Emma Garrick | Integrative Psychotherapist
In midlife, when responsibilities are full and the outside of life looks steady, anxiety or OCD can begin to stir quietly.
You might notice intrusive thoughts returning.
A subtle increase in checking or reassurance seeking.
The familiar hum of vigilance in the background.
Not a collapse.
Not yet a crisis.
But enough to bring the thought,
“I can’t go back there.”
This is the point where early intervention matters.
Not because you are starting from zero,
but because you recognise the early signs of a flare
and want to protect the steadiness you worked hard to build.
Working with clients across the UK and internationally.
Explore structured audio support for anxiety and OCD flares.
Or book a focused relapse prevention consultation.
Most of the people I work with are capable, reflective adults who have previously experienced anxiety, panic attacks or OCD.
They know what stability feels like. Many have done therapy before. They recognise their patterns well enough to sense when something is shifting.
They have built lives that function.
Careers. Families. Responsibilities. Roles that depend on them.
Many of the adults I work with are navigating midlife pressures - parenting, leadership roles, caring for ageing parents, hormonal shifts - where old anxiety patterns can quietly resurface.
From the outside, very little appears wrong.
And yet, under pressure, something familiar begins to return.
Often the early signs are not dramatic.
More scanning. A quickening of your thoughts with a low hum of overwhelm. Older intrusive thoughts popping back in. Familiar sensations that feel uncomfortably recognisable. A subtle increase in checking, comparing, replaying.
Not a collapse.
But enough to bring the familiar thought:
“I can’t go back there.”
This is not first-time anxiety.
It is a return of something familiar.
And relapse responds best when it is met early,
before patterns regain momentum.
Relapse work is not the same as first-time anxiety treatment.
You are not starting from zero.
You already have insight.
You already have language.
You may already have tools.
What you need is not a complete overhaul.
You need steadiness at the right moment.
In our work, we focus on recognising early relapse markers, strengthening strategies that have worked before, and interrupting patterns before they regain traction.
This is focused, structured work centred on relapse prevention.
Not open-ended therapy without direction.
Not temporary relief.
Grounded in specialist Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Exposure Response Prevention, this approach adapts relapse frameworks specifically for high-functioning adults in midlife.
The emphasis is simple: intervene early, reinforce stability, and stop the pattern before it gathers strength.
I work with a small number of clients at a time to ensure depth, clarity, and momentum.
Hi, I’m Emma.
I’m an Integrative Psychotherapist specialising in anxiety and OCD relapse prevention.
My work has been featured in national media and television, and I have previously served as CEO of a national psychotherapy organisation.
Much of my work is with capable, reflective adults navigating midlife transitions, including parenting and caregiving pressures, where anxiety and OCD symptoms can resurface quietly.
I work with many adults who function outwardly while something inside remains slightly braced.
I focus on relapse prevention at the point it begins.
Not simply coping in the moment.
Not temporary relief.
But recognising early shifts that signal a pattern returning, and changing direction before it gathers momentum.
This work also informs my current writing on midlife anxiety and OCD relapse.
I work independently, grounded in professional training, supervision, and ongoing development.
Based in the UK, working internationally.
"Emma’s guidance has brought real change to my life. I’ve noticed a marked difference in my mornings and evenings - fewer moments filled with anxiety, and more days where I feel genuinely at ease. The intrusive thoughts, sweaty palms, chest pain, and migraines aren’t as overwhelming as they used to be. "
"Emma's approach is unlike anything I've encountered before. She doesn't just provide temporary relief; she offers genuine, practical, everyday implementable help. She has been the most worthwhile expenditure on my entire journey with anxiety and OCD"
My work is grounded in specialist Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Exposure Response Prevention (ERP), with a specific focus on relapse prevention in anxiety and OCD.
Clinical decisions are guided by established therapeutic frameworks and current professional standards within UK practice.
I practise under ongoing clinical supervision, maintain full professional indemnity insurance, and adhere to UK GDPR data protection standards.
I am the founder of the Association for Anxiety, OCD & Panic. I have also contributed to early-stage professional inquiry into the ethical use of artificial intelligence within therapeutic practice.
My practice is shaped by formal clinical training, leadership experience within the psychotherapy sector, and a sustained commitment to ethical, evidence-informed care.
If you can sense the early signs of an anxiety or OCD flare
and the thought begins to form,
“I can’t go back there.”
This is the moment where early specialist intervention makes the difference.
You are not starting over.
You are protecting the steadiness you have already built.
Access structured audio support for anxiety and OCD relapse.
Or book a focused relapse prevention consultation.