Daniel Kasper-MacMillan

I always had a passion for helping others, and I grew up on a farm tending to sick and injured animals. I thought I would become a physician. I even went to college for pre-med. However, when I shadowed several doctors, I saw they didn't have much patient interaction and were filling out insurance paperwork all day long. I wanted something more personally fulfilling. Luckily, I chose to enroll in a clinical psychology course, and I fell in love. I became fascinated by the intricacies of the human mind and the realization that, as a therapist, my time would be spent directly caring for people and helping them improve their lives. It's a very rewarding experience.

In grad school, I studied a myriad of disorders: anxiety disorders, psychotic disorders—virtually everything that's out there. Everything but OCD, which was not well understood. Then when I started practicing, I encountered a number of people who had OCD. I didn't have the tools to help them. Now I know ERP is the way to go. I thought there was no better specialty to have. A few people in my family have dealt with major depressive disorder. I have post traumatic stress disorder from two separate events in my life. My experience is certainly different from OCD, but I deal with intrusive thoughts, triggers, and uncomfortable feelings and feel like I can’t control them. I can empathize with how overwhelming intrusive thoughts can feel. I've gotten some really good therapy, including ERP therapy, and I can comfortably share my story. Now I have tools I can use to go about my day and focus on things that actually matter to me.

I am passionate about helping people with daunting, all-encompassing disorders. I've worked in community mental health by running an addiction center. I have done a lot of work with substance abuse, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders. If you're dealing with depression, anxiety, or substance abuse, every area of your life is affected. The same is true for OCD. I want to help people in a global sense—help them recover from what they're going through and improve their overall quality of life.

First, OCD is a data disorder. Don't be surprised if a certain voice in your head tells you that therapy won't work, isn't a good idea, or will be too hard. OCD will stop at nothing to make sure you're not engaging in therapy, because OCD wants to stick around. Second, come as you are. You don't have to fear that your thoughts are going to negatively impact me. As therapists, we realize these are just thoughts. We're not looking to judge anyone. We're just here to help you.