Articles by Jennie Kuckertz

OCD SoCal would like to thank the speakers, volunteers, and most importantly, the 200+ attendees who made the 2^nd Annual OCD Southern California Conference a success! Special thanks to our keynote speakers, Ethan Smith and Dr. Jonathan Grayson, for sharing their inspiring insights and experiences on how to fight OCD. In addition, we express our gratitude for the organizations that helped support this event financially and provided resource information at the event, including the Gateway Institute, OCD & Anxiety Program of Southern California, Recovery International, Renewed Freedom Center, SDSU Center for Understanding and Treating Anxiety, USC Genetics, Voxerity Apparel, and Westwood Institute for Anxiety Disorders. Finally, we are immensely thankful for Mariner’s Church in Irvine, which not only provided a beautiful space for our event but also catering and tech support!

Want to stay involved? Here are 3 easy ways:

• Join us for next event, the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) Virtual Walk, to be held in June 2017. Stay tuned for more details!
• If you are interested in volunteering at our next event, please email us at info@ocdsocal.org
• Donate to help us continue to provide programs for the OCD Southern California community: http://ocdsocal.org/get-involved/donate/

Visit our Facebook page for more photos of event!

REGISTRATION UPDATE: Due to popular demand and overwhelming response, we are pleased to be able to extend registration for our second annual conference through the event date (March 25, 2017). Due to catering deadlines we are unable to guarantee a provided lunch for those who registered after March 16. Lunch options for purchase will be available on site.

WHEN: Saturday March 25, 2017 from 10am-3pm

WHERE: Mariners Church, Life Development Building 2^nd Floor, 5001 Newport Coast Drive, Irvine, CA 92603

WHY: This conference is an opportunity to learn more about obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and its treatment, provide support for individuals with OCD and their families, and gain practical knowledge about a variety of issues that may arise with OCD and OCD-related disorders. In addition to our distinguished speaker list, we will have representatives present from local organizations to provide information on OCD resources.

WHO: This event is particularly designed for individuals affected by OCD and their families, however we encourage clinicians, researchers, and students interested in learning more about OCD to attend.

FOR MORE DETAILS AND REGISTRATION:  Click here to be re-directed to event site and registration page. Cost is $25 for adults 18+, $15 for teens 12-17, and free for children 11 and under. Scholarships and volunteer opportunities are available, please email us (info@ocdsocal.org) for more information. If you do not wish to pay by credit card, please email us at info@ocdsocal.org to reserve your seat(s). We will respond with instructions for paying by check.

NOTE TO PARENTS: In addition to the scheduled children’s breakout sessions at 1pm and 2pm, Renewed Freedom Center staff will be leading crafts in the children’s activity room from 10am-3pm to allow parents the opportunity to attend keynote and breakout sessions.

Posted on behalf of the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF), modified from full description of I ♥ Research Campaign here.

The International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) is a donor-supported nonprofit organization serving a broad community of individuals with OCD and related disorders, their family members and loved ones, and mental health professionals and researchers. This community is passionate that one day we will better understand OCD and how to treat it more effectively, with the eventual goal of finding a cure.

There is an enduring bond that unites this community, and that bond is research. Each year, the International OCD Foundation awards grants to the most promising research focused on OCD and related disorders. This is only possible because of the generosity of our donors: people like you. Since 1986, we have seen tremendous progress in how OCD is diagnosed and treated thanks to research, and we are proud to say that important contributions have been made by recipients of the IOCDF Research Grant Fund. Last year we launched our I ♥ Research Campaign to help grow the IOCDF Research Grant Fund and this year we look to build on that success. We want you to tell us why you love research, and to support our I ♥ Research Campaign by helping us increase the amount of research we can fund. A donation to the I ♥ Research Campaign is investing in hope for those living with OCD — hope that one day we will know what causes OCD as well as the best way to deliver treatment, so that lives are interrupted as little as possible. To learn more about this campaign, visit the IOCDF website. You can also donate here.

OCD SoCal invites you to join us for our 2017 OCD Southern California Conference, to be held March 25, 2017 from 10am-3pm (Mariners Church, Life Development Building 2^nd Floor, 5001 Newport Coast Drive, Irvine, CA 92603). This conference is an opportunity to learn more about obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and its treatment, provide support for individuals with OCD and their families, and gain practical knowledge about a variety of issues that may arise with OCD and related disorders. This event is particularly designed for individuals affected by OCD and their families, however we encourage clinicians, researchers, and students interested in learning more about OCD to attend.

Keynote Speakers:

Jonathan Grayson, PhD, The Grayson LA Treatment Center for Anxiety & OCD
Keynote address: Living with Uncertainty: It’s the Only Choice

Ethan Smith, National Spokesperson for IOCDF
Keynote address: Family Matters and OCD: Sharing the Lessons I’ve Learned

Breakout Groups* (1pm-3pm):

*participants select two groups

Ask the Psychiatrist: An Interactive Discussion on Medications for OCD (led by Sean Sassano, MD)

Children’s OCD Activities and Crafting (led by Renewed Freedom Center)

Exposure and Response Prevention Workshop (led by Jon Grayson, PhD and Thröstur Björgvinsson, PhD)

Family Contracting (led by Melissa Mose, MFT and Jennie Kuckertz, MS)

How We Did It: Tips and Tools For Successful OCD Treatment (led by Chris Trondsen and Ethan Smith)

Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (led by Eda Gorbis, PhD)

Seating is limited, please register by March 11 (click here for registration link). Cost is $25 for adults 18+, $15 for teens 12-17, and free for children 11 and under. Lunch will be included in the registration cost for all individuals who register before the March 11 deadline. Scholarships and volunteer opportunities are available, please email us (info@ocdsocal.org) for more information.

If you do not wish to pay by credit card: Please email us at info@ocdsocal.org to RSVP, and send a check postmarked by March 11 to the following address:
OCD SoCal
PO Box 99998
San Diego, CA 92169