Multidisciplinary treatment of comorbid OCD and Eating Disorders

According to research, 18% and 15% of individuals world-wide with an eating disorder (ED) had a lifetime prevalence and current co-morbidity with obsessive and compulsive disorder (OCD), respectively (Mandelli et al., 2020). It is not surprising that this comorbidity proves to be significant as recent literature describes symptoms of eating disorders presenting with many similarities to symptoms of OCD including obsessions and compulsions (Drakes et al., 2021). Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a neurobiological condition characterized by persistent unwanted intrusive thoughts or obsessions and compulsions or behaviors and rituals in efforts to attempt to manage, minimize or get rid of these thoughts and associated distress. An individual with OCD may be severely underweight due to the feared contamination of food, whereas an individual with an eating disorder may be severely underweight due to purposeful restrictive eating in order to change body weight, shape and/or size. In this presentation, we review how to complete an appropriate differential assessment and diagnosis of OCD and eating disorders while recognizing the intersection of symptoms across diagnoses and the shared psychological mechanisms that support these conditions. We address and describe adequate assessment of the core fear in these conditions when making decisions around treatment planning and discuss interventions to increase positive outcomes of treatment. This presentation will also highlight the difference in egosyntonic versus egodystonic thoughts across diagnoses. Cognitive behavioral therapy including exposure and response prevention, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), mindfulness and self-compassion will be discussed, along with how these can be used trans-diagnostically. Lastly, case presentations will be shared for interactive discussion, and we will review the psychological tools described throughout the presentation.