When the rituals start running your day
Psychiatric care for teens and adults whose checking, counting or mental rituals take up more time than they want to give.
Book a Free 15-Minute Consult
When Rituals Eat Into Your Time
OCD can start with a thought you don't want and a ritual that quiets it for a moment. Then the moment passes, the thought returns, and the ritual grows. Checking the lock again, counting until it feels even, asking someone to promise it's fine, replaying a conversation in your head. Before long, it can take a real share of the day.
I see teens from 13 to 17 and adults with OCD. The thoughts behind the rituals can be frightening or embarrassing, and they can feel completely unlike you. Whatever your thoughts are about, you won't be judged for them here. What matters for care is how much time and energy the rituals take, and what they crowd out.
What It Can Sound Like
- I have to count to a certain number before I can stop.
- I'm late everywhere because of the checking.
- I ask the same question until the answer feels right.
- Even sitting still, I'm doing it in my head.
Plain words like these are enough to start with.
Rituals the Evaluation Looks At
Rituals can be easy to see or completely hidden, so we look at both.
Checking and Rechecking
Locks, switches, messages you already sent, or your own memory. Going back to make sure, then going back again, and how long that adds to your day.
Counting and Evening Out
Counting steps or actions, repeating things a set number of times, or arranging them until they feel balanced enough to stop.
Asking for Reassurance
Asking the same question again, searching for answers, or needing someone to say it's fine, with relief that fades soon after.
Rituals in Your Head
Reviewing, repeating a phrase, replaying a memory or arguing with a thought. Mental rituals are harder to see, and they can take just as much time.
Making Room in the Day
What we work toward is a day shaped more by your own choices and less by what the rituals demand. That starts with understanding the pattern, where it shows up and what it costs you, and building a plan with you. Medication management can be part of that plan, and so can CBT or DBT skills.
I won't promise how much will change or how quickly, because everyone responds in their own way. We keep an eye on how much time the rituals are taking, review how the plan is going, and adjust it together as we learn what fits you.
How Care Gets Started
You can begin without explaining the content of your thoughts.
- 1
A Free 15-Minute Consult
Describe what the rituals are costing you, ask what you want to know, and see whether this feels like a good fit.
- 2
A Full Evaluation
60 to 90 minutes, in person at the Minot office or by telehealth, on your symptoms, your history, past treatment and how your days actually go.
- 3
Follow-Up Sessions
Regular sessions of 30 to 45 minutes to track the time rituals are taking, check in on any medication and side effects, and adjust.
Fees in Brief
Fees are $300 for the initial evaluation and $125 for each follow-up session, with a free 15-minute phone consult first.
- Consult
- $0
- 15 min
- Evaluation
- $300
- 60 to 90 min
- Follow-up
- $125
- 30 to 45 min
Questions About OCD Rituals
How much time on rituals is too much?
There is no number you have to reach first. If rituals are taking time you would rather spend elsewhere, or getting in the way of work, school or sleep, that is worth a conversation.
Do rituals that happen only in my head count?
Yes. Mental rituals like reviewing, repeating a phrase or arguing with a thought are part of what the evaluation looks at.
What if I keep asking people close to me for reassurance?
That can be part of the pattern, and it is worth telling me about. We can look at how often it happens and how long the relief lasts, without any judgment.
Ready to talk about the rituals?
Start with a free 15-minute phone consult, and describe a typical day in your own words.
Book a Free 15-Minute Consult