Yeah

When the two treatments are combined, it's easier. Yes, you can't achieve a complete cure with CBT alone, as ERB is the foundation of the entire treatment. However, there are some misconceptions. From experience, CBT is extremely beneficial when you have a condition and deformities; in such cases, CBT is preferred, followed by ERB.

@Tea and Honey I’ve heard that I could do erp on myself. Is it a form of desensitization? I’ve never had an erp session with my therapist cuz they don’t specialize in ocd

@GodsTreasure Sometimes the other therapies do not work on OCD. however, ERP is extremely effective. I think most people can achieve recovery with ERP. In my mind, ERP is not just a method of exposing yourself to triggers, it is also a method of handling the intrusive thoughts/urges. Most people with OCD get caught up into two main traps. 1 .) they try to fight off the intrusive thoughts. 2.) They think the intrusive thoughts have some sort of meaning, either about them, or about a connection to something very dangerous. In ERP therapy, people are trained to basically ignore the intrusive thoughts. My NOCD therapist explained it like this: you should imagine a tree planted by a river. The leaves fall off the tree and float down the river. You don't examine them. You don't pick them up. You just let them float by. We need to do the same to our intrusive thoughts. We don't try to fight them. We don't try to fix them. We just let them float by. This is very hard for people with OCD, because they attribute a lot of fear to their intrusive thoughts. And that's also why they engage in compulsions. This is because all compulsions are is a strategy to try to mitigate or neutralize the danger of the thoughts. ERP means practice exposing yourself to triggers a little bit at a time. And then you practice doing NOTHING to fix them. So in my case, I get triggered when having conversations with people. I might do or say something that I feel like will cause my eternal destruction. Lol, it sounds funny, but that's the way a OCD works. According to ERP, I need to let those situations pass by without me doing anything to try to fix them. And I don't avoid the triggers either. If you do that, the OCD just gets bigger. Well, I actually do avoid some of my triggers, lol but technically I'm not supposed to. If you want, I can send you more things that I have written that explains ERP. I really believe in it! I think it is very effective to move people from debilitation to becoming functional again.

@Tea and Honey Also, if your therapist is not trained an ERP, that could potentially be a problem. You might want to think about about another therapist, like the ones at NOCD, who are highly trained in this method. A lot of therapists mean well, but if they don't thoroughly understand, OCD, they may be limited and how much they can help

@Tea and Honey Interesting, I’d really like to try it! I wish I could afford one of the nocd therapists on here. Thanks for all the information on this by the way I really appreciate it 🤍

@GodsTreasure NOCD takes most insurance. I go every other week, with a $35 co-pay. So it's $70 a month for me. But you can ERP other places too. I'm here if you any questions at all!! In really enjoy talking to people on this app!! You can never feel like you are bothering me!

@Tea and Honey You’re very kind! What if I wanted to do erp on myself? I feel like I would get triggered, but is there a way I could do it without getting triggered?

@Tea and Honey In ERP, you actually want to get triggered! Lol ! We have to learn to not avoid any of the triggers

@Tea and Honey Getting triggered and surviving it is how we grow.

@❣. Neat! Would you like to share it?