The use of antidepressant drugs used in pharmacotherapy reduces the anxiety of a sufferer. One common antidepressant is Prozac. Since many patients resist taking their medication, it can be extremely frustrating for families and medical staff to control and regulate this disorder. Psychoeducation is the knowledge about the causes, symptoms, and treatments available that helps a patient understand their illness better. Free association and other psychotherapeutic procedures may actually increase a patient's obsessions and increase his or her anxiety.
Behavioral therapy is the predominately used therapy for obsessive compulsive disorder.
The individual can learn specific skills to obtain rewards and satisfaction. Such an approach may involve the cooperation of important persons in the individual's life to give praise and attention to desirable changes. Behavioral therapy includes an array of methods such as stress management, biofeedback, and relaxation training. Systematic desensitization's basic idea is to introduce the irrational acts to a patient, while gradually reducing his or her fear and anxiety by offering a positive response to a situation. For example, a woman with a fear of leaving her stove on would be allowed to check four times at first, then the following day three times, and eventually only once before she leaves her house for work.