OCD therapy in Naperville, IL, and wherever you need it.

What OCD actually looks like

OCD is not about being neat, organized, or a "perfectionist." It is a neurobiological condition characterized by two things: obsessions and compulsions.

Obsessions are unwanted, intrusive thoughts, images, urges, or doubts that cause significant distress. They feel sticky. The more you try to push them away, the louder they get.

Compulsions are the behaviors or mental acts performed in response to obsessions, whether to reduce anxiety, prevent something bad from happening, or make things feel "just right." Compulsions provide temporary relief, but they keep OCD going. Over time, more compulsions are needed to get the same relief. The cycle tightens.

OCD affects people of all ages, including children as young as 4. It can look dramatically different from one person to the next. That's why working with a specialist matters.

Taking the first step is often the hardest part. Reach out - I'd love to hear what's going on.

OCD looks different for everyone

OCD presents in many forms. You may recognize your experience in one of these, or in several at once. All of them are treatable.

• Contamination OCD: Fear of germs, illness, chemicals, or feeling dirty or contaminated. Often involves excessive washing, cleaning, or avoidance of certain places or objects.

• Harm OCD: Intrusive thoughts about accidentally or intentionally hurting yourself or others. These thoughts are deeply distressing and completely ego-dystonic, meaning they go against everything you actually want.

• Scrupulosity OCD (Religious/Moral OCD): Obsessive fears about sin, blasphemy, moral wrongdoing, or offending God. Often involves excessive confession, prayer, or seeking reassurance that you are a good person.

• ROCD (Relationship OCD): Persistent doubt and intrusive thoughts about your relationship, whether you love your partner enough, whether they are the right person, or whether you are a good partner. Can also show up in other close relationships.

• Health Anxiety / Hypochondria OCD: Obsessive fear of having or developing a serious illness. Often involves body-checking, Googling symptoms, or seeking repeated reassurance from doctors.

• "Just Right" OCD / Sensorimotor OCD: A feeling that things are not quite right, an internal sense of incompleteness or wrongness that compulsions temporarily relieve. Can involve symmetry, ordering, or repetitive actions.

• Intrusive Thought OCD (Pure O): Unwanted intrusive thoughts, often sexual, violent, or taboo in nature, with no visible compulsions. Note: Pure O almost always involves hidden mental compulsions like rumination, mental reviewing, or seeking reassurance.

• Emetophobia OCD: Intense fear of vomiting or seeing others vomit. Often involves avoidance of certain foods, restaurants, people who seem unwell, and situations where vomiting could occur.

• Existential OCD: Intrusive, repetitive questioning about the nature of reality, existence, identity, or meaning. The thoughts may seem philosophical, but the anxiety and compulsive need to figure it out are very real.

• Perinatal / Postpartum OCD: Intrusive thoughts, often about harming a newborn, that are deeply distressing and contrary to a parent's actual intentions. Extremely common and very treatable, but often goes unrecognized.

• Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD): BDD sits on the OCD spectrum. It involves obsessive preoccupation with a perceived flaw in appearance, followed by compulsive behaviors like mirror-checking, comparing, camouflaging, or seeking reassurance. The flaw is typically unnoticeable to others, but the distress is very real. BDD responds to ERP and CBT, the same approaches used for OCD, and frequently co-occurs with OCD and social anxiety.

• OCD in Children: OCD in kids can look different from adult OCD. It often shows up as rigid routines, frequent reassurance-seeking, difficulty separating, or behavioral changes at school. Children as young as 4 can be successfully treated with ERP adapted for their developmental level.

How OCD is treated at Untangled

The gold-standard, evidence-based treatment for OCD is ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention). It is the most researched and most effective treatment available, recommended by every major OCD and mental health organization.

How ERP works: ERP works by gradually and systematically exposing you to the thoughts, situations, and triggers that activate OCD, while supporting you to resist the urge to engage in compulsions. Over time, your brain learns that the anxiety passes on its own, that the feared outcomes don't happen, and that you can tolerate uncertainty without needing to perform a ritual.

