Rani Dronamraju

I love working with people and connecting with people and I have found that the benefit is mutual. I get a lot out of it myself. After therapy sessions, people ask me if I'm tired, but actually, I'm energized! It's really nice to see people using the tools we work on, helping themselves, and moving in a positive direction.

With ERP therapy, I am able to see people change the way they approach their issues in the short term. It's amazing. One example: I was working with a lady who was afraid of going outside. She was completely housebound with OCD, and was not able to get out for anything. After the fourth or fifth session, she called me from a park on her phone. That's the power of exposure treatment.

I've worked in the field of mental health for 30 years. I've worked with people who have depression, intellectual disabilities like autism, relationship issues, and problems with communication or self-esteem. I also have experience teaching – I just love working with people and working to help them reach their optimal potential in life.

Basically, in NOCD Therapy we incorporate ERP, an evidence-based practice, to assist you to reduce the frequency and intensity of your compulsions and find alternate ways to bring you to an optimal place in your life. In ERP, you expose yourself to what's causing the compulsion and reduce the responses. A common example I use: let’s say you see a spider and think it's a monster that's going to eat you up because you saw Harry Potter two days ago. I can't remove the spider from your life, but I can change the approach you have toward the spider. It's not going to be that scary monster that might make you stay locked up in a room. You'll be able to get out of the room.

This has happened more than a few times. Basically, I will accept things as they come. I don't push. I will slowly tease it out and have conversations to help you feel comfortable with me. In those conversations, I try to reiterate that this is a place where you can share the things that bother you and feel uncomfortable. I'll also remind you that if you expose yourself to OCD thoughts, you will be able to resolve them. But if you keep pushing them under the carpet, you'll never be able to see or resolve them.