ERP therapy
Exposure and Response Prevention helps with obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety. You learn to face triggers while reducing compulsions, checking, avoidance, reassurance seeking, and safety behaviors.
Online ERP and PE therapy across California
Specialized therapy for OCD, anxiety, and trauma.
Whatif Therapy helps adults, teens, and children change how they respond to fear, doubt, intrusive thoughts, panic, and trauma memories. Treatment is active, structured, and built around real practice.
ERP Therapy for OCD and anxiety PE for PTSD Telehealth in CA Specialized treatment for adults, children and teens
Not typical talk therapy
Exposure based care helps you practice a new response.
The goal is not to erase fear or prove that you are safe. The goal is to help you face fear, doubt, memories, body sensations, and daily triggers while you reduce the habits that keep the cycle alive.
PE therapy
Prolonged Exposure helps with PTSD and trauma related avoidance. You work with memories, places, feelings, and reminders so they take up less space in daily life.
Clear structure
Sessions focus on patterns, goals, practice, review, and next steps. You should know what you are working on and why it matters.
Real life practice
Treatment moves beyond insight. You practice new responses during sessions and between sessions, at a pace that is direct and workable.
What treatment looks like
A clear plan, not open ended guessing.
Exposure work is gradual, planned, and active. We map the pattern, build a fear ladder or hierarchy, and practice response prevention in ways that fit your symptoms and your life.
1
Identify the cycle
We look at triggers, intrusive thoughts, memories, feelings, body sensations, avoidance, compulsions, and reassurance seeking. This shows what keeps the problem going.
2
Build the plan
We create a hierarchy, also called a fear ladder. The plan may include exposure, response prevention, SUDS ratings, and practice between sessions.
3
Practice new responses
You face what you have been avoiding and change what you do next. Over time, the urge to escape, check, fix, or seek certainty can weaken.
Conditions treated
Focused care for fear, doubt, panic, and trauma.
Treatment is tailored to the symptoms that keep you stuck. The work is practical, direct, and based on what you want to be able to do again.
OCD
ERP for intrusive thoughts, rituals, doubt, compulsions, reassurance seeking, and avoidance.
Social anxiety
Reduce avoidance, self monitoring, masking, and fear of judgment around people.
Panic disorder
Learn to respond differently to panic sensations, fear spikes, and loss of control.
Agoraphobia
Gradually return to places, driving, travel, crowds, and situations that feel unsafe.
Illness anxiety
Reduce body checking, reassurance seeking, symptom scanning, and medical fears.
Generalized anxiety
Work on chronic worry, over planning, mental review, and uncertainty intolerance.
Specific phobias
Build a step by step exposure plan to face feared objects, sensations, or situations.
Perfectionism
Practice making choices without endless checking, overthinking, or fear of mistakes.
PTSD
Prolonged Exposure therapy for trauma memories, avoidance, guilt, shame, and fear.
Not sure if it is OCD?
Start with the OCD self-screener.
If intrusive thoughts, checking, reassurance seeking, avoidance, contamination fears, harm fears, relationship doubts, or “just right” feelings are getting in the way, the self-screener can help you organize what you are noticing before scheduling a consultation.
The Goal of Treatment
Less Life Organized Around Avoiding Distress
Treatment is not about eliminating anxiety, uncertainty, intrusive thoughts, difficult emotions, or uncomfortable physical sensations. The goal is to help those experiences take up less space in your life so you can spend more time doing what matters.
Before Treatment
- ✕ Avoiding situations, places, people, or activities that trigger distress
- ✕ Spending hours checking, researching, analyzing, or seeking reassurance
- ✕ Waiting to feel certain, comfortable, or ready before moving forward
- ✕ Letting anxiety, intrusive thoughts, or uncertainty determine your choices
- ✕ Organizing life around avoiding distress
→
After Treatment
- ✓ Taking action even when anxiety, doubt, or discomfort show up
- ✓ Spending less time checking, researching, and seeking reassurance
- ✓ Making decisions based on what matters rather than what feels safest
- ✓ Trusting your ability to handle uncertainty and difficult emotions
- ✓ Building a life that is less organized around avoiding distress and more organized around what matters
Limited availability
Ready to take the next step?
Start with a free 15 minute consultation. We will look at fit, goals, and whether this type of treatment makes sense for you.
Fees and Insurance
Focused Treatment With Clear Pricing
Whatif Therapy offers private pay therapy and accepts Aetna insurance. Sessions are designed for focused, high impact treatment, not open ended supportive counseling.
Services
Free consultation: 15 minutes
Initial intake: 60 minutes
Individual therapy: 53 minutes
Booster sessions: 30 minutes when clinically appropriate
Treatment is available online for clients located in California.
Your exposure based therapist in California
Matthew Baker, LCSW
I specialize in evidence based treatment for OCD, social anxiety, health anxiety, panic disorder, phobias, and PTSD. I work with adults, teens, and children through secure telehealth across California.
My work is structured and hands on. We focus on reducing unhelpful responses, facing hard thoughts and memories, and helping you move toward the life you want.
Serving California
Online therapy from Lakewood to the whole state.
Whatif Therapy is based in Lakewood, California and serves clients in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Orange County, the Inland Empire, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, and throughout California by secure telehealth.
FAQ
Common questions
These answers are brief so you can decide whether to schedule a consultation.
Do you offer online therapy?
Yes. Whatif Therapy provides secure telehealth therapy across California.
What is ERP?
ERP stands for Exposure and Response Prevention. It helps you face triggers while reducing compulsions, avoidance, checking, and reassurance seeking.
What is Prolonged Exposure?
Prolonged Exposure is a structured treatment for PTSD. It helps you process trauma memories and reduce avoidance of reminders, places, feelings, and situations.
Can I screen myself for OCD before reaching out?
Yes. You can use the OCD self-screener to organize symptoms such as intrusive thoughts, compulsions, checking, reassurance seeking, avoidance, and doubt before scheduling a consultation.
Who do you work with?
Matthew works with adults, teens, and children in California.
How do I start?
You can schedule a free 15 minute consultation through the consult button on this page.
