Specialty Programs

OCD Program

Camden Center’s Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Program provides comprehensive, evidence-based treatment for OCD administered by expert clinicians specializing in the treatment of this condition.

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), is the gold standard treatment for OCD and is the foundation of the OCD program at Camden Center. ERP has proven highly effective at reducing suffering from OCD, but it requires significant commitment and an adequate level of resilience for the exposure work being undertaken.

For this reason, at Camden Center, ERP is just one component of a holistic approach that brings together a full range of modalities to create a truly comprehensive treatment program that allows patients to fully recover. 

‍An Integrative Approach

At Camden Center we have designed a patient-centered approach to treating OCD that reduces attrition from treatment and keeps patients fully engaged. Our highly personalized, evidence-based treatment program is uniquely designed to match treatment interventions to each patient in a manner that promotes lasting recovery. 

Our program leverages expert clinicians across medical, integrative, psychotherapeutic, somatic, and nutritional modalities and structures treatment around three distinct phases, each determined by a thorough clinical assessment and objective measures to ensure readiness for progress. 

Phase 1: Resourcing

In this phase, we lay the groundwork for the patient’s recovery journey, guided by clinical assessments and objective measures to ascertain readiness. Key features include:

Psychoeducation: The intrusive nature of obsessions can often produce an emotional cycle of shame and urges to hide from the world. At Camden Center, we offer tailored psychoeducation sessions based on clinical assessment to ensure each patient has a comprehensive understanding and normalization of the unique challenges present in OCD.

Skill Building: Personalized, holistic coping and resilience-building techniques from behavioral and somatic therapies increase the patient’s capacity for exposure work (ERP) in the next phase of treatment. With access to therapeutic body work, somatic therapies, and integrative medicine, patients become well-resourced for the work ahead. 

Support Networks: Supportive community is fostered through connections with peers, support groups, and professionals to help reconnect individuals with OCD to the world around them. 

Phase 2: Exposure

The exposure phase, anchored in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy, is introduced only when readiness is clinically determined. This phase involves:

Individualized Exposure Plans: Individuals work with their clinician to develop exposure plans tailored to their specific challenges and stage of treatment. 

Response Prevention: During exposure sessions, patients learn to resist compulsive behaviors under the guidance of expert clinicians who provide real-time feedback and intervention. 

Therapeutic Guidance: Patients receive consistent support through the exposure process, with ongoing clinical assessments to gauge appropriate level of intervention and intensity. 

Phase 3: Integration

The integration phase focuses on consolidating gains and transitioning towards stability, determined by ongoing clinical assessments and objective measures. This phase includes:

Relapse Prevention: Together, patients and clinicians develop strategies for sustained progress, guided by clinical assessments to ensure readiness for autonomy.

Cognitive Restructuring: Patients work on challenging the unhelpful patterns of thinking that surround obsessions and compulsions, ultimately achieving greater freedom from OCD. 

Transition to Maintenance: Patients make a gradual transition to a highly personalized maintenance plan designed to promote long-term stability.

ERP THERAPY WITH A TRAINED PSYCHOTHERAPIST

Because ERP is a time-intensive treatment, most programs providing ERP only involve a clinician in the planning of ERP and use interns or non-clinical staff to perform most of the ERP work.

At Camden Center, each patient in our OCD Program receives ERP exclusively from a psychotherapist who serves as their primary therapist and both plans and performs all ERP work with the patient.

Patients meet individually with their primary therapist multiple times per week. This permits the development of a strong relationship built on consistency and trust which we have found greatly improves the efficacy of the treatment.

In addition to ERP, patients in Camden Center’s OCD Program meet weekly with a psychiatrist for medication management and also have access to numerous other medical, psychotherapeutic, and somatic treatments that are selected specifically for them based upon their presentation and history.

REPETITIVE TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION

At Camden Center, we are also proud to offer Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) as an additional treatment modality for patients with OCD. rTMS is a non-invasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain, which can help alleviate symptoms of OCD. Our expert clinicians will assess the suitability of rTMS for each patient and integrate this cutting-edge treatment into their personalized care plan as needed. This approach allows us to offer a comprehensive range of therapeutic options to support our patients on their journey to recovery.

PERSONALIZED OCD TREATMENT PLAN

While ERP is highly effective in the treatment of OCD symptoms, most patients with OCD also struggle with other symptoms, including depression and anxiety, and often require a combination of additional treatments in order to fully recover.

Each patient in our OCD Program undergoes a comprehensive, multidisciplinary assessment and receives a unique, personalized treatment plan that in addition to ERP will include any other treatment modalities needed to help them recover from their current symptoms and address underlying issues. These additional treatments can include:

  • Psychiatry
  • Primary medical care
  • Trauma therapies including EMDR and Somatic Experiencing
  • Somatic Therapies including acupuncture and massage
  • Family therapy
  • Coaching
  • Integrative medicine

Participants in Camden Center’s OCD Program also have access to all of the other resources at Camden Center and if needed may participate in any of our other specialty programs.

Every patient at Camden Center is viewed as a whole person, and patients in our OCD Program not only receive world-class treatment for OCD but build a foundation for lasting stability and well-being.

