Traveling for OCD Treatment

No OCD Treatment Near You? What is Next?

When looking for treatment for OCD, it is important to find someone who specializes in treating OCD. General therapists can be helpful, but OCD typically requires specialized care which can be hard to find. When there are no therapists who specialize in treating OCD in your area, it can be disheartening but traveling to receive specialized OCD treatment is extremely common. Many facilities are familiar with offering treatment to clients from outside of the state and outside of the country.

How do I Know if it is Time to Travel?

When looking for OCD Treatment, it is important to find a facility or clinician near you that specializes in treating OCD and that is trained to use Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) to treat OCD. If you are not finding therapists near you that specialize in treating OCD or are not trained in using ERP, it may be time to consider traveling to find a therapist or facility that does. Also, many therapists offer weekly treatment sessions that are usually around an hour long to treat OCD but for those with more severe symptoms of OCD, this may not be enough. If you are looking for a higher level of care such as an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), a Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP), or residential treatment for OCD, and the programs that are in your area do not offer treatment specifically for OCD, it is likely time to consider traveling for OCD treatment.

What It Means: Outpatient Therapy, IOP, PHP, Residential, Inpatient

If a client is engaging in outpatient therapy, it means they spend most of their time away from the treatment facility. Traditional weekly meetings with a therapist is the lowest level of outpatient care we offer at our facility and is considered outpatient therapy. An Intensive Outpatient Program, or IOP, is a higher level of care than traditional outpatient therapy and the highest level of care we offer at our facility. IOPs vary in how they are offered depending on the facility and what they are treating but it usually involves several hours a week, usually multiple times a week meeting one-on-one with a therapist or with a group. The client spends most of their time away from the facility but still engages in multiple hours of therapy multiple days a week. A Partial Hospitalization Program, or PHP, offers a higher level of care than an IOP and usually involves the client attending the facility for a significant portion of the day and week while still living at home. It usually involves the client attending the therapy for 5-8 hours a day, around 4-5 days a week. Residential treatment involves the client staying overnight and living at the facility and involves being in a care facility for 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This can last anywhere between a few weeks to several months depending on the program and the level of care the client needs. A residential program is an Inpatient program. Inpatient means that the client is staying overnight at the facility during the duration of their treatment.

How to Narrow your Search

When looking for treatment for OCD, it is important to decide what level of care you are looking for as explained in the section above. The more severe the symptoms you or your loved one is experiencing, the higher the recommended level of care. If you are not sure, many facilities do assessments where you can discuss what you are experiencing with a clinician and they can offer guidance based on their professional opinion. Also, if you or your loved one is currently receiving care from a licensed therapist or psychologist, they will oftentimes be able to provide guidance in regards to what level of care to look for. Once you have decided the level of care you are looking for, you can start looking for programs. Oftentimes programs have qualifying requirements that clients must fit in order to be considered for their program. For example, certain facilities only work with certain age ranges of clients such as only adolescents ages 13-17 or only clients ages 18+. It is important to find out these requirements and make sure you or your loved one is within these parameters when deciding what facility to attend. The International OCD Foundation website has a list of OCD specialists from across the US where you can narrow your search based on your specific parameters.

How do I Know Where to Go?

It is important to consider what you are looking for in regards to how treatment is done as treatment can involve group therapy, all one-on-one therapy, or a mix of both. Outside of group and individual therapy, some programs involve the client spending time alone in a room doing work provided to them by a clinician without a group or a therapist with them during a portion of their time at the facility while a clinician checks on them regularly. Residential treatment can sometimes include attending school sessions while at the facility if it is a child and adolescent facility along with dietitian recommendations, exercise, reading, music time, and other types of treatment. Also, some facilities have psychiatrists on staff to offer medication management while the clients are attending treatment. While programs can offer similar treatments, programs are rarely the same in what they offer and how they treat clients so one program may be a much better fit for a client than another program.

It is important to note how the therapy is done as well. Some programs are able to be done through telehealth sessions, and some involve going off facility grounds to engage in other types of therapies such as visits to public places or visits to areas out in nature. Because of all the different ways therapy for OCD can be done and the ways it can vary between treatment programs and facilities, check with the facility you are looking into to find out how their therapy works and what a typical day or week of doing the program at their facility looks like so you can find what best fits you or your loved ones needs.

Finally, costs vary among programs as well and it is important to consider your needs financially as well as therapeutically. Some programs will take insurance while many are out of network for all insurance providers. When looking for programs, consider the financial commitment you are able to make as costs range greatly between programs and facilities.

Travel Guidance

Oftentimes, when you are traveling to attend a facility, they are able to offer guidance in regards to hotels in the area, local airports, and even things to do when not attending treatment. Our facility offers a physical travel guide as do some other facilities and usually if you call the facility, the person that answers the call is able to provide recommendations as well. When making the commitment to treatment, it may be helpful to ask the clinicians at the facility if they have recommendations as the recommendations can greatly reduce the stress associated with traveling and allow you or your loved one to focus solely on treatment.

Needing Advice or Support?

Traveling to receive OCD treatment can be an emotional process and it is hard to decide what to do and where to go but there are many people out there who have done it and are able to offer advice and encouragement. There are many chat forums where people can go for advice and assistance from people who have traveled for treatment themselves. Clients may feel alone but it is actually quite common to travel to seek a higher level of care in a different state or somewhere abroad and because of that, there are many people who have done it and want to help the process feel more comfortable for others who are looking to do so in the future. Looking for advice in places like Reddit, Quora, Skool, and other chat forums may be helpful as many people share personal and anecdotal tips and experiences but remember, chat forums are helpful for education and community but are not for personal medical advice and you should talk to a provider before making any medical or therapeutic decisions.

Help is Near

Traveling for OCD treatment can be stressful but also extremely rewarding when you or your loved one is able to finally receive the help that is needed. There are so many facilities that are able to offer specialized OCD treatment and it is important to find one that is the right fit even if it is not nearby.

Source

The International OCD Foundation. (2022). Retrieved 29 July 2024, from https://iocdf.org