OCD - can hypnotherapy help?

[SueG]

Hi all,

Not been on the Forum for a while as have moved back to England from Spain, still job hunting, probably going to have to do some grotty jobs (again) before I get settled. Any offers - gis a job mate, I can do that!!!!

Am intending to get going with my hypnotherapy etc though so could do with a bit of help: a friend has had cleaning OCD for many years which started after she lost her Mum unexpectedly, she was cleaning at the time when she found out about her Mum's death. It is having an impact on her life and her everyday thoughts. We have done some EFT to good effect but the problem has not cleared, she feels much calmer. She is willing to have some hypnotherapy - should I do some work around the trauma of her Mum's death or relaxation or what do you suggest? She has had a 12 week course on CBT with the NHS but has felt this has not helped her.

Many thanks
Sue

[hypno-therapist]

Hi Sue,

Glad to see you back on the forum...

When it comes to treating OCD, you have to take an approach that some hypnotherapists and eft practitioners may find a little alien (notice I said may)...

You have to not think how you can treat the condition with your elected therapy, but have to start at the beginning... The client...

Having suffered from OCD myself in the past I understand just how devastating it was for me, let alone the the people around me that had to watch me go through it.

The path to combating OCD for most people can be a relatively short one... However this path can be extreme and very intimidating...

At the moment CBT is the treatment of choice for tackling this very treatable disorder.

Even though we still don't know what causes OCD, there are two schools of thought. The neuro-psychologists believe that it is a disease of the brain. You can find out more about this theory in a book called 'Brain Lock' and the behaviorists believe that it is simply a 'learned behavior'. I buy into the second camp as it seems much more logic. Having said that though there is a massive case building that is pointing to the disorder being genetic, which has interested me a great deal. But then again nurture could explain this.

For those wanting an insight into what OCD is, then I can highly recommend a booklet that is produced by the OCTC. It is called 'Managing Obsessive Compulsive Disorder' and is by Dr David Westbrook. You can order it from the link below.

http://www.octc.co.uk/content.asp?PageID=63

You can also check out the OCD-Today website that has some fantastic info on it - http://ocdtodayuk.org/

[SueG]

Hi

Sorry for the delay in replying, I went away for the night.

Thanks very much for your full and frank reply, I will look at the books you mentioned and hope that she is on the road to recovery soon.

Best wishes, Sue