From Survival Mode to Self-Understanding: My Experience With Anxiety & OCD as a Therapist
By Jen Lescher, LCSW
My Private Practice Origin Story
I didn’t always want to be an OCD and anxiety therapist. I didn’t even set out to become a therapist originally. It is my personal belief that when you stop fighting against the direction life is trying to move you, things begin to flow with more ease. I have seen this be true in my own life, most specifically in becoming an OCD therapist. When I decided to pursue private practice and then niche down into OCD and anxiety, things felt surprisingly easy, and I followed that thread. I’ve learned that when I don’t follow these threads, life becomes harder, as if I’m trying to swim upstream.
Let me back up, though, to show you what I mean by flow and ease, because my professional life was not always this way.
Early Work in Mental Health and Social Work
I began working in mental health and social work as an undergraduate at the University of California, Santa Cruz. I worked as a shelter advocate at a domestic violence and sexual assault emergency shelter. I loved this work and was deeply passionate about working to end violence against women (and I still am).
Art, Photography, and an Unexpected Crossroads
When I graduated, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I studied art at UC Santa Cruz and was—and still am—very interested in film photography. I applied to several Master of Fine Arts programs and was surprised to be accepted to a school where one of my favorite photographers had attended. While I was excited, I ultimately decided not to go. The program offered no financial aid, was very expensive, and was located on the East Coast, which felt too far from home- California. In hindsight, I see this as one of the crossroads that nudged me back toward mental health.
Eventually, I decided to move to Portland, Oregon. I was living in Northern California at the time so it didn’t feel like a big move, I had close friends there, and had visited enough to know I liked it. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do professionally—which is very common in your early 20s—and I graduated college in 2008, during an economic recession. It was very hard to find work. I applied to countless jobs, but the only ones that responded were in mental health. Looking back this feels like another nudge back towards working in this field.
Working in Community Mental Health and Inpatient Care
I was open to this work, though it wasn’t necessarily my goal. In any case, I began working in adult community mental health residential programs and later at an inpatient psychiatric unit for children. Without a master’s degree, I worked as “line staff,” meaning I provided daily supportive care but was not functioning as a therapist. The work was intense, and many residents had acute symptoms. Despite how challenging it was, much of it came naturally to me—likely due to my prior crisis work experience at the domestic violence and sexual assault shelter and my own lived experience with mental health challenges.
Living With Undiagnosed OCD While Working in Mental Health
At the time, I didn’t know I had OCD—but I had all the symptoms. I had been in and out of therapy since I was a teenager, yet nothing really helped because I wasn’t properly diagnosed or treated. Unfortunately, this is still a common experience for people with OCD. Even then, I think my own struggles helped me at the time to approach clients with compassion and understanding.
Eventually, I realized I genuinely liked working in mental health and decided to apply to the Master of Social Work program at Portland State University. After applying, I knew I needed a break from such intense work, so I went backpacking through Southeast Asia. I was having an incredible time—so much so that I considered staying to teach English. Around the same time, I was invited to interview with the admissions department at Portland State. Once again, I found myself at a crossroads. Eventually, I decided to attend the interview, and I’m so glad I did—I was accepted shortly afterward. Looking back I think I was following a thread that kept pointing me to mental health work.
Graduate school was stressful, as it is for most people. I still hadn’t been diagnosed or treated for OCD, and the stress significantly exacerbated my symptoms. OCD often intensifies during periods of stress. Reflecting back, it’s striking to me that I was studying to be a therapist—surrounded by academic texts, mental health professionals, and even attending therapy myself—yet I still didn’t know I had OCD or that specialized treatment existed. I desperately needed it, but I wasn’t receiving it, and once again, therapy wasn’t really helping.
Why Lived Experience Shapes My OCD Therapy Practice
I share parts of my journey because I believe it can be validating for others to understand how difficult it can be to access an accurate OCD diagnosis and effective treatment—and to know that this struggle is not their fault. There is a significant lack of education about OCD within the mental health field, and I think my story reflects that reality. I also share it because it explains why I’m so passionate about OCD awareness and evidence-based treatment. I want the experience to be different—and better—for others.
I also want to be intentional about what I share and what I don’t. I believe being a good clinician doesn’t mean being a blank slate without a personality or perspective—but it also doesn’t mean oversharing. The focus should always remain on the client, not the therapist. What I’ve shared here is a curated part of my story: details that are true, meaningful, and directly connected to the origin of my private practice. I’m not sharing everything, because that wouldn’t be necessary or helpful to clients or potential clients. My hope is simply that, in some small way, my story might be useful to you.
I’ll share Part 2 of my origin story in the next blog. Stay tuned.
OCD Therapy With Jen Lescher, LCSW in Boston, MA and Los Angeles, CA
Many people come to OCD and anxiety therapy after years of trying to “think their way out” of symptoms, manage uncertainty perfectly, or make anxiety disappear before living their lives. Therapy doesn’t require you to have everything figured out first. Instead, it’s a place to learn how to respond differently—to uncertainty, to intrusive thoughts, and to the parts of yourself you may have been fighting for a long time.
Jen Lescher, LCSW offers specialized OCD therapy for adults in Boston, Massachusetts and Los Angeles, California. I work with individuals who want evidence-based treatment that also honors their lived experience. My approach to OCD therapy is grounded in research-supported methods, while remaining thoughtful, relational, and deeply human.
A Gentle Invitation Forward
You don’t need to be in crisis to seek support. You don’t need to have the “right” words or the perfect explanation for what you’re experiencing. And you don’t need to wait until things get worse to reach out. OCD therapy in Boston isn’t about getting certainty or erasing anxiety. It’s about learning how to live alongside uncertainty without letting it run your life. Follow the steps below if you’re ready to get started:
Contact me here to ask questions, inquire about OCD therapy in Boston or Los Angeles, or see whether working together feels like a good fit.
Explore the blog to deepen your understanding of OCD, anxiety, and recovery—especially if you’re still making sense of what you’re experiencing.
Start OCD therapy focused on building self-trust, responding differently to uncertainty, and creating a life that isn’t shaped around fear.
Additional Resources
Along with one-on-one OCD therapy, I also offer supportive resources that address challenges many clients face outside of sessions. On the Common OCD Themes page, you can explore detailed insights into recurring thoughts and behaviors. The OCD and Social Life page offers guidance for managing friendships, dating, and relationships while living with OCD and anxiety. These resources are designed to complement therapy by providing practical tools and new perspectives, extending your growth and healing beyond the therapy room.
About the Author Jen Lescher
I’m a therapist, a devoted coffee lover (truly— it's one of my favorite daily comforts), and someone who really values small moments of presence. That might look like slowing down with mindfulness, getting lost behind my camera, or taking a quiet walk just to notice what’s around me. Photography, in particular, helps me stay grounded and curious—two qualities I bring into my work with clients as well.
I’ve been interested in healing and spirituality since my teenage years and have explored many paths along the way, from meditation to energy-based practices. At the same time, I’m just as likely to be blasting music in the car or deep into a true crime podcast. To me, healing isn’t only about stillness or insight—it can also include movement, humor, and moments of joy. Therapy should have space for all of that.
I’ve worked in a wide range of mental health settings since 2007, and that experience shaped one of my core beliefs: healing is never one-size-fits-all. It’s personal. It changes over time. It can feel messy. And it’s always possible.
Training & Background
Inference-Based CBT (ICBT) for OCD – The OCD Training School & The Cognitive Behavioral Institute
Certified in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) – The Cognitive Behavioral Institute
Gottman Method Couples Therapy – Level 1
Master’s in Social Work – Portland State University, 2012
