Samantha Faden & Dr Jenifer Cullen: Successfully adjusting OCD therapy for autistic clients (#503)

The OCD Stories

Stuart

Bdd, Health & Fitness, Recovery, Hocd, Cocd, Rocd, Bodydysmorphicdisorder, Ocd, Anxiety, Obsessivecompulsivedisorder, Mental Health, Help, Mentalhealth, Depression, Advice

4.8 • 873 Ratings

🗓️ 14 September 2025

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In episode 503 I chat with Samantha Faden and Dr Jenifer Cullen. Samantha is autistic and has lived experience with OCD. Sam is the client of Dr Cullen. Jenifer M. Cullen, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist at the McLean OCD Institute.

We discuss their therapy relationship as therapist and client, how Sam's therapy journey has gone, what worked, how they learned together over time, getting an autism diagnosis, working out together where autism and OCD starts, ends or overlaps. We also discuss trichotillomania, adjusting exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP) for autistic clients, rupture and repair in the therapeutic relationship, adjusting for sensory sensitivities in ERP, having a sensory overload plan, rating anxiety during exposures through special interests, changing the pace of therapy, having more structure and clarity, changing the language used around autism, motivation in therapy, words of hope, and much more. Hope it helps.

Show notes: https://theocdstories.com/episode/sam-and-jen-503

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Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to The OCD Stories podcast, hosted by me, Stuart Ralph.
0:05.5	The OCD Stories is a podcast dedicated to raising awareness and understanding around obsessive,
0:11.1	compulsive symptoms. I do this for interviewing inspired therapists, psychologists, and people
0:16.8	who have experienced OCD. Welcome to the OCD Stories.
0:25.4	And welcome to episode 503 of the podcast.
0:33.6	And in this one, I chat with Samantha Fadden and Jennifer Cullen. Samantha is autistic and has lived experience with OCD. Sam is the client of Jennifer, Dr. Cullen.
0:40.4	So Dr. Cullen is a licensed clinical psychologist at the McLean OCD Institute.
0:45.9	So Sam and Jen came to me.
0:48.3	They had this great idea of sharing their work and how they've adjusted therapy for Sam and they wanted to do this to help
0:56.8	any other autistic clients out there or therapists working with autistic clients to help tailor
1:03.1	OCD therapy much better. So I appreciate them both for their time and in this episode we
1:09.4	discuss their therapy relationship as therapist and client,
1:13.1	how Sam's therapy journey has gone, what worked, how they learned together over time,
1:19.3	getting an autism diagnosis, working out together where autism and OCDs start and end and overlap,
1:26.5	trichotillomania, adjusting exposure response
1:29.2	prevention therapy for autistic clients, rupture and repair in the therapeutic relationship,
1:34.4	adjusting for sensory sensitivities in ERP, having a sensory overload plan, rating anxiety
1:41.8	during exposures through special interests, changing the pace of therapy, having
1:47.5	more structure and clarity, changing the language used around autism, motivation in therapy
1:52.7	and much more.
1:54.5	And thanks to our podcast partners, NOCD?
1:57.5	If OCD is interfering with your life, no CD can help.
	...

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