OCD treatment that targets the cycle—not the content of the thought.
ERP-focused treatment for intrusive thoughts, compulsions, reassurance seeking, avoidance and mental rituals. Available virtually across Saskatchewan.
- ERP-focused care
- Secure virtual appointments
- No referral required to start intake
Relief teaches the loop to return.
Relief makes the same response feel necessary next time.
The compulsions that keep OCD going are often invisible.
Washing and checking are only part of the picture. Many people spend far more time reviewing, researching, testing, confessing, comparing or trying to reach the right internal feeling.
Mental review
Replaying conversations, memories, decisions or past events to work out what really happened or what it means.
Reassurance
Asking partners, family, professionals, websites or yourself to settle a question that soon returns in another form.
Feeling checking
Monitoring attraction, love, guilt, disgust, anxiety, intent or bodily sensations as if the right feeling could prove the answer.
Avoidance
Staying away from people, places, objects, decisions or information can shrink life while preventing new learning.
Temporary relief is exactly what makes compulsions so convincing.
A compulsion can reduce distress in the moment. That relief teaches the brain that checking, reassurance, rumination or avoidance was necessary.
When doubt returns, the same response can feel even more urgent.
ERP creates opportunities to approach uncertainty and reduce the compulsive response, so new learning can occur without making anxiety reduction the only measure of success.
The short-term payoff strengthens the next urge.
The next doubt arrives with an even stronger reason to use the same ritual.
Approach uncertainty while reducing the compulsive response. The goal is new learning—not forcing a particular feeling.
OCD is not treated by debating every thought.
Effective treatment requires identifying the behaviours and mental acts that keep uncertainty urgent. SaskOCD organizes care around evidence-based OCD treatment rather than generic anxiety management.
Exposure and Response Prevention
The core psychological treatment. Build a personalized plan for approaching triggers while reducing compulsions and avoidance.
Mental Compulsions and Rumination
Treatment for internal rituals such as reviewing, analysing, feeling checking, neutralizing and self-reassurance; often called Pure-O.
ACT-informed ERP
ACT skills can strengthen willingness, defusion and values-based action when struggling with internal experience gets in the way of ERP.
OCD changes subjects. The cycle is what stays.
Theme guides help people recognize common compulsions without trying to provide certainty about the feared question.
Harm OCD
Responsibility, danger and fears about what intrusive thoughts might mean.
Relationship OCD
Doubt about feelings, attraction, compatibility or whether a relationship is right.
You do not need to choose your treatment before reaching out.
Start with what has been happening. The clinical task is to understand the pattern and recommend an appropriate route.
Tell us what is happening
Share the concerns, compulsions, impact on daily life and any practical access or funding needs.
Clinical review
We consider whether specialized OCD treatment is appropriate and whether further assessment or another service is needed.
Treatment recommendation
You receive a clear direction, including the treatment focus and why it is being recommended.
Begin and review progress
Treatment is structured, practice is individualized, and the plan is adjusted based on what is actually changing.
OCD treatment should have a clear clinical target.
SaskOCD is a specialized service of STG Health Services Inc. Care combines a warm therapeutic relationship with evidence-informed OCD formulation and structured treatment planning.
You should understand what you are working on, what response is being targeted, what to practise between sessions, and how progress will be reviewed.
If treatment is repetitive, reassurance-heavy or unclear, a specialist review can look for missed mental rituals, accommodation, avoidance, treatment intensity, medication needs or another condition affecting progress.
Specialized care should also be understandable to access.
SaskOCD provides secure virtual care across Saskatchewan. Current funding and coverage depend on eligibility and should be confirmed before treatment begins.
Private pay & extended insurance
Psychotherapy fees may be reimbursable through extended health benefits depending on your plan and provider eligibility.
NIHB
Eligible First Nations and Inuit clients may be able to access approved psychotherapy through the Non-Insured Health Benefits program.
Other coverage pathways
Funding arrangements can change. SaskOCD can help you confirm current options and eligibility before treatment begins.
Medication can also be part of evidence-based OCD care.
Prescribing and psychotherapy remain separate professional services.
Learn enough to recognize the cycle—without turning research into another ritual.
SaskOCD resources focus on mechanisms, treatment and practical decisions rather than repeatedly reassuring people about the content of intrusive thoughts.
Could this be OCD?
A process-focused guide for recognizing repeated doubt, compulsions, avoidance and temporary relief.
OCD Starter Plan
A private starting tool for organizing what has been happening and identifying one practical next step.
Articles and research
Read SaskOCD resources about ERP, rumination, ACT-informed treatment and OCD research.
You do not have to solve the thought before you can start treatment.
Tell us what OCD has been asking you to do. We can help determine whether specialized treatment is an appropriate next step.