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In brief: HSE care for OCD is free and starts with your GP. Mild to moderate OCD is usually treated by primary care psychology, and severe OCD by a community mental health team, where the first appointment is within 72 hours if urgent or up to 12 weeks if not. Private care needs no referral and can often start within days, at roughly €60 to €170 a session. Either way, CBT with exposure and response prevention (ERP) is the recommended treatment.
Which Route Fits You?
HSE mental health care needs a referral from a GP or another health professional (except primary care psychology, which also takes self-referrals). Private care doesn't. Find the row that sounds most like you.
Start with Your GP:
Your GP is the way into HSE care. They can refer you on, and they can start you on medication if it's right for you. You don't have to describe your thoughts in detail. General terms like "fears about harm" or "worries about germs" are enough.
It helps to bring a few notes covering:
- What the obsessions are about, in general terms.
- Your compulsions, including mental ones such as counting, reviewing or asking for reassurance.
- Roughly how many hours a day they take.
- How they affect your work, studies and relationships.
- Any past treatment and any medication you take now.
GP fees vary by practice. If you have a medical card or GP visit card, the visit is free. You don't need a GP to start private therapy, so if you'd rather go straight to a therapist, read our guide to starting therapy without a GP referral.
The HSE Route:
- Primary care psychology: for mild to moderate difficulties. Your GP can refer you, or you can refer yourself through your local health office.
- Counselling in Primary Care: short-term counselling for adults with a medical card, through your GP.
- SilverCloud: a free online CBT programme your GP can refer you to.
- Community mental health teams (CMHTs): for adults aged 18 to 65 with more severe difficulties. Only a GP or another health professional can refer you. Urgent cases are seen within 72 hours, and others may wait up to 12 weeks for a first appointment (HSE).
- Over 65: you can be referred to a Psychiatry of Later Life team.
- Under 18: the GP refers to CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services).
If you have a medical card, prescriptions cost €1.50 per item, up to €15 a month for each person or family (HSE). Without one, the Drugs Payment Scheme means you pay no more than €80 a month for approved medicines (HSE).
HSE care is free, and for some people it's the right choice. It's worth knowing that access to therapists who specialise in ERP varies from area to area.
The Private Route:
Privately, you can book directly with:
- A psychologist registered with the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI).
- A psychotherapist or counsellor accredited with a body such as the IACP or IAHIP.
- An accredited CBT therapist, for example through Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy Ireland (CBTI).
- A psychiatrist, for a diagnosis or to discuss medication.
Most private therapy needs no referral. Online therapy is a real option too: a 2023 meta-analysis of 22 trials found that CBT for OCD delivered remotely worked about as well as face-to-face treatment (Salazar de Pablo et al., 2023).
At Fettle, everything is online. You can start with a free concierge call to talk through your options, book a private OCD assessment with a PSI-registered clinical psychologist, or see an accredited OCD therapist.
What Does OCD Treatment Cost in Ireland?
| Option | Typical cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| GP visit | Varies by practice. Free with a medical card or GP visit card | HSE |
| HSE therapy (primary care psychology, CMHT) | Free | HSE |
| Prescriptions, medical card | €1.50 per item, up to €15 a month | HSE |
| Prescriptions, no medical card | Up to €80 a month under the Drugs Payment Scheme | HSE |
| Private therapy session (50 min) | €60 with a trainee psychotherapist to €170 with a psychologist | Private Therapy Clinic Ireland, 28 Oct 2026 |
| Private psychiatry, first assessment | €350 online or €450 in person | Private Therapy Clinic Ireland, 28 Oct 2026 |
| Fettle therapy session | €95, pay as you go | Fettle, 28 Oct 2026 |
| Fettle OCD assessment | €89 first consultation. €839 for the full pathway with diagnosis and report | Fettle, 28 Oct 2026 |
| Fettle psychiatry | €450 first consultation (1 hour), €220 follow-up | Fettle, 28 Oct 2026 |
As an example, a course of 12 private sessions at €95 comes to €1,140. The number of sessions you'll need depends on how severe your OCD is, so treat that as a rough guide.
If you have health insurance with Vhi, Laya or Irish Life, you may be able to claim back part of the cost depending on your policy. Our page on claiming on health insurance explains what to check.
If cost is the main barrier, there are lower-cost options. MyMind offers reduced fees, some clinics offer cheaper sessions with trainee therapists, and OCD Ireland runs free support groups.