ERP is not about diving into your worst fears on day one. Treatment begins with a thorough assessment, a collaborative hierarchy of feared situations, and careful, paced work at a rate that challenges you without overwhelming you.

Other approaches used alongside ERP:

• ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) helps build psychological flexibility and reduce the struggle against intrusive thoughts

• iCBT (Internet-delivered CBT) for flexible, structured care between sessions or via telehealth

• DBT skills for clients who need additional emotional regulation support

What treatment looks like in practice: Sessions at Untangled go beyond the therapy room when needed. Exposures are practiced in real-world settings, because OCD doesn't only show up in an office. For kids and teens with school-related OCD, I will go to the school or home. Intensive formats are available for clients who need to make faster progress.

I also involve families. Parents and partners are powerful allies in OCD recovery, and I offer SPACE-based parent coaching to help families respond to OCD in ways that support recovery rather than unintentionally feeding the cycle.

Who I work with

I work with children ages 4 and up, teenagers, and adults across all OCD subtypes, including clients with complex presentations and those who have tried other treatments without success.

I have been specializing in OCD since 2016, with experience across inpatient psychiatry, partial hospitalization programs (PHP), and outpatient specialty care.

I offer sessions in English and Serbian.

In-person: Naperville area office: 640 S. Washington St., Suite 212, Naperville, IL 60540 Telehealth: Available throughout Illinois and Iowa. Indiana coming soon. Phone: (630) 394-5878

Taking the first step is often the hardest part. Reach out - I'd love to hear what's going on.

• Reach out. Call (630) 394-5878 or use the contact form to request a consultation.

• Consultation call. A brief call to talk through what's going on and confirm that Untangled is a good fit.

• Intake session. A thorough assessment of your OCD history, symptoms, and goals. This is where we build a treatment plan tailored to you.

• Treatment begins. We work collaboratively through exposures, building your toolbox and your confidence session by session.

• Discharge with a plan. Treatment ends when you've met your goals, with a clear understanding of how to manage OCD on your own going forward.

Q: Does ERP really work?
A: Yes. ERP has decades of research supporting its effectiveness and is the most evidence-based treatment for OCD. Most people see meaningful improvement within weeks to months of starting treatment.

Q: I've tried therapy before and it didn't help. Why would this be different?
A: Many people with OCD have seen therapists who weren't trained in ERP, and unfortunately, some approaches (like purely talk-based therapy or reassurance-giving) can actually make OCD worse. ERP done well, by a trained specialist, is fundamentally different.

Q: How long does OCD treatment take?
A: Treatment at Untangled is short-term and goal-oriented. Most clients see significant progress in 12 to 20 sessions, though this varies depending on the severity and complexity of the presentation. Intensive formats can compress that timeline.

Q: My child has OCD. Can you help?
A: Yes. I work with children ages 4 and up. ERP is adapted for younger clients to be age-appropriate and engaging. I also work closely with parents as part of treatment.

Q: Do you offer telehealth for OCD?
A: Yes. Telehealth OCD therapy is available throughout Illinois and Iowa. Exposures can often be conducted effectively via telehealth with creativity and planning.

Q: Do you take insurance?
A: Untangled is an out-of-network, private-pay practice. I provide superbills after each session that you can submit to your insurance for potential reimbursement. Many PPO plans offer partial reimbursement for out-of-network mental health services.

What to expect

Starting OCD treatment can feel daunting, especially if you've been living with it for a long time and aren't sure where to begin. Here's what the process looks like:

Common questions about OCD treatment

Adress:

PHONE: +1 630-394-5878

Serving Naperville, Aurora, Bolingbrook, Wheaton, Warrenville, Lisle, Woodridge & surrounding suburbs · Telehealth in IL & IA · © 2025 Untangled OCD and Anxiety Specialists

Links:

EMAIL: jelena@untangledocd.com

ADDRESS: 640 South Washington St. Suite 212 Naperville, IL, 60540, United States

LICENSED IN: Illinois & Iowa | Indiana coming soon

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I offer in-person sessions in the Naperville area and telehealth across Illinois and Iowa. If you need a home visit for school refusal, anxiety support, or family coaching, I can do that. If you need intensive sessions, I can do that too.