OCD & Anxiety Specialist
Specialized Anxiety and OCD Therapy to Help You Get Your Life Back
If you’re feeling stuck in cycles of anxiety, fear, intrusive thoughts, constant worry, avoidance, or repetitive behaviors, you’re not alone. Using specialized, evidence-based treatment including Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), I help teens and adults find lasting relief from anxiety and regain the freedom to live the life they want.
Available in CO, UT, AZ, NV, WA, NJ, IL
At the heart of effective therapy is a genuine, trusting relationship. I can know every skill, tool, and intervention in the world, but if you don't feel safe with me, we won't get anywhere - Josh Kaplan, LCSW
How Anxiety and OCD Can Keep You Stuck
OCD and anxiety disorders can show up in many different ways. You may find yourself trapped in never-ending intrusive thoughts and fears, endless “what if” questions, overthinking, panic attacks, health fears, avoidance, or repetitive behaviors you feel driven to do. No matter how hard you try to think your way out of it, avoid it, prepare for it, or make yourself feel certain, the fear and anxiety continue to return.
You may feel like you have tried everything—talking through it in therapy, using relaxation techniques, researching online, listening to podcasts, reading books, or trying every tip and strategy you can find. You have been working incredibly hard to feel better, yet the anxiety keeps showing up and the cycle continues.
Over time, this can become exhausting. Your world may slowly become smaller, your confidence may begin to fade, and you may start to question whether you will ever feel like yourself again.
The good news is that there is a way forward. With the right approach, you can break free from the patterns that keep you stuck, find lasting relief, and regain the confidence and freedom to live the life you want.
An evidence-based approach to OCD and anxiety treatment
Anxiety disorders and OCD are neuropsychological conditions driven by a misfiring of the brain’s alarm system (the amygdala), sending danger signals even when there isn’t a real threat. Most people naturally try to manage this by escaping, avoiding, or controlling what feels uncomfortable—and that makes sense because we are wired to stay safe. However, over time, those strategies can reinforce fear and keep the alarm system on high alert. The more you try to control, escape, or avoid anxiety and uncertainty, the more stuck and overwhelmed you often become.
There is a way out. I specialize in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), a specialized form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and the gold-standard, evidence-based treatment for OCD and anxiety disorders. Through ERP, I help you take a different approach—one that leads to real, lasting relief. ERP is an exposure-based treatment that helps your brain learn something new. Rather than avoiding what feels uncomfortable or frightening, you gradually face your fears while learning more adaptive ways of responding—replacing patterns of avoidance, escape, and attempts to control anxiety with skills that allow you to move forward.
Through repeated practice, your brain begins to update through neuroplasticity. ERP provides your brain with the opportunity to relearn that the thoughts, feelings, physical sensations, and triggers you have been reacting to are not actually dangerous, and that you are capable of handling discomfort and uncertainty. As this new learning strengthens, the anxiety gradually loses its frequency, intensity, and urgency. You spend less time trapped in fear, feel more confident in your ability to respond differently, and experience meaningful relief from anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and doubt.
Exposure and Response Prevention is collaborative, personalized, and designed to feel challenging but achievable. We will work together to create a treatment plan that meets you where you are, and I will guide and support you through each step of the process. While the idea of facing your fears may feel intimidating at first, many clients are surprised by how empowering and freeing the process becomes. As they learn that they can experience fear, uncertainty, and discomfort without avoiding it or making it disappear, they often regain a sense of confidence, independence, and freedom in their lives.
About Josh Kaplan
I bring over 15 years of experience specializing in the treatment of OCD and anxiety disorders, and my work is focused exclusively on helping people break free from these patterns. I’m deeply committed to helping you not just understand what’s happening, but learn and consistently practice the tools that lead to lasting relief and real freedom from what can feel at times overwhelming and debilitating.
As an anxiety and OCD specialist, this is the sole focus of my work. I’ve received advanced training and certification in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), the gold standard treatment for OCD, and have worked across multiple treatment settings with individuals ranging from mild to severe presentations. I continue to provide training and consultation to therapists newer to this area of treatment.
I continue to stay current in the field through ongoing education and my involvement with the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF). Working with a specialist matters; these disorders are highly treatable, but the approach has to be precise. If you’d like to learn more about my background, training, and experience, you can review my CV below.
