OCD isn't about being neat. It's a thought you didn't ask for, the dread that follows, and the ritual, visible or entirely inside your head, that buys a few minutes of relief before the thought comes back. At Taproot Therapy Collective in Hoover, minutes from Birmingham, we treat OCD and Pure O with exposure-informed work, parts therapy and somatic regulation, so you can leave the thought alone instead of serving it, and we treat bipolar disorder as the therapy half of a plan built with your psychiatrist. In person or by secure video anywhere in Alabama; Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama accepted for most clinicians.
What OCD actually is
The International OCD Foundation defines it as obsessions, unwanted intrusive thoughts, images or urges, plus compulsions, the behaviors or mental acts performed to get rid of them. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates it affects about one adult in forty. The version most people miss is Pure O, where the obsession is about harm, morality, sexuality, health or the relationship, and the compulsion is invisible: replaying, checking how you feel, praying it away, asking to be reassured. Because there's nothing to see, people go a decade before anyone names it.
Who this page is for
Intrusive thoughts you'd never act on and can't stop having. Checking, counting, cleaning or confessing that eats hours. Relationship OCD, where the doubt is about whether you love your partner. Health anxiety that has become a ritual. Scrupulosity in a religious household, which is common here and rarely named. Anxiety that has organized itself into rules. And OCD that appeared or got worse after trauma, which is most of what we see.
How we treat OCD at Taproot
Exposure and response prevention has the strongest evidence for OCD, and our approach is built on its core move: let the thought be there and don't do the ritual. Where we differ from a pure ERP program is in what surrounds that. Parts work treats the part of you running the compulsion as a protector with a reason, so it can stand down instead of being overpowered. Somatic regulation makes exposure tolerable rather than a matter of grit. And when the OCD started after something happened, Brainspotting processes the event underneath it. If your OCD needs a structured, high-intensity ERP program, we'll say so at intake and refer you.
Bipolar disorder: therapy alongside psychiatry
Bipolar disorder needs a psychiatrist; medication is the foundation and we don't pretend otherwise. What therapy adds is what medication can't: processing the trauma that often sits under early episodes, building the regulation and routine that protect against the next one, and depth work for the identity questions a diagnosis raises. We coordinate with your prescriber, and the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance is the peer resource we point people to alongside it.
How it works at Taproot
- 1Free 15-minute intake call
Tell the coordinator what's going on; you'll be matched with Pamela, Kristi, Marie or Alice.
- 2First sessions
History and what you've already tried, in the Hoover office or by secure video.
- 3Treatment
Exposure-informed work, parts therapy and somatic regulation for OCD; for bipolar disorder, therapy coordinated with your psychiatrist.
Forms of OCD we see, and what the ritual usually is
| What it looks like | The hidden compulsion | Where we start |
|---|---|---|
| Harm, sexual or violent intrusive thoughts | Reviewing, testing your feelings, avoiding knives, kids or driving | Exposure-informed work with parts therapy |
| Relationship OCD | Checking whether you love your partner, comparing, confessing | Parts work; the doubt is a protector |
| Health anxiety and body-focused OCD | Scanning, researching, reassurance from doctors | Somatic regulation plus exposure |
| Scrupulosity and religious OCD | Praying it away, confessing, moral reviewing | Alice Hawley; religious context taken seriously |
| Contamination, checking, ordering | Washing, checking, arranging until it feels right | Exposure-informed work |
| OCD that began after a trauma | Rituals that manage a body that never stood down | Brainspotting on the event, then the OCD work |
Is ocd therapy right for me? A 30-second check
OCD and bipolar therapists in Hoover
Pure OCD and intrusive thoughts, with chronic illness and complex PTSD; IFS, Somatic Experiencing and Lifespan Integration, by teletherapy anywhere in Alabama.
OCD and anxiety rooted in attachment and early trauma; polyvagal therapy, Brainspotting and DBT skills.
Bipolar and mood disorders alongside psychiatry, with DBT skills and Lifespan Integration for the trauma underneath.
Scrupulosity and religious OCD, dissociation and spiritual crisis; shadow work, EMDR and Brainspotting.
Cost, insurance and teletherapy
We accept Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama for most clinicians. Private-pay and out-of-network sessions are $250, with an income-based sliding scale, and we send a monthly superbill with the codes your insurer needs for out-of-network reimbursement. Secure video sessions are available anywhere in Alabama on the same sliding scale.
A look inside Taproot
Frequently asked questions
Do you do ERP for OCD?
Exposure and response prevention is the best-supported OCD treatment and our work is exposure-informed: you learn to let the thought be there without doing the ritual. What we add is parts work, so the part of you running the ritual is understood instead of overpowered, and somatic regulation, so exposure doesn't just white-knuckle. If you need a structured, high-intensity ERP program, we'll tell you at intake and refer you.
What is Pure O?
Purely obsessional OCD: the intrusive thoughts are there, often about harm, sex, morality, relationships or health, but the compulsions are mental, such as reviewing, praying, checking your feelings or seeking reassurance, so nobody can see them. It's OCD, it's treatable, and Pamela Hayes specializes in it.
Do you treat bipolar disorder?
Yes, as the therapy half of a treatment plan that also includes a psychiatrist for medication. We don't manage medication. What we do is the trauma processing, the regulation skills and the depth work that medication can't, and we coordinate with your prescriber.
Can OCD be treated by video?
Yes. Pamela Hayes treats OCD almost entirely by teletherapy, and exposure work often goes better in the setting where the triggers actually live.
Start OCD or bipolar therapy in Hoover or online
Your first call is a free 15-minute conversation with our intake coordinator, who matches you with the right clinician. Our office is off I-65 at the Riverchase exit in Hoover, about ten minutes from Vestavia Hills, Homewood and Mountain Brook and fifteen from downtown Birmingham, with free parking at the door.
Book onlineCall (205) 598-6471