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Evaluation ViewAttendees 8

Mini Workshop

Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders

The Intersection of Trauma and OCD in Youth: Support Through CBT and Exposure-Based Interventions

Mini Workshop 11 - The Intersection of Trauma and OCD in Youth: Support Through CBT and Exposure-based Interventions

Saturday, November 22, 2025
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM CST
Location: Strand 12 A&B, Level 2
Earn 1.5 Credit
Recorded Session
Keywords: CBT, ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention), Adolescents
Level of Familiarity: Moderate to Advanced
Recommended Readings: Pinciotti CM, Van Kirk N, Horvath G, Storch EA, Mancebo MC, Abramowitz JS, Fontenelle LF, Goodman WK, Riemann BC, Cervin M. Co-occurring PTSD in intensive OCD treatment: Impact on treatment trajectory vs. response. J Affect Disord. 2024 May 15;353:109-116. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.004. Epub 2024 Mar 5. PMID: 38452939.,  
Lifetime Potentially Traumatic Events and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Outcomes in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder by Laura Belschner PhD, Robert McMahon PhD, and Evelyn Stewart MD.
,   Lafleur DL, Petty C, Mancuso E, McCarthy K, Biederman J, Faro A, Levy HC, Geller DA. Traumatic events and obsessive compulsive disorder in children and adolescents: is there a link? J Anxiety Disord. 2011 May;25(4):513-9. doi: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2010.12.005. Epub 2010 Dec 27. PMID: 21295942; PMCID: PMC3074033.,   ,  
Children and adolescents with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder often present with complex symptom profiles, especially when co-occurring trauma is a factor. Trauma exposure has the ability to intensify OCD symptoms and influence how they manifest, while OCD often mimics or exacerbates trauma responses, leading to misdiagnosis or an incomplete treatment approach. Due to this overlap, clinicians require a nuanced approach that addresses both diagnoses effectively. Therefore, this session will explore the intersection between trauma and OCD in youth, and how to make modifications in treatment that can both address a patient's feared consequence related to OCD and overlapping trauma worries. This presentation will combine lecture-style instruction with interactive components, including case examples, role play demonstrations, and group discussions.

Recommended Reading 1: The effect of trauma on the severity of obsessive-compulsive spectrum symptoms: A meta-analysis by Michelle Miller and Rebecca Brock

Recommended Reading 2: The effect of childhood trauma on the severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms: A systematic review by Louis Destree, Mary-Ellen Brierley, Lucy Albertella, Laura Jobson, and Leonardo Fontenelle

Recommended Reading 3: Understanding the overlap between OCD and trauma: development of the OCD trauma timeline interview (OTTI) for clinical settings by Lauren Wadsworth, Nathaniel Van Kirk, Madeline August, J. MacLaren Kelly, Felicia Jackson, Jennifer Nelson, and Rose Luehrs

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this session, the learner will be able to:
  1. Define trauma in a holistic sense, combining information from the DSM and the ACES study.
  2. Differentiate between trauma responses and OCD-related symptoms in clinical assessments.
  3. Develop their understanding of trauma informed cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) frameworks for youth.
  4. Integrate exposure and response prevention (ERP) techniques with sensitivity to trauma histories.
  5. Address the avoidance behaviors common to both diagnoses while maintaining trust and safety in the therapeutic relationship.
  6. Long-term Goal: Understand the basic mechanisms of gold-standard OCD and PTSD treatment models and how to skillfully apply both with patients with co-occurring diagnoses