Boosting exposure and response prevention with imagery-based techniques: a case study tackling sexual obsessions in an adolescent
Citation
Lau-Zhu, A., Farrington, A., & Bissessar, C. (2022). Boosting exposure and response prevention with imagery-based techniques: A case study tackling sexual obsessions in an adolescent. The Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, 15, E9.
Abstract
Sexual obsessions are common in adolescents with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), but how to
address these obsessions in a developmentally sensitive manner remains under-explored. This report
presents the case of an adolescent who experienced unwanted sexual imagery, undergoing
conventional exposure and response prevention, which was subsequently augmented with imagerybased techniques. This approach was associated with remission in symptoms of OCD and marked
improvements in symptoms of anxiety and depression. The imagery-based approach was well received
and valued as key to treatment success by the adolescent. This raises the tantalising possibility that
working directly with images can fuel treatment innovation in tackling sexual (and non-sexual)
obsessions in youth OCD.
Description
Open access/Creative Commons License
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