OCD, Tics and Related Conditions and Behaviours
I am a certified and trained in Habit Reversal Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Exposure and Ritual Therapy, for OCD and Comprehensive Behavioural Intervention for Tics/Tourette's for children and adolescents. These therapies are available face to face and online.
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Therapeutic success is individual for each client. Research shows that the most effective therapeutic support combines cognitive, behavioural, emotional and physiological approaches. I also believe that finding the root causes of the OCD or Tics is an important part of the picture, which a medical or functional practitioner.
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The most important aspect of therapeutic support is the relationship and trust between the child and my self. It is also important that the child has interoceptive self awareness of how experiences and emotions feel within their body. We work together on these therapeutic aspects before we move into the more structured OCD, Tics or Tourette's focused cognitive and behavioural therapies.
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Some of my clients live with neuro immune brain inflammation flares and experience OCD and Tic behaviours of differing levels of strength. As with all clients we work on individual needs but geneally in flare ups we find it is more effective to focus on emotional therapeutic support through the flare and focus on behavioural and cognitive support between flares.
CBIT Program
CBIT stands for Comprehensive Behavioural Intervention for Tics.
CBIT is suitable for children and adolescents over the age of 6 whose tics are causing them distress/and or significantly impacting their daily function
CBIT is an evidence based therapeutic program and approved by the NICE guidelines.
CBIT involves a high commitment from the child and the parent/carer. They need to be the cheerleader, walking beside the child/young person and present for every session. If parents/carers do not want to be involved it may not be the best pathway for the child/young person.
There is no guarantee it will work, but the success rate is high and works for most.
Research and experience show that face to face and online sessions are equally effective.
CBIT does not cure tics, suppress tics or create new tics. CBIT, combines psychoeducation, habit reversal therapy (HRT), social support and progressive muscle relaxation, to reduce the intensity of a particular vocal or motor tic by reducing or changing the antecedents and consequences of tics.
It is not suitable for children and young people who are severely developmentally delayed, experiencing active psychosis or substance abuse.
Our program builds up gradually, with an initial focus of building a safe and trusted therapeutic relationship between the child or young person and myself. During this time we ask parents and children to complete a number of questionnaires and assessments to ensure this is the most suitable pathway. We also spend time exploring their interception(how they sense their internal signals within the body).
When ready, we move into the production stage before starting the CBIT program. Most clients need between 10-14 sessions of CBIT, beginning with weekly then reducing to , every other week and then monthly.
We normally start with the tic that causes the most distress first and then build in other tics if needed.
We start with 60 minute sessions building to 90 to 120 minute sessions during the most intense part of the CBIT program, depending on the needs and progress that the child/ young person is making. Then we reduce the time and frequency of sessions as they take control and become experts in managing their tics.
CBIT is not easy. It takes commitment, time and effort for both the child and parents/carers.
It works best for children and young people who find their tics distressing, impacting their daily functions and are ready to put in the work.
Please get in touch if you feel that CBIT might be the appropriate pathway for your child.
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OCD focused workshops
for parents and professionals
