Jason Gibbs

My main reason was to help people. I have a built-in ability to relate to people, understand what they’re going through, and work well with them. That lends itself well to helping people through psychological issues. And I get a lot of enjoyment from helping people who are struggling with anything—depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma, you name it.

I have had several subtypes of OCD since I was very young. I've done ERP myself. So I have real, personal knowledge of how well it works, and also how it can be scary to start. As a therapist, I find OCD to be diagnostically fascinating. It's different from most other disorders, which gives it an intriguing element. It's also very different, treatment-wise. Because of that, many people don't know much about it or know how to treat it, which makes it especially interesting from a research and treatment perspective.

The majority of my experience is with OCD, but I have a lot of secondary experience with evidence-based treatments for other anxiety disorders (including panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder), as well as some comorbid depressive disorders (including major depressive disorder and persistent depressive disorder). I also have experience with OCD-related disorders, including trichotillomania, excoriation disorder, tics, and Tourette's.

I know it takes a lot of courage just to get here, so the fact that you're even considering treatment is really wonderful. This is something that we'll work on collaboratively. It's something that does take a lot of work, but if you put in the work, it can be highly effective. I'm really hopeful that we'll be able to provide you with some support and some relief from your symptoms.

I want you to understand that these are intrusive thoughts; they are not you. When you share these things with me, I'm very aware they're not something you hold dear to who you are. These are intrusive thoughts you want to go away. I would really encourage you to share them with me, because I'm going to know that they aren’t reflective of who you are as a person.