Exposure Response Prevention Therapy (ERP)

ERP involves two main components: exposure and response prevention. Exposure means gradually confronting situations, thoughts, or objects that trigger anxiety. Response prevention involves consciously choosing not to engage in compulsive behaviors or rituals after a trigger. This process is typically guided by a therapist who helps create a ‘fear hierarchy’ – a ranked list of anxiety-provoking situations from least to most distressing. The therapy progresses by tackling items on this hierarchy, allowing for habituation (anxiety naturally subsides with repeated exposure) and extinction (breaking the association between the trigger and anxiety)