Intrusive thoughts you'd never act on
Violent, sexual, or blasphemous thoughts that arrive uninvited and horrify you. The distress is the proof they aren't your intentions — but OCD treats them as threats that demand an answer.
OCD treatment · Arlington, VA
Outpatient OCD treatment in Arlington, Virginia
Exposure and response prevention (ERP), ACT, PHP and IOP, and psychiatric medication management for obsessive-compulsive disorder — for adults in Arlington, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia.
- ERP-based programming
- Day & evening IOP tracks
- Telehealth for Virginia residents only
Medically reviewed by the VABH Medical Team
When treatment helps
OCD patterns we treat
The average person with OCD waits years before naming it out loud — usually because the content of the obsessions feels unspeakable. Every theme below is one we treat routinely.
Checking, counting, and rereading
The stove, the door, the email you've reread eleven times before sending. Checking buys twenty seconds of relief and teaches the brain the doubt was worth taking seriously.
Contamination fears and washing
Handwashing past the point of raw skin, routes planned around what you'd have to touch, clothes that can't come into the house. Contamination OCD often reorganizes an entire home around avoidance.
Relationship, harm, and 'just right' OCD
Endless questioning of whether you love your partner, whether you'd hurt someone, or whether something feels correctly aligned. These subtypes are frequently misdiagnosed as anxiety or a personality issue for years.
Reassurance seeking
Asking your partner again, searching symptoms again, confessing again. Reassurance is a compulsion in conversation form — and the people who love you are usually exhausted from providing it.
Mental rituals nobody can see
Silent praying, reviewing memories, neutralizing a bad thought with a good one. Purely obsessional OCD has no visible rituals, which is exactly why it goes untreated the longest.
How we treat OCD
ERP first, with psychiatric care alongside it
OCD is highly treatable with the right protocol and highly resistant to the wrong one. We deliver exposure and response prevention with enough repetition to actually break the loop.
Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP)
The gold-standard treatment for OCD and the core of our program. We build a hierarchy with you, approach triggers deliberately, and practice not performing the compulsion — until the brain learns the alarm was never information.
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
ERP works better when you can hold an intrusive thought without wrestling it. ACT builds willingness and values-based action so treatment isn't only about tolerating discomfort — it's about getting your life back.
Cognitive therapy for OCD
We target the beliefs that keep the cycle running: inflated responsibility, thought-action fusion, intolerance of uncertainty, and the demand for perfect certainty before you're allowed to move on.
Psychiatric evaluation & medication management
Board-certified evaluation to confirm OCD rather than generalized anxiety or trauma. Our medical staff may prescribe SSRIs — often at the higher doses OCD typically requires — with augmentation options when response is partial.
Family involvement & accommodation reduction
Families almost always get pulled into rituals: answering the question, checking the lock, doing the laundry a specific way. We coach loved ones to step out of the compulsion loop without withdrawing support.
Dual-diagnosis care
Alcohol, cannabis, and benzodiazepines are common ways people dull obsessional distress, and depression rides alongside OCD often. When both are present, we treat them under one coordinated plan.
Levels of care
OCD treatment programs, from PHP to aftercare
Most people aren't sure which level of care they need — that's what the assessment is for, and you can step up or down as things change.
- 015 days/week · ~6 hrs/day
Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP)
Our most structured OCD treatment. Daily ERP practice, individual therapy, and psychiatric oversight while you sleep at home — the right level when rituals consume hours a day or you can no longer work, study, or leave the house reliably.
- 023–5 days/week · day or evening
OCD Intensive Outpatient (IOP)
Several sessions a week of ERP, ACT, and skills groups with morning and evening tracks. The most common level of care when weekly therapy hasn't moved the compulsions — ERP works best with repetition, and IOP supplies it.
- 03Weekly · ongoing
Outpatient therapy & medication management
Weekly individual ERP, ongoing medication management, and relapse-prevention work that keeps hard-won exposure gains from eroding when a new theme shows up.
- 04When more support is needed
Higher level of care (vetted partners)
If residential OCD care or medically supervised withdrawal management is the safer first step, we coordinate placement with trusted, vetted providers and take the guesswork out of the handoff — then pick your plan back up when you're ready for outpatient care.
Across the river from Maryland
Convenient for Maryland commuters
Specialized ERP programming is hard to find, and many clients drive for it. Our Arlington center is a short trip from Bethesda, Montgomery County, and Prince George's County, and in-person PHP and IOP schedules are built to fit around work. Telehealth is available for Virginia residents between in-person visits.
Common questions
OCD treatment questions, answered
What is ERP therapy and why is it the standard for OCD?
Exposure and response prevention has the strongest evidence base of any OCD treatment. You approach what triggers the obsession and deliberately don't perform the compulsion, so the anxiety falls on its own. Talk therapy that analyzes the content of obsessions often makes OCD worse; ERP targets the mechanism instead.
Will you force me into exposures I'm not ready for?
No. Every exposure is planned with you in advance, starts below your current tolerance, and moves at a pace you agree to. Nothing is sprung on you. The point is repeated, controlled practice — not shock.
My intrusive thoughts are violent or sexual. Will you report me?
Intrusive thoughts that horrify you are a hallmark of OCD, not a sign of danger. Our clinicians are trained to recognize the difference between an ego-dystonic obsession and genuine intent. These themes are among the most common ones we treat, and shame about them is usually why people waited years to ask.
How is OCD different from anxiety?
Anxiety is broad worry; OCD is a specific loop of obsession, distress, and compulsion that briefly relieves it. The treatment differs too — standard anxiety CBT alone often plateaus with OCD, which is why ERP is delivered as its own protocol here.
Does medication help OCD?
For many people, yes. SSRIs are first-line and OCD generally responds to higher doses than depression does, with a longer window before you can judge the result. Medication is offered, never required, and it works best alongside ERP rather than instead of it.
Does insurance cover OCD treatment?
Most major commercial plans cover outpatient mental health treatment, including PHP and IOP. Our admissions team verifies your benefits and tells you the expected cost before you commit to anything. Self-pay options are available if you're uninsured.
Do you offer telehealth for OCD treatment?
Yes, for Virginia residents — our clinicians are licensed in Virginia, so telehealth sessions are available statewide. Telehealth is often an advantage in OCD treatment because exposures can happen in the exact place the rituals live. In-person care at our Arlington center is open to Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC residents.
In-person OCD treatment at 5400 Shawnee Road, Arlington, VA for VA, MD, and DC residents. Telehealth for Virginia residents only.
If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or call 911.
Get help today
Talk to someone who's done this before
Whether you're calling for yourself or for someone you love, the first conversation is free and completely confidential.
- Admissions — 24/7(571) 586-2883
- Location5400 Shawnee Road, Arlington, VA
Insurance accepted
Insurance coverage for OCD treatment
ERP therapy, psychiatric care, and intensive outpatient treatment for OCD are covered behavioral health benefits under most commercial plans — Anthem, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Optum, Sentara Health Plans, UMR, and Johns Hopkins Health Plans. Send us your card and we'll confirm your approved sessions before you start.
Don't see your plan? Call us — we also work with out-of-network benefits and self-pay.