How We'll Work Together
My approach is structured, collaborative, and results-oriented. From the very beginning, we will create a clear understanding of how anxiety or OCD is operating in your life and develop a treatment plan designed to help you break free from its grip.
Treatment focuses on learning a new relationship with anxiety: one where you can experience uncertainty, discomfort, and intrusive thoughts without needing to escape them, solve them, or make them go away. Through ERP and CBT, you will practice facing what you fear while choosing behaviors that move you toward the life you want.
You can expect honest guidance, encouragement, and accountability throughout the process. Therapy will require effort and willingness, but the goal is simple: to help you spend less time trapped in fear and more time fully engaged in your relationships, work, and the things that matter most to you.
Long-term reduction in anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and doubt
Experience a gradual, lasting reduction in anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and doubt as you stop reinforcing the cycle that keeps them going. Over time, you spend less energy trying to manage or anxiety—and more time feeling steady, focused, and in control of your life.
Less time stuck in rumination and overthinking
Instead of going back and forth trying to figure things out, you’ll learn how to notice when your mind is starting to spiral, step out of those patterns, and redirect your focus back to what actually matters.
Less avoidance, repetitive behaviors, compulsions, and reassurance seeking
Instead of relying on these short-term fixes, you’ll learn how to tolerate anxiety and uncertainty healthily and effectively. Over time, you'll begin to notice greater independence from the very behaviors that have been keeping you stuck.
Practical Details
100% Virtual Online Therapy Sessions
For OCD and anxiety treatment, virtual therapy often offers unique advantages over traditional office-based sessions because we can work directly in the environments where your anxiety and OCD actually occur. Rather than only talking about fears, avoidance patterns, and compulsions from a therapy office, we can practice facing them together in real time.
Serving clients in CO, UT, AZ, NV, WA, NJ, IL
I am fully licensed to provide therapy in Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, New Jersey, and Illinois, allowing individuals across these states to access specialized, evidence-based treatment for OCD and anxiety.
Private pay (superbills available for possible reimbursement)
I am a private-pay practice and do not accept insurance directly. Upon request, I am happy to provide a superbill that you may submit to your insurance company for potential out-of-network reimbursement. I recommend contacting your insurance provider to learn more about your out-of-network mental health benefit
My Areas of Expertise
I have dedicated my career to understanding and treating OCD and Anxiety Disorders. My practice focuses exclusively on these concerns, allowing me to offer specialized care grounded in years of experience and advanced training.
OCD
OCD is a disorder characterized by unwanted intrusive thoughts, images, urges, or sensations that create distress and lead to repetitive behaviors or mental rituals aimed at reducing uncertainty or anxiety.
Panic Disorder
Panic Disorder is characterized by recurrent panic attacks and a persistent fear of having another one, often leading to avoidance of situations, places, or activities where panic may occur.
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is characterized by a fear of situations where escape may feel difficult or help may not be available if panic or anxiety occurs. This often leads to increasing avoidance, and over time, some individuals may find themselves increasingly restricted or even trapped within their own homes.
Generalized Anxiety
Generalized Anxiety Disorder is characterized by excessive worry, overthinking, and difficulty tolerating uncertainty, often leaving individuals feeling mentally exhausted and unable to fully engage in the present moment.
Weekly CBT/ERP Sessions
Traditional weekly or biweekly sessions provide steady, consistent structure, helping you build skills, practice new responses, and make meaningful progress at a manageable pace.
Intensive Outpatient Program
The intensive outpatient option offers several hours of ERP-focused treatment each week, allowing for deeper, faster progress, ideal for more severe symptoms or when you want to accelerate the recovery process.
Treatment Options to Support Your Specific Symptoms
No two people experience anxiety or OCD in the same way. For some, meeting once a week (or even biweekly) provides the steady structure needed to make consistent progress. For others, whether because symptoms feel especially overwhelming or there’s a desire for quicker results, a more intensive approach is warranted. That’s why I offer the flexibility of traditional weekly or biweekly sessions as well as a structured intensive outpatient program designed to create faster, more focused change.
Take the First Step Toward Getting Unstuck
Recovery begins with a single step. If you’re ready to start Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy for anxiety or OCD, I invite you to schedule a free 20-minute online consultation. We’ll discuss your symptoms, goals, and what effective treatment can look like for you. Together, we’ll take the first step toward lasting relief and renewed peace of mind.