3 Things you Should Know About Panic Disorder

1.     You’re not actually going to pass out, have a heart attack or go crazy – it just feels that way. The hallmark of panic disorder is strong physical sensations that may feel like one is having a serious physical problem, such as a heart attack. Often, because of these sensations, people avoid places where…

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Associated anxiety issues: Trichotillomania, Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Misophonia

The OC Anxiety Center is primarily known for the treatment of anxiety disorders, and in particular OCD, panic, and specific phobias.  While treatment for other anxiety disorders fall well within the realm of OCAC, a number of similarly treated issues are also addressed.  Trichotillomania (hair pulling), BDD (Body Dysmorphic Disorder, the belief that…

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The Basics of School Refusal

Getting through school refusal

With the beginning of a new school year, the OC Anxiety Center has seen more children with school refusal come in through our doors. “School refusal” is a general term with a myriad of causes. Is it a fear of embarrassing oneself in front of others, a dislike of academics, a bully at school, or panic disorder? These are just a few possible causes for …

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Exposure and Response Prevention: It’s Scary and it Works

The “new” buzzword in treatment is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), even though it’s been around for decades. Many general providers now list as one of their modalities of treatment as CBT, and when looking for a psychologist a good question is “Are you a cognitive behavioralist?” Note that the question isn’t…

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What do I look for in a Therapist or Treatment Center?

We often hear from our patients, “I’ve seen several psychologists before, but none of them of have been helpful until I started working with the Anxiety Research Center. Why doesn’t everyone do what you are doing?”

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