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Artful LivingA new chapter

Artful Living Psychiatry & Wellness is now Feel August. Same clinicians, same care.

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Psychiatric care for adults in California. The same clinician every visit.

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(213) 715-2100·hello@feelaugust.com
Feel August Psychiatry & Nursing
714 W Olympic Blvd, #703
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 715-2100

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If you are in crisis, call or text 988(Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or text HOME to 741741 (Crisis Text Line).

© 2026 Feel August Health. All rights reserved.

Feel August is a brand licensed by Artful Living Psychiatry & Wellness Nursing and Clinical Care Inc. Telehealth services offered to patients located in California only.

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Meet your clinician

Same person, every visit going forward. Continuity is the practice.
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OCD

When the loop won't release.

OCD often hides inside ordinary-looking habits, and it is frequently mistaken for general anxiety. Accurate identification matters because OCD calls for a specific approach. Sixty-minute first visits, same clinician at every visit, Y-BOCS tracked over time.

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Understanding

Understanding OCD

OCD is defined by the cycle of obsessions and compulsions: intrusive, unwanted thoughts (or images, urges, or fears) that drive repetitive behaviors or mental acts intended to neutralize the discomfort. The relief is real but short-lived, which is why the cycle continues.

OCD is frequently mistaken for generalized anxiety, perfectionism, or a personality quirk. Subtypes include contamination, harm, relationship, scrupulosity, and "just-right" presentations. Each responds to evidence-based treatment, but accurate identification matters because OCD calls for a specific therapeutic approach (exposure and response prevention) that anxiety treatment alone does not provide.

Signs

Recognizing the signs

  • Intrusive thoughts, images, or urges that feel intolerable to sit with
  • Repetitive behaviors (checking, washing, counting, mental review) that take significant time
  • A persistent sense that something terrible will happen unless you perform a ritual
  • Avoidance of situations that trigger intrusive thoughts
  • Excessive doubt or need for reassurance from others
  • Recognizing the rituals are excessive, and being unable to stop

Treatment

How we treat it

OCD treatment at Feel August begins with a thorough sixty-minute evaluation that distinguishes OCD from anxiety, depression, or trauma. Conditions it frequently coexists with. Your clinician takes the time to understand your specific subtype, the situations that trigger it, and what you have already tried.

Treatment usually involves a serotonergic medication (often at higher doses than for anxiety or depression) alongside referral to an exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapist. We track Y-BOCS scores at follow-up visits so progress is measurable, and we coordinate with your therapist when one is part of the plan.

First visit

What the first conversation looks like

Your first appointment is sixty minutes. Bring a description of the obsessions and compulsions you experience. Including the ones that feel embarrassing. OCD content is often shameful by nature; your clinician has heard it before and will not judge it.

After the evaluation, your clinician will share their assessment, discuss medication options, and recommend ERP therapists if appropriate. You will leave with a plan and a follow-up appointment, typically within two to four weeks.

Frequent questions

Questions about OCD.

Do I have OCD or just anxiety?

OCD and generalized anxiety overlap but are clinically distinct. OCD involves intrusive thoughts paired with compulsions performed to neutralize them; generalized anxiety involves more diffuse worry without the specific obsession-compulsion cycle. A clinical evaluation is the only reliable way to distinguish the two.

What medications are used for OCD?

First-line medications for OCD are SSRIs. Often at higher doses than those used for anxiety or depression. Common choices include sertraline, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, and escitalopram. Treatment response often requires 8-12 weeks at therapeutic dose to evaluate properly.

Do I also need therapy?

Yes. Exposure and response prevention (ERP) is the gold-standard behavioral treatment for OCD and pairs with medication for the best outcomes. We can refer you to ERP-trained therapists in California if you do not already have one.

Is OCD curable?

OCD is highly treatable. Most patients see significant symptom reduction with combined medication and ERP. Many achieve long-term remission. "Cure" is not the right framework; sustainable management with the right tools is.

Can I get OCD treatment online?

Yes. OCD medication management is well-suited to telehealth. Feel August provides comprehensive psychiatric care for OCD throughout California via secure video.

Related

Often appears alongside.

AnxietyDepression

See when you could meet your clinician.

Most patients book within two days.

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If you are in crisis, please call 988 or text HOME to 741741. We are not crisis services.