Kicking a Habit

Kicking a Habit: Everything From Nail Biting, Skin Picking, Over-Eating, to Pot Smoking

Almost all of the habits that cause disruption in our lives are those that we do repeatedly. We can get away with over-eating or putting things off or being late once in a while. It is when we do them often that they become a problem. Breaking these habits can be difficult if you are trying to do it on your own. For most of these OCD like problems cognitive behavioral therapy is very effective. Some extremely difficult behaviors may best be treated in OCD Treatment Centers.

Things to Know About Repetitive “Bad Habits”

• The more often a behavior occurs, the easier it is to treat
• Behaviors that have been around for a long time do not take longer to eliminate than relatively new ones
• Almost all repetitive habits have the same OCD like pattern and the same reinforcement that maintains them: tension/anxiety builds up, the behavior is engaged in and the tension/anxiety is reduced, rewarding the behavior. Behavior that is reinforced/rewarded is more likely to occur again.
• Eliminating a behavior does not take nearly as long as most people think.

How Will Dr. Schwartz Help Me Stop My “Bad Habits?”

We will determine, together, the environmental and emotional triggers for your behavior. Each type of behavior requires its own, different, behavior plan because we must figure out how best to interrupt the behavior sequence. The general pattern, as described, is the same for almost all repetitive behaviors, but the nature of the behavior dictates different solutions. There are guidelines and rules as well as the specific cognitive behavioral therapy techniques we will use.