, PhD Overview Muscle Dysmorphia or MD is a form of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). MD is defined by: Being preoccupied by wor…

05/16/2017

Soft sound sensitivities can be excruciating for many people. The smallest sound, a whisper, a lip-smack, a chewing sound or tapping can cause significant emotional distress, even intense anger for many people. Some adults may have learned to deal with it but for many people, especially teenagers who need to live by the rules of their family (e.g., eating dinner as a family), it can be difficult to cope. This “hatred of sound” or misophonia can make it difficult to be around other people. If people do not understand the depths of the distress for the person, they can easily minimize it, assuming the reaction is a choice. It is not a choice. The duration or volume of the sound trigger may not correlate with the level of disturbance. The smallest sound, like opening a plastic wrapper, may trigger an outburst in a person with misophonia. Here is a terrific article on how small quiet sounds can be like nails on a chalkboard to some individuals. https://iocdf.org/expert-opinions/misophonia/

by Adam B. Lewin, PhD, ABPP; Eric A. Storch, PhD, & Tanya K. Murphy, MD, MS, University of South Florida Misophonia, or “hatred or dislike of sound,”�is characterized by selective sensitivity t…

05/15/2017

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there! One of the many things we aren’t told before becoming a mom is that you will worry, pretty much all the time. Now we are responsible for another life, perhaps multiple little lives. There can be a lot to worry about. Will they be okay with out me? Will they like their teacher? Will they eat their lunch at school? Will they be asked to play at recess? Will they do well on that test? Will they be excluded from the group? Will they be picked on? Will they get into the college of their choice? Am I good mom? Am I doing this right?!!!!! It can be difficult not to worry yet, it can be important to manage these worries so that we are able to experience all the joy motherhood has to offer. Here are some tips that help tame the motherhood worries.
1) Don’t show your love through worrying. Show your love through love.
2) Keep in mind the reasons you wanted to become a mother. Lose yourself in the wonderful moments of motherhood – a laugh, a smile, a hug, a kiss.
3) Accept the possibility of what you fear. Lean into it. Resisting the idea of the bad thing happening only makes your fear worse. Let the worry thought be a THOUGHT.
4) Remember that your worries rarely come true.
5) Have a good team of knowledgeable caring people – pediatricians & daycare providers. It takes a village.
6) Have other things in your life besides being a mom. Take care of yourself by being involved with friends, hobbies or a job. Worries about your kids have a lot more space to rent in your brain when it’s the only thing you are thinking of.
7) Get busy when you are feeling nervous. Direct your nervous energy into something productive.
8) Exercise is a great natural stress reducer. Our bodies need exercise to “burn off” that fight and flight response caused by worries.
9) Know that it’s super normal for moms to worry from time to time.
10) Let your child make mistakes. Mistakes are important learning tools for kids. Don’t rescue them from those opportunities.
Here’s a great article on how Motherhood Breeds Anxiety. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-worry-mom/201206/mothers-anxiety

How motherhood breeds anxiety