We offer a comprehensive Adolescent Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) for adolescents who need intensive treatment for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), anxiety disorders such as Social Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder,and others. This unique program allows adolescents to receive a specialized cognitive-behavioral therapy intervention in a compassionate and individualized treatment environment. Adolescents in this program meet with their cognitive behavior therapist for three hours per day, five days per week. Length and frequency of meeting is flexible, but most adolescents stay in our program for 4 to 6 weeks. Often the adolescents start by meeting with their therapist five days a week and then step down to 2 to 3 times a week until the program is completed.
How Do I know That This Program Is Right For My Adolescent?
- Your adolescent is suffering from severe anxiety and outpatient treatment has not been successful
- You are interested in having your adolescent complete a step-down program after residential or inpatient treatment
- You would like to minimize the amount of school your adolescent has to miss
- You are looking for your adolescent to make the most of a spring or summer break
- You want your adolescent to receive individual treatment, rather than group-based therapy, as is typical in many other Intensive Outpatient Programs
What Is Treatment Like At The Adolescent Program?
You – the parent – and your adolescent will first meet with a behavior therapist to complete a thorough diagnostic assessment that utilizes empirically validated instruments, behavioral observations, patient and family history, and past treatment records. Next, the adolescent and their family will collaborate with the behavior therapist in developing an individualized treatment plan based on your adolescent’s symptoms and unique difficulties. We will then implement an evidence-based cognitive-behavioral intervention, the gold standard treatment for youth suffering from anxiety disorders. Our goal is to not only alleviate your adolescent’s symptoms, but also to prevent these symptoms from returning again. To achieve this goal in the context of our short-term intensive program, we actively address relapse prevention early on in treatment and help the adolescent feel prepared for tackling future challenges after their treatment stay. Finally, as the adolescent is often living with their family, we include family education and support within our AIOP.
What is Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy?
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) examines the connections between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, while learning that if we change the way we think and the things we do, we can change how we feel. CBT uses Exposure and Response Prevention techniques, which help adolescents learn that if they face their anxiety-provoking thoughts, feelings, and situations in a gradual and systematic way, they will not only feel less anxious over time, but also learn that their fears are not very likely to come true.
Treatment Approach
The program is based on empirically supported research, asserting that intensive specialty treatment, utilizing evidence-based treatment protocols, is effective in treating severe obsessive compulsive disorder, obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders, anxiety disorders (such as social anxiety, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder), and other coexisting conditions. To achieve maximum benefit for patients, the program adheres to the following assumptions:
- We use state-of-the-art evidence-based cognitive-behavioral and psychopharmacological treatment modalities.
- We encourage normalization by patient participation in decision-making about treatment and by providing treatment in a caring environment.
- We design and provide services in a way that supports, educates, and empowers the patient.
- We attend to the individual’s physical, emotional, social, and economical problems.
- Our long-term goal is to establish healthy functioning individuals and families.
