As an example, up to 25 per cent of individuals with OCD are known to attempt suicide at least once. For therapists, the therapeutic process can actually be even more challenging for clients without overt behavioural rituals – where the manifestation is one of covert OCD or ‘Pure O’ and can consist of repugnant thoughts involving children, sex, violence and religion.

This engaging, intellectually stimulating and therapeutically oriented seminar by Christiane Sanderson draws on a range of perspectives from CBT, psychodynamic and trauma-informed practices – to explore how intrusive thoughts and ruminations could be ways of managing internalised negative childhood memories and experiences; and are attempts at self-soothing – essentially ways by which clients are attempting to gain control through rigid and inflexible thinking.

Specifically, we consider:

• The spectrum & nature of obsessions, ruminations and intrusive thoughts
• The key differences in manifestations between overt and covert OCD
• The functions of OCD, covert compulsions and repugnant thoughts
• Links to cognitive processing and early childhood experiences / trauma
• Managing endless cycles of self-shaming strategies in which clients are held hostage to emotional reasons and catastrophisation
• How shame and reasoning difficulties can lead to fear and distrust of oneself and others
• The origin of reasoning difficulties and the reduced ability to differentiate between reality and fear
• Therapeutic approaches drawn from CBT, psychodynamic and trauma-informed domains

© nscience 2021 / 22