When Worry Isn’t Just Worry: Identifying OCD vs. GAD

Obsessive-complusive disorder (OCD) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) often overlap in presentation, especially in adolescents and young adults.

Clients may report persistent worry, rumination, intrusive thoughts, reassurance-seeking, and avoidance, making it challenging to determine what is driving the anxiety and which evidence-based interventions are most appropriate. In this training, clinicians will learn a practical framework for differentiating OCD from GAD, with special attention to the function of thoughts and behaviors. Participants will explore common diagnostic pitfalls, including subtle compulsions and mental rituals that can be mistaken for “typical worry.” The training will also review how diagnostic clarity informs treatment planning, including when to prioritize ERP, CBT for worry, or an integrated approach.

CE credit(s) available for clinical professionals, psychologists, therapists, counselors, and social workers. See below for details.

Learning Objectives

Identify key clinical markers that differentiate OCD from GAD, including the role of intrusive thoughts, obsessional doubt, and generalized worry.
Recognize reassurance-seeking, rumination, checking, avoidance, and mental rituals as potential maintaining factors in OCD and GAD presentations.
Apply a function-based assessment framework to improve diagnostic clarity when symptoms overlap.
Develop treatment recommendations based on differential diagnosis, including when to use ERP, CBT strategies for worry, or a combined approach.

1.5 CE credits will be provided by AKH Inc., Advancing Knowledge in Healthcare.

Please note:
CE credits are only awarded to attendees who participate in the live session. Watching a recording of the previously recorded webinar does not qualify for credit.

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Presenters

Sharon Batista, MD

Psychiatrist, Balanced Psychiatry

Dr. Sharon M. Batista is a board-certified psychiatrist with over 15 years of clinical experience in outpatient adult community-based practice. She is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai and a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, as well as a Fellow of the American Medical Women’s Association and the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry.

Licensed in eleven states (New York, California, Florida, Illinois, Texas, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Ohio, New Jersey, Kansas, and Virginia), Dr. Batista provides comprehensive psychiatric care across diverse communities. She has practiced telemedicine for over a decade and brings extensive experience delivering high-quality, collaborative psychiatric care in both in-person and virtual settings.

In addition to ongoing individual treatment, she provides diagnostic clarification consultations, second opinions, and treatment planning guidance. She frequently works within informal, community-based treatment teams, partnering with therapists and other clinicians to refine case conceptualization and optimize care for complex presentations.

Dr. Batista specializes in obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, anxiety disorders, and women’s mental health. She is BTTI-trained through the International OCD Foundation and serves as a psychiatric advisor for NOCD. Her work integrates exposure and response prevention (ERP), cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and advanced psychopharmacology to provide culturally responsive, affirming care across the lifespan, including perinatal and menopause-related consultation.

She has published in the field of HIV psychiatry and remains actively engaged in telepsychiatry and digital mental health innovation.

Dina Nunziato, PhD

Chief Clinical Officer, Anxiety Institute

BA, University of Virginia // MSW, New York University // PhD, University of Buffalo

Dr. Dina Nunziato serves as the Chief Clinical Officer at Anxiety Institute, overseeing clinical operations in our Greenwich, CT; Madison, NJ; and McLean, VA locations. She has spent over two decades working with young adults in anxiety-related clinical and educational settings and enjoys working with her Anxiety Institute colleagues to provide excellent clinical care for our clients and families. Dr. Nunziato’s Anxiety Institute training courses include The Impact of Chronic Mis-attunement: A Psychobiological Approach to Understanding Anxiety in Adolescents; Using Positive Psychology Techniques to Address Anxiety Disorders in Adolescents and Young Adults; and Under the CBT Umbrella: Exploring ERP and DBT Treatment Options and Choosing the Right Approach for Your Clients.

Prior to joining the Anxiety Institute, Dr. Nunziato was the Director of Counseling & Psychological Services at Sarah Lawrence College and was an adjunct professor of Integrated Clinical Practice at New York University. Her research and publications focus on the use of evidence-based mindfulness techniques to support anxiety management, academic success, and emotional well-being.

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Co-Hosted By

Questions regarding this course?

Birgitta Johnson

Email: [email protected]
Phone: (612) 280-4503

Training Refund, Cancellation & Certification

Virtual Courses and Webinars

If you are unable to attend an online course or webinar, Anxiety Institute offers a 100% money-back guarantee, if you notify us at least 24-hours prior to the scheduled start date. For a multi-session course, cancellation must be received 24-hours prior to the first session.
If you are unable to attend a course session/webinar due to extenuating circumstances, a recording of the session will be available for viewing for two weeks after the live session date.
If Anxiety Institute cancels the availability of a course or webinar for any reason, participants will be notified via email. Though we would not do so without good reason, we reserve this right, as well as the right to reschedule courses and webinars and/or substitute presenters. In the case of a cancelled or rescheduled course, you may request a full refund of course/webinar fees paid.
If you wish to cancel your course registration, notification must be sent to [email protected] at least 24-hours prior to the scheduled start date.

Anxiety Institute, LLC disclaims any liability for any losses or damages, direct or indirect, arising from a training cancellation.

Certification
To receive CE credits, clinicians must attend the course sessions in real time, not via recorded sessions. All CE Certification fees are non-refundable.

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