GGBI: A new mobile app for dealing with body image distress and preoccupation such as in Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)

ROCD and other OCD symptoms are frequently related to body image distress and preoccupations such as found in BDD. A new mobile app dealing with such problems, named GGBI is now out in the apple store and Google Play: these are the links

On android:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.com.samuramu.gg.bi

 

On iPhone

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ggbi-body-image-distress-preoccupation/id1240093612?mt=8

This September! A workshop on the assessment and treatment of ROCD at the EABCT 2017 conference

Associate Professor Guy Doron and Dr Danny Derby are giving a workshop on the 15.09.2017 entitled: ” Relationship Interrupted: Assessment and Treatment of Relationship Obsessive Compulsive Disorder(ROCD)” at the next EABCT meeting in Ljubljana – Slovenia. To register see http://www.eabct2017.org/en/REGISTRATION.html/

New study gives further support to GGRO effectiveness

Throw away and pull towards: A new way to challenge OCD related cognitions using the GGRO mobile application training platform.

Authors: M. Roncero, B. Pascual, S. Arnáez, M. Giraldo-O’Meara, G. García-Soriano, A. Belloch, and G. Doron.

According to cognitive models of OCD, obsessive compulsive symptoms result from catastrophic misinterpretations of commonly occurring intrusive thoughts, images and urges and the use of counterproductive strategies used to manage them. Maladaptive beliefs such as inflated responsibility/threat, importance and control of thoughts, perfectionism and intolerance for uncertainty increase the likelihood of such negative interpretations of intrusive experience. Indeed, traditional cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) includes a variety of intervention to challenge maladaptive beliefs including behavioral experiments and cognitive reconstruction. Consistent with a growing body of literature supporting the usefulness of mobile based technologies in fostering cognitive behavior change, the present study assessed the effectiveness of a novel cognitive training exercise designed to challenge OCD related cognitive beliefs. This mobile technology (application) based training exercise consists of users having to pull statements challenging OCD-related beliefs towards themselves (downwards) and to throw away (push upwards) contra-productive self-statements Method: 36 third year BA students started the trial. Twenty completed both pre and post measures of OCD symptoms (OCI-R; Foa et al., 2002), ROCD (ROCI & PROCSI; Doron et al., 2012a, 2012b), OCD related beliefs (OBQ; Moulding et al., 2011) and mood (Antony et al., 1998). Participants were instructed to complete two minutes of daily training (3 training levels) for a period of 15 days. Results: No significant differences were found between completers and no-completers on demographic and symptom related measures at Time 1. Repeated-measures ANOVA of the 20 completers showed a significant reductions on all OCD symptoms measures and on OCD-beliefs. No significant reduction was found in depression symptoms. Discussion: This innovative mobile technology based training exercise may be useful in reducing OCD-related beliefs levels and associated symptoms. The use of this and similar mobile training platforms holds promise for low intensity psychological treatments recommended by NICE (2005), and may be effective as prevention tool for those people at risk of suffering OCD. Limitation: This is an open trial with relatively small student sample.

Associate Prof. Guy Doron and Gur Ilany explain about the new App for ROCD named ‘GG Relationship’

According to Professor Guy Doron and his colleague Gur Ilany, the application developed (named ‘GG Relationship’) was especially designed for dealing with relationship doubts and fears. The application is based on the principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – one of the most research-supported psychological therapies.

According to CBT models, negative self-talk – individuals’ ongoing interpretations of the self, others and the world – maintain psychological difficulties such as obsessive preoccupation, low mood, and maladaptive behaviors. In ROCD, for instance, individuals negative self-talk often relates to fear of being in the wrong relationships or/and missing the ‘right’ relationship. Individuals with such fears will continuously say to themselves (in their heads) phrases such as ‘Maybe my partner is not the ONE’, ‘He is not smart enough for me’ or ‘I will regret my decision to stay/leave with my partner forever‘. Such negative self-talk, of course, ultimately increases relationship doubts/fears, intensifies negative mood and often provokes relationship conflict.

Professor Guy Doron says ‘GG Relationship was developed in order to provide an accessible CBT training platform that would allow individuals with relationship fears and doubts to better deal with negative self-talk’. According to Gur Ilany, the application is designed to ‘(1) increase individuals’ awareness of negative self-talk, (2) train individuals’ to better identify and challenge negative self-talk, (3) increase individuals’ access to neutral and positive self-talk, and (4) increase the automaticity of the above processes’.

The core gameplay of the training  is simple: individuals are presented with ‘blocks’ featuring self-talk statements such as “I am proactive”, “I am reliable” or “I am a loser”- and have to respond by pulling the supportive ‘blocks’ towards themselves (i.e., downwards) and throwing away from themselves the negative ‘blocks’ (i.e., rejecting them upwards). A/Prof Doron says ‘to further strengthen learning of supportive self-talk, each level the player completes is followed by a small memory game in which one has to identify a supportive statements that appeared in the previous level’. As the game progresses, the individual passes through thematically relevant issues such as self-esteem, beliefs in change, dealing with relationship doubts, facing uncertainty, overcoming perfectionism, coping with embarrassment, commitment anxiety, etc.,.

Training using this application, Gur says ‘will hopefully allow for gradual, steady learning of more positive self-talk thereby helping to break the vicious thought cycle maintaining relationship doubts and preoccupations’.

New App to help in the treatment of ROCD symptoms: coming soon !

A/Prof. Doron and his colleague Guy Ilany are working on an innovative training application (App) to help with the treatment of ROCD symptoms. The app is planned to include over 30 levels addressing ROCD related difficulties such as relationship doubts, intolerance for uncertainty, perfectionism, commitment anxiety and embarrassment. They said it is going to be ready to download from the App store and Google Play by June. We will keep you posted !

New paper entitled: “Relationship obsessive compulsive disorder (ROCD): Interference, symptoms and maladaptive beliefs”

Press this link: Relationship obsessive compulsive disorder (ROCD): Interference, symptoms and maladaptive beliefs.

ROCD is gaining world wide research interests!

During this week (6/9/15) , six presentations on ROCD were presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT) in Jerusalem.

  • Clark, D. A. & O’Sullivan, L. (2015). Obsessing About Love: How Relationship OC Tendencies Affects Romantic Breakup in Young Canadian Adults. Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Doron. G., Szepsenwol. O., & Derby, D., (2015). I Obsess about My Child’s Flaws: Impact and Correlates of Parent-Child Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms. Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Melli. G., Carraresi. C., & Doron, G.(2015). The Role of Perfectionism in Relationship Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (ROCD). Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Doron. G., Karp. E., & Derby, D., (2015). Relationship Related Intrusive Thoughts: An Interview Based Study.  Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Efrati. Y., Doron. G., Szepsenwol. O. (2015). Relationship Obsession Within the Individual-God Context: Exploring Obsessive Tendencies about One’s Relationship with God. Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Doron. G., Fabian. N., & German, M., (2015). Self-Vulnerability and Obsessing About One’s Partner: Priming Self-Sensitivity in the Appearance Domain Increases Preoccupation with Partner’s Flaws. Paper presented at the 45th Annual Congress of the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EACBT), Jerusalem, Israel.

 

El Trastorno Obsesivo Compulsivo Relacional (ROCD)

El Trastorno Obsesivo Compulsivo Relacional (ROCD) está marcado por la presencia de obsesiones y compulsiones centradas en relaciones románticas. Por leer más: http://new.rocd.net/our-rocd-papers-spanish/