In a field often constrained by fragmented approaches to care, The Retreat by Sheppard Pratt stands out as a model of comprehensive, compassionate, and groundbreaking mental health treatment. Particularly notable is the center’s pioneering work in addressing the intersection of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), trauma, and anxiety. Through an integrated, person-centered approach, clinicians at The Retreat are redefining how we treat post-traumatic stress disorder, especially in individuals whose experiences do not fit neatly into clinical categories.
“It’s rare that someone comes to us with just OCD or just trauma,” explains Jon Hershfield, MFT, director of the OCD program at The Retreat and director of The Center for OCD and Anxiety. “Most of our patients are navigating overlapping conditions—depression, trauma, anxiety, OCD—all influencing one another. We meet them where they are and build care around their full picture.”
This individualized treatment model is central to The Retreat’s success. “Many people we treat have experienced chronic, long-term trauma but struggle to label it as such,” Molly Schiffer, LCPC, associate director of Sheppard Pratt’s Center for OCD and Anxiety, notes. “They’ve lived with dysfunction or abuse for so long that it’s become normalized. We help them name those experiences and begin to reframe their impact.”
Patients with co-occurring OCD and trauma present a unique therapeutic challenge. Exposure with response prevention (ERP) is the gold standard for OCD treatment and can be distressing. “If trauma causes someone to dissociate or re-experience past events during exposure,” says Hershfield, “we need to treat the trauma simultaneously.”
A key therapeutic intervention used at The Retreat is cognitive processing therapy (CPT), an evidence-based intervention focused on challenging “stuck points”—maladaptive beliefs that prevent trauma recovery. “Many trauma survivors hold a ‘just world’ myth: that bad things happen to bad people,” Schiffer explains. “This can lead to debilitating self-blame, especially in cases of childhood trauma.”
By identifying and challenging these beliefs, patients are empowered to re-engage with other forms of therapy, including ERP. “We use CPT to help patients build readiness for the hard work of OCD treatment,” Hershfield says.
Dr. Michael Young, medical director of The Retreat by Sheppard Pratt, highlights the center’s commitment to comprehensive, multidisciplinary care. “While many treatment centers are designed with a specific diagnostic focus, our Retreat clinicians work together to address the whole person, keeping each resident’s values-based goals at the forefront,” says Dr. Young.
In addition to CBT, ERP, and CPT, patients benefit from psychodynamic psychotherapy; medication management; cutting-edge treatments such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS); and wellness interventions, including yoga, art therapy, and recreational therapy.
The Retreat’s holistic approach to treatment is rooted in clinicians’ deep commitment to lasting change. “It’s about meeting the patient in the complexity of their lived experience and utilizing every tool to help them heal.”
Patients at The Retreat often arrive with multiple diagnoses—a reality that can feel overwhelming. “We think of each condition not as a burden but as a star in a constellation,” shares Hershfield. “Together, they form a picture of the person’s mental health. That’s what we treat.”
It’s about restoring hope where traditional approaches have failed. As Dr. Young concludes, “Treatment works. Even for those who have struggled for years, we know that healing is possible.” 
Advancing Trauma Treatment
Management of PTSD has evolved in recent years. In a recent article in Advances in Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Hershfield and Schiffer shared their insights and approaches.