How Long Will You Wait?
| Service | Typical wait | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CMHT, urgent | Within 72 hours (or immediately at an emergency department) | HSE |
| CMHT, not urgent | Up to 12 weeks for a first appointment | HSE |
| Primary care psychology and CAMHS | Varies by area and by how many people are waiting | HSE |
| Fettle OCD assessment | Consultations usually available the same week | Fettle's own figure |
| Fettle psychiatry | Usually seen within 48 hours | Fettle's own figure |
What to do while you wait
- Ask your GP about SilverCloud, the HSE's free online CBT programme.
- Try to cut back on reassurance seeking, including asking family and searching online. It brings relief for a moment but keeps OCD going.
- Join an OCD Ireland support group.
- Keep a simple diary of triggers, compulsions and how much time they take. It will help whoever treats you.
- Go back to your GP if things get worse while you're waiting.
You can also join the HSE list and start privately at the same time. If you'd like help working out what makes sense for you, book a free concierge call.
What Good OCD Treatment Looks Like:
Both NICE and the HSE recommend CBT with exposure and response prevention (ERP) as the main psychological treatment for OCD. In ERP you face your triggers step by step, at a pace you agree, and practise not doing the compulsion. Our guide to ERP therapy walks through a course from start to finish.
For moderate or severe OCD, SSRIs, prescribed by a GP or psychiatrist, can be used alongside therapy. The HSE notes they can take up to 12 weeks to work. How long treatment takes depends on severity, and NICE sets it out in therapist hours rather than a fixed number of sessions.
5 questions to ask any therapist before you book
- Have you treated OCD before?
- Are you trained in ERP, and how much of our sessions will be ERP?
- Which body are you accredited with?
- Do you offer online sessions?
- What are your fees, and do you provide receipts for insurance?
Getting Diagnosed with OCD in Ireland:
OCD can be diagnosed by a psychiatrist or a psychologist, and your GP can make an initial assessment. You don't need a formal diagnosis to start therapy.
A diagnosis can help if you want to start medication, claim on insurance, or ask for supports at work or in college. Fettle's private OCD assessment starts with an €89 online consultation with a PSI-registered clinical psychologist. If you're still wondering whether it's OCD at all, our guide Do I have OCD? can help, and our guide to the different forms OCD can take may sound familiar.
If You're Under 18, or Helping Someone Else:
For children and teenagers, the public route is CAMHS through the GP. Jigsaw offers free support for 12 to 25 year olds with milder difficulties. Private therapists who work with young people can usually see a child sooner.
If you're a parent or partner, the most helpful thing is often the hardest: try not to keep answering the same reassurance questions or joining in rituals. Stay warm, say you can see they're struggling, and encourage them to get help. Our guide to the different forms OCD can take can help you understand what they're going through.
The Next Step:
Whichever route you choose, getting started is what matters. If you'd like to talk it through, book a free concierge call with our team, or go straight to an OCD assessment.
Sources:
- HSE, "Community mental health teams", www2.hse.ie/mental-health/services-support/community-mental-health-teams/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- HSE, "Primary Care Psychology", www2.hse.ie/mental-health/services-support/primary-care-psychology/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- HSE, "Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD): treatment", www2.hse.ie/conditions/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/treatment/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- HSE, "Prescription charges for medical card holders", www2.hse.ie/services/schemes-allowances/medical-cards/about-the-medical-card/prescription-charges/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- HSE, "Drugs Payment Scheme", www2.hse.ie/services/schemes-allowances/drugs-payment-scheme/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- NICE, "Obsessive-compulsive disorder and body dysmorphic disorder: treatment" (CG31), nice.org.uk/guidance/cg31 (accessed 28 October 2026).
- Salazar de Pablo G. et al., "Efficacy of remotely-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder: an updated meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials", Journal of Affective Disorders 322 (2023): 289 to 299.
- Private Therapy Clinic Ireland, "Fees", privatetherapyclinic.ie/fees/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- OCD Ireland, "Seeking help", ocdireland.org/seeking-help/ (accessed 28 October 2026).
- Fettle, "OCD assessment" and "Psychiatry" pages, fettle.ie (accessed 28 October 2026).
Last reviewed: October 2026. Prices, waiting times and referral rules change, so check each provider's own site before you book. This article is for general information and is not a substitute for professional advice.
