OCD Therapy
Understanding OCD Treatment – ERP & I-CBT
As an accredited CBT therapist with extensive experience of working with OCD, I would really like you to leave this page with hope and clarity. Even though OCD is very challenging, it is very possible to get yourself out of its clutches with robust CBT approaches specifically developed for treating this condition.
What is OCD?
OCD is a serious and debilitating mental health condition that causes the sufferer to get stuck in a cycle of obsessions and compulsions.
Obsessions are basically doubts, even when they feel 100% real, rather than just doubts. Obsession can focus around any topic and OCD will usually target areas that you value and find meaningful. Obsessions or intrusions can appear in the form of unwanted distressing thoughts, images, urges, sensations or feelings. The person then responds to alleviate their distress by engaging in compulsions.
Compulsions are repetitive mental and/or physical behaviours. Avoidance is also a behaviour! Depending on the type of OCD your compulsions may include cleaning, washing, checking, analysing, reviewing, repenting, scanning, ordering and so on. It could be anything that you do in an attempt to feel better. You may find yourself tirelessly overthinking to figure things out or seeking reassurance from others. You might try to somehow neutralise or get rid of these thoughts or sensations but for OCD nothing is enough. Compulsions are exhausting and time consuming and can impact the person’s functioning severely.
Once the obsessional doubt takes hold it can even generate actual sensations and experiences for example feeling sticky, itchy etc while there is nothing there in reality.
ERP and I-CBT explained
Both ERP and I-CBT are CBT-based OCD therapy approaches but they tackle OCD from a different angle. Both are stand-alone, effective treatments for OCD and are backed by research.
Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP) for OCD
In ERP first the client learns how and why giving importance to the intrusive thoughts and responding to them maintains and worsens their OCD. They also learn how this cycle can be reversed. Following this the treatment is focused on deliberate systematic exposures to triggering situations while supporting the client to respond differently rather than with their usual compulsive behaviours. Exposures are planned, gradually built and collaborative to make treatment both manageable and effective. Changing the response eventually changes the beliefs clients hold about the intrusive thoughts and doubts and they eventually don’t feel significant or scary, allowing the client to set free from the heavy burden of engaging with the doubts and get back to living normally.
Inference-based CBT (I-CBT) for OCD
I-CBT helps the client learn through a step by step process of realisation that the obsessional doubts were not based in reality and there was no problem to resolve to start with. Obsessional doubts are seen as arising from a confused reasoning process. ICBT exposes that process along with OCD’s many tricks and cheats until the sufferer begins to sense reality with more confidence and trust in themselves. Once the doubt illusion is clear and the person returns to reality sensing, there is no need to respond in the usual way.
I explain the two approaches in more detail at the start so that once your difficulties are assessed we can jointly make an informed choice.
OCD treatment with myself involves attending online weekly sessions and doing some work in between the sessions on your own.
Clients experience of OCD Treatment
“I consulted Dr. Azra for severe OCD. From the start, she was incredibly calm and patient, creating a safe space where she clearly understood the depth of my problem. She helped me deconstruct my obsessive thoughts and compulsions, teaching me the specific techniques needed to manage them.
I cannot thank Dr. Azra enough for equipping me with these lifelong skills. However, I would tell future clients that for therapy to be truly effective, it requires commitment. You must be willing to keep practicing what is discussed in the sessions. It is a collaborative effort, but if you put in the work using her guidance, the results are life-changing. I wholeheartedly recommend her to anyone looking for a highly professional therapist.”
Client from London, 2025