Anna Newton

I love working with people. I've always had a caring, nurturing personality, even as a child. My mother was very much the same—she was always there to care for people and help anybody in need. So I was influenced by that as well. Also, people in my family have struggled with mental health issues, and that made me want to know more about the human mind and why people struggle with anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. In general, I'm fascinated by the mind and how it works.

I've always been fascinated by anxiety disorders, which are closely related to OCD. I have anxiety myself. I have worked with people with OCD, anxiety, and ADHD, and it's fascinating how they can be intertwined and play off one another. I wanted to gain a better understanding of OCD and how to best help people with it.

I have quite a bit of experience with depression, generalized anxiety disorder, ADHD, and social anxiety. I've also worked with severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, bipolar, and schizoaffective disorder.

Go in with an open mind. That can be hard if you're having a lot of fears about many different things. But know that treatment is going to be at your own pace. This is for you. This is your treatment, and what you put in is what you're going to get out of it. It’s normal to feel afraid, but give it a chance. There's a good team here at NOCD to support you.

Take your time. I'm not going to force you to say anything you don't feel comfortable with. Let's take time to build rapport, an environment where you feel more comfortable talking about these things. In the meantime, let's talk about the things you do feel comfortable with. It'll come when it comes.