A Better Relationship for Valentine’s Day

Disruptive And Even Dangerous OCD In Teens: Four Benefits Of An Outpatient Treatment Day Program

15 June 2021

Vicki Alexander

Mild obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) may be somewhat easy to live with and work around; however, if your teen is exhibiting more severe symptoms, the entire family dynamic may suffer. The disorder may prevent your family from sleeping at night, visiting new places, and doing fun things together. OCD is also very hard on the individual suffering from it, they may benefit from professional help, particularly an outpatient treatment program. Here are a few benefits to expect:

1. Intense One-On-One Therapy

Obsessive-compulsive disorder can appear to be many things to an onlooker, but unless your teen is confiding in you completely, you may not know the full extent of what they're going through. One type of OCD can lead to another, with many varieties of intrusive, obstructive, and negative thoughts compiling, each with a different set of resulting actions.

Too often, OCD leads to a high level of anxiety, but it can also lead to things like isolation, insomnia, and health issues. Intense one-on-one therapy immediately addresses the most urgent concerns, gradually chipping away at the residual problems, too. A day treatment program would likely include a few hours a day, a few days a week, allowing for an aggressive approach to an aggressive problem.

2. Family Support

An OCD outpatient treatment day program will also help your family learn to cope and help, whenever possible. Family support is essential to many components of the program, including:

• Reassuring your teen that everything is, in fact, okay
• Redirecting
• Getting enough healthy exercise, along with fresh air and sunshine
• Instilling the confidence needed to gain trust in themselves

Your family may also need help getting through the more intrusive OCD episodes, such as those that involve a commotion, particularly at night. Knowledge is power to the family of someone dealing with any mental health challenge, and it helps everyone gain a better perspective of what's really going on.

3. Neuropsychological Analysis

In many cases, obsessive-compulsive disorder stems from physiological variances within the brain; thus, many tests may be needed for a complete analysis and accurate diagnosis. A day program will include all the tools and tactics necessary to determine the what and why of your teen's OCD so that the most appropriate and effective remedies may be offered.

4. Training To Help Your Teen Deal With OCD On Their Own

Eventually, your teen should graduate to the level of self-control they need to get through disruptive OCD episodes by themselves. While it may take some professional guidance, such independence may be achieved once the patient learns a few helpful techniques, such as:

• How to distract from their obsessive thought process
• How to turn negative thinking into positive action
• How to engage in self-calming tactics
• How to learn to trust themselves and start building self-esteem

Although such command over OCD may appear impossible right now, with the right help, a certain level of normalcy is achievable. What's normal and what's possible varies from person to person, though improvement is nearly always a goal within reach.

Your family, including your teen, deserves to lead a happy, fulfilling life, and that means taking control of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Since that can be difficult to do on your own, seek the professional help needed. Hopefully, it won't be long before your teen controls their compulsions, rather than the compulsions controlling them.

Share