This is a collection of information about OCD. There are some different websites, videos, podcasts and more. It might be a good place to begin to understand OCD - perhaps if you’ve been recently diagnosed, want more information, you’re trying to understand it for yourself or maybe if someone you know has OCD and you don’t quite understand it yet.

Let me know if you have any other things which have helped you understand or manage OCD.

There are personal experiences and understandings of having this disorder as well as more medical understanding of OCD as well as some relatable and funny things such as memes! They are definitely a good place to start to increase understanding of having OCD or just look at something that’s relatable!

Social Media:

Lily Bailey - the author of two books further along in this article - she posts relatable memes and speaks of her experience of having OCD.

OCD Doodles - artwork by Laura as she recovers from OCD - These are relatable and also educational.

A penny for your intrusive thoughts - This is probably my all time favourite. People anonymously submit their terrifying intrusive thoughts which are then published. It helps to see that you’re not the only one thinking these things. A lot of them are terrifying and relatable and really help to see - I’ve found it makes it easier to speak about these with doctors as it proves you are not the only one. Plus it covers a whole range of different topics.

OCD Excellence - This site is great for some relatable ways that OCD manifests and also explains it in an accurate and educational way. It has examples, how intrusive thoughts present, facts, common habits and more. They also have a website and blog.

OCD Memes - This is funny and relatable and helps encapsulate the experience of having OCD via the world of memes!

Podcasts:

The OCD Stories: This UK-based podcast has 300 recordings, focusing on OCD with both personal stories and the perspective of medical practitioners too. One of particular note is how OCD presents for someone in a family environment and can change with different responses from family members #266.

Psychiatry & Psychotherapy Podcast: This is primarily presented from a clinical perspective and is designed for medical practitioners but the discussion about OCD including clinical features and treatment options can also be helpful to hear for a general audience. Number #126 - speaks of psychotherapy for OCD - particularly ERP and #119 provides a good overview of OCD and how it presents and is treated.

The strange reality of life with severe OCD - This podcast is with the author of the above book - Because We Are Bad. This is an interview by the ABC with Lily about her experiences of having OCD and the shame she holds with it. Listening to this podcast prompted me to read the book and see how relatable her experience is to my own.

Books:

More books I have found interesting can be seen here (including some more generally addressing anxiety).

Because We Are Bad - This is a book by Lily Bailey which describes her life having OCD. She had this from an early age but certainly explores the intricacies of OCD obsessions. Many parts of the book sounded like they could have been my diary, the way she would analyse and go over every interaction and every little thing she had done wrong and what this meant about her character. How accidental glances at people meant that she was a pervert, that she had killed people with her brain and the compulsive praying of her childhood sounded a bit like mine. A link to purchase the book is here and my more detailed review can be read here.

Bailey describes the mental chaos that rang in her head for as long as she can remember - “Ever since I can remember my brain has been flooded with weird and strange and uncomfortable thoughts, What if I kill someone with a thought? What if I think I want that person to die and then they do? What if my sister dies in her sleep? What if family leaves me in the night?" Her book talks about how she would convince herself she was a pervert if she happened to look at someone's chest, a pedophile if she looked at a child, a murderer if she thought that someone had died. Then would come a huge list of every little thing she had said, done or thought wrong throughout the day.

Lily has recently written a new book - When I See Blue - which also addresses OCD - “12-year-old Ben has a bully in his brain who tells him what to do. It makes dealing with a new school, new town and parents who are falling apart seem impossible.” It explores the story of a boy with OCD and how he is brave and manages it.

 The Man Who Couldn't Stop - this book is written by David Adams who is a scientific journalist who has OCD - particularly around contamination obsessions. It draws upon his personal experience of the condition but is from a more scientific viewpoint and addresses research as well as case studies of OCD, explaining the condition. I found this book rather confronting, not because anything in it was new. Just because it was a) brutally honest, really exploring the darkest parts of our brains and b) in places it was so similar to my own experiences – it felt odd seeing it written down on paper. He describes intrusive thoughts as a snowflake falling from the sky on a summer day. Something harmless which turns into a raging blizzard

Rewind Replay Repeat: A Memoir of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - this was written by Jeff Bell in 2006 who has OCD involving much doubt and checking compulsions but he wasn’t diagnosed for many years. Jeff Bell is a journalist from California.

Everything You Need to Know About OCD - this is written by Dr Lynne Drummond a psychiatrist from the UK and provides a lot of information about OCD - based on her work treating people with OCD - providing information about treatment, types of OCD and it’s presentation, but also ways to support and help oneself.

Videos:

You can’t ask that - this is a brilliant television show with many interesting topics but this one about OCD is good and it features people with OCD answering questions people probably shouldn’t or won’t ask about living with the disorder. This was published in 2021 on the ABC.

International OCD Foundation on Youtube - this provides accurate and important information about different types of OCD, how it is treated and how it presents. It has lived experiences and accurate information.

Lily Bailey Interview - this is about her first book and helped to prompt me to read ‘Because we are bad’ which I found very helpful.

Websites:

OCD-UK: This is a great place to begin when trying to find information about OCD. It is done well and accurately and provides and explains how treatment occurs.

International OCD Foundation: This is based in the US and is a good starting point for information about OCD.

SANE Australia - Good place to begin for information on complex mental health issues. Has some helpful fact sheets too.