Medication

Though it doesn't seem to be quite as effective as CBT, the treatment of OCD and other anxiety disorders can also be done with the use of medication. Some of the drugs that are used for OCD are sertraline, paroxetine, fluoxetine, citalopram, escitalopram, fluvoxamine, and chlomipramine.  Other kinds of anxiety seem to respond to lorazepam, clonazepam, alprazolam, buspirone, and others.

What does medication do for OCD?
Medications, such as the ones listed above seem to work on restoring the right amount of chemicals that are produced by the brain. These substances, called neurotransmitters, include serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, and GABA. Every time we think, feel a feeling, or do something, these chemicals are released by our bodies into microscopic spaces between thousands of nerve cells in the brain as they send information to one another. If these chemicals are reabsorbed by the body too quickly, the messages are not sent correctly. As a result, the anxiety "alarm" may not shut off, and we may have to check the stove over and over, even though we're 99.99% sure that we did it already. Medication helps our brains to function properly, so that we are able to stop ourselves from repeating certain things unnecessarily. The upside of taking medication is that it doesn't involve the unpleasant challenges of ERP. The downside, however, is that if medication works for us and we stop taking it, our OCD symptoms usually return.

Other types of therapy
Though "talk therapy" (psychodynamic therapy and various other styles) does not seem to help in eliminating the emotionally painful obsessions and exhausting compulsive rituals of OCD, it can help us learn how psychological, relationship, work issues, and family experiences may contribute or may have contributed to the onset or continuation of OCD. It can also be very useful in helping us to cope with the wounds that OCD may have caused in our lives, such as missed opportunities, loss of relationships or jobs, etc. Other types of treatment have also been tried for OCD, though there haven't been sufficient studies to demonstrate a significant degree of effectiveness.

So far, the evidence we have from research studies has shown that a combination of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and medication is most effective. Whether used alone or together, CBT and "meds" have helped countless individuals get to the point at which anxiety no longer runs their lives.