Staff
Franklin Bolanos
LCSW
OCD Program Regional Director, Los Angeles
Franklin Bolanos
LCSW
OCD Program Regional Director, Los Angeles
Degrees
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Franklin Bolanos, LCSW, received both his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Master of Social Work from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

He is certified in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) by the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, and in Prolonged Exposure Therapy by the Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety.

Franklin has extensive clinical experience providing CBT, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).  

He previously worked as a bilingual therapist at Harbor-UCLA Adult Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic in Torrance, California, and as adjunct faculty in the California State University, Dominguez Hills Master of Social Work Program.

At Camden Center, Franklin facilitates DBT skills groups and provides comprehensive individual DBT to patients.

He is also a clinical team lead at the Los Angeles location. In that role, he assists patients, their families, and providers in the coordination of communication and support for optimal treatment outcomes through quality, client-centered, and comprehensive care services.

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Alexander Bystritsky
MD, PhD
Staff Psychiatrist
Alexander Bystritsky
MD, PhD
Staff Psychiatrist
Degrees
X

Professor Alexander Bystritsky, MD, PhD is a psychiatrist at Camden Center where he oversees our rTMS treatment program and is a clinical staff member of our OCD Program.

Dr. Bystritsky has been a faculty member of the UCLA Department of Psychiatry since 1987 where he is currently Professor Emeritus. During his tenure at UCLA, he founded and directed the award winning UCLA Anxiety Disorders Program and oversaw multiple seminal research projects. Dr. Bystritsky has published over 260 peer reviewed papers, book chapters, and short publications, and has served as the Principal Investigator on several National Institute of Health sponsored grants.

He has earned many academic honors and awards including the OCD Foundation Research Award and the Brain and Behavior Distinguished Investigator Award. Dr. Bystritsky has also served as a Visiting Professor at Harvard Medical School. He has pioneered the research and development of multiple neuromodulation technologies including image-guided deep brain stimulation, rTMS, Low Intensity Focused Ultrasound Pulsation (LIFUP), and other neuromodulation techniques for use in anxiety disorders within the department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at UCLA.

Dr. Bystristsky has authored several patents on image-guided neuromodulation using LIFUP. Dr. Bystritsky is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology.  

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Arie Winograd
MA, LMFT
Staff Therapist
Arie Winograd
MA, LMFT
Staff Therapist
Degrees
X

Arie Winograd, MA, LMFT, received his undergraduate degree at Carnegie Mellon University and completed his graduate studies at Pepperdine University.

Arie has spent his career treating body image disturbances. He initiated the first Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) study at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and went on to become the founder and director of the Los Angeles Body Dysmorphic Disorder & Body Image Clinic.

Arie authored the book "Face to Face with Body Dysmorphic Disorder: Psychotherapy and Clinical Insights,” and co-authored several academic publications on BDD. He has given numerous lectures on BDD and body image disturbances, both nationally and internationally.  

Arie also has six years of clinical experience at the UCLA Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Intensive Treatment Program.

At Camden Center, Arie provides consultations and individual and group psychotherapy to patients with various types of body image disturbances.





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Keara Valentine
PsyD
Staff Psychologist
Keara Valentine
PsyD
Staff Psychologist
Degrees
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Keara E. Valentine, Psy.D. earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Doctor of Psychology from the University of Hartford in Connecticut. Dr. Valentine completed her APA accredited pre-doctoral internship at Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Hospital in Illinois and her postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University School of Medicine in California.

She is a clinical assistant professor at Stanford University School of Medicine in the Obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Anxiety and Depression Adult Psychological Treatment (ADAPT) clinics. In addition, she is the supervising psychologist within the Rodriguez Lab at Stanford University. Dr. Valentine is Director of Child and Adolescent Training at the California Psychology Center.

Dr. Valentine utilizes behavioral-based therapies including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) with individuals experiencing obsessive-compulsive and anxiety-related disorders. She has experience working with individuals with OCD, anxiety, and/or eating disorders at various levels of care including outpatient, partial hospitalization, residential, and inpatient.

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Ali Ghassemi
PsyD
Staff Psychologist
Ali Ghassemi
PsyD
Staff Psychologist
Degrees
X

Dr. Ali R. Ghassemi, licensed clinical psychologist, received his Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology from California School of Professional Psychology, Los Angeles, with an emphasis on individual and family therapy. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from California State University, Northridge.

Dr. Ghassemi’s post-doctoral training focused on providing psychological assessment and intervention to inner-city children and adolescents, as well as counseling and assessment for college students.

He has more than 25 years of experience in conducting psychological testing and assessments, including cognitive assessments, brief and comprehensive neuropsychological testing, personality and emotional assessments, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) evaluations, learning disability assessments, pre-surgical evaluations, and medical-legal evaluations for workers’ comp and personal injury cases.

Dr. Ghassemi is also a clinician at the Los Angeles Body Dysmorphic Disorder & Body Image Clinic, where he conducts assessments and provides treatment.

At Camden Center, Dr. Ghassemi conducts psychological testing for patients.





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