Doing Exposure and Response Prevention: A Live Demonstration with a Focus on OCD with Identity Themes

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is a gold standard treatment for OCD, yet many therapists report challenges implementing ERP in clinical practice (Ramsey et al., 2024). 

Bridging gaps in OCD care requires greater awareness of overlooked or misunderstood presentations and specialized training in the delivery of ERP, particularly for novel OCD presentations. OCD with identity themes is an overlooked presentation in which individuals experience fears, unwanted thoughts, or doubts related to identity, such as sexual orientation, gender identity, age, or ability status. While ERP can be effective across OCD symptom dimensions, clinicians may need additional training to treat identity-related obsessions. 

This presentation will demonstrate how ERP principles, including self-monitoring of obsessions and compulsions and exposure with response prevention, can be applied through a live therapy demonstration. Assessment, idiographic case formulation and treatment planning, and tailored exposures that honor the individual’s values while targeting compulsive behaviors will also be demonstrated.

Learning Objectives

• Describe features of OCD, including distinguishing between obsessions and compulsions, as they relate to OCD with identity themes.
• Understand how to develop exposures, including traditional exposure with response prevention and values based exposures.
• Learn how to apply ERP with treatment flexibility, including in the context of comorbid anxiety disorders and/or depression.