Episode 52 | Music in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) with Desiree Untch, LISW-S

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  Music can comfort us, move us, and even help us heal — but for some people, it can also provoke anxiety or fear.

In this episode, host Shaina Siber, LCSW, explores the intersection between music therapy, exposure-based interventions, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with guest Desiree Untch, LCSW — an independently licensed clinical social worker with advanced training in Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

Shaina and Desiree discuss how music — a powerful activator of memory, emotion, and physiology — can become both a trigger and a pathway to healing. Desiree shares how she integrates music into ERP to help clients with moral and religious scrupulosity, a form of OCD characterized by intrusive fears of sinning or moral failure. Together, they explore how sound and rhythm can enhance emotional regulation, deepen exposure work, and transform avoidance into connection.

Whether you specialize in OCD or not, this conversation offers creative, evidence-informed ways to bring music, embodiment, and emotional resonance into therapy — especially for clients who avoid sadness, shame, or grief.