Joseph C. Berryhill, PhD

In my practice, about 2/3 of my clients have OCD and/or anxiety (and as noted elsewhere, I spent more than a decade working part-time in a partial hospital program for children with OCD or anxiety). I treat children and adolescents with a combination of Exposure and Acceptance and Commitment therapies. While applying science, I strive to connect with children to disconnect them from anxiety (for example with art and role plays). I also work with parents, creating an environment in which an exposure lifestyle allows the child to eventually “shrink” OCD and not remain forever dependent on therapy.

In treating co-occurring disorders, I follow what science tells us works in clinical practice. I employ Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), the latter of which helps youth identify their values and take committed actions consistent with them to live their best life, while accepting the imperfections that come with being human.

I have been treating OCD for slightly more than 10 years, including as a psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital in Rhode Island. PARC has a partial hospital program for children and adolescents whose OCD or anxiety have reached a level of severity that prohibits them from attending school (or being able to concentrate on their studies while there.) I also have long treated OCD and anxiety disorders in my private practice.

With respect to diverse populations, I would not be a psychologist had I not worked as a volunteer in my 20s at an institution in Mexico for children whose parents had died or who had been victims of abuse. My training in community psychology also led me to experiences with diverse populations, including establishing a community organization to empower African Americans and Latinos whose children were denied bus transportation and instead had to walk a mile down a busy avenue to reach their elementary school.