Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is a subcategory of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and the gold-standard care for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and other anxiety disorders. Exposure therapy is tailored to each individuals’ presenting concerns and fears, and provides for exposure to triggering thoughts, images, objects, or situations (obsessions) while preventing a response (compulsions). Treatment entails being 'exposed to fearful stimuli on a recurring basis and in a hierarchical manner until anxiety naturally drops, or reaches habituation. Exposure therapy is also useful in treating phobias or other anxiety-based disorders.