Every Q&A is An Emergency

Dr. Zurita Ona, or Dr. Z, is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in California. She is the Director of the East Bay Behavior Therapy Center and a Made of Millions medical advisory board member.

Her clinical work started first as a school psychologist and then as a clinical psychologist. For over fourteen years she has developed significant experience working with children, adolescents and adults struggling with anxiety and emotion regulation problems; particular areas of expertise are Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Dr. Z is passionate about helping clients to get unstuck from any problem related to fear-based struggles.

Dr. Z serves on the Board of Directors for OCD SF Bay Area, an affiliate of the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF), and is on charge of the Clinical Symposium for the annual conference of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA). In addition to her doctoral training, Dr. Z is a graduate of the International OCD foundation Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI) for the treatment of pediatric OCD and adult OCD; her clinical work is primarily based on Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), the recognized front-line treatment for OCD, anxiety and related condition disorders. She is the author of numerous books, including "ACT beyond OCD: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Adults", "The ACT Workbook for Teens with OCD", "Parenting a Troubled Teen" and others.

Millions and millions of people around the world live with mental illness, but their stories are not all the same. They come from different places, cultures, communities and countries. They like different things, have different kinds of friends, and cope with their symptoms in different ways. When talking about mental health, it's important that we highlight these differences and explore how they shape our experiences. Mental health narratives should be as diverse and unique as we are.

Ask the Advocates is an ongoing Q&A series with outspoken mental health sufferers from around the world. Guests will open up about their experiences living with a wide range of conditions and symptoms, and answer your questions about pain, growth, healing, treatment and more. Before each episode, spend some time learning about the scheduled guest and come prepared with questions that are relevant to what they've been through.