Internet resources

The Reading OCD Support Group is not responsible for external websites.

 Helpful articles and videos

• • OCD Help, www.ocdhelpdoc.com. A site of advice by Dr. Jonathan Grayson.

  • OCD Talk, ocdtalk.wordpress.com.  An American OCD site with articles and blogs.

  • The OCD Stories, theocdstories.com. Personal OCD stories of sufferers.

  • It's just a feeling, www.itsjustafeeling.co.uk/obsessive_thoughts.  Written by someone who knows.

  • Real event OCD, www.ocdspecialists.com/real-event-ocd.  Some people worry about their past actions.  Although they may not doubt that the event in question happened, their OCD doubts may concern specific details in the event and/or whether their actions makes them a bad person.  This is an interesting page by "OCD Specialists".

  • The definitive guide to guilt, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201208/the-definitive-guide-guilt.  An interesting article in Psychology Today by Susan Krauss Whitbourne (see especially guilt cause #3).

  • OCD Online, www.ocdonline.com. OCD resources by Dr. Steven Phillipson.

  • When Worry Hijacks The Brain, TIME Magazine. An interesting article by Jeffrey Kluger. Accessible article here.

  • OCD and Acting Out: Afraid You Will Really Do It?, www.anxiety.org, by Jon Hershfield (OCD and Anxiety Center of Greater Baltimore).

  • Four Soothing Truths About Intrusive Thoughts, goodmenproject.com, by Colin Thurston.

  • How I Treat OCD Killer Thoughts: Treating Violent Obsessions, International OCD Foundation, by Fred Penzel.

  • Relationship OCD. www.relationshipocd.com

  • An Inner Look into the Minds and Brains of People with OCD www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-inner-look-into-the-minds-and-brains-of-people-with-ocd1

• Material from Jeffrey Schwartz (et al.)

  • •  An Introductory Overview of the Four Steps Treatment Method for OCD (video from OCD-UK Conference in 2006, London)

• • 'You are not your brain' at Mind & Its Potential (video, 2011)

  • The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force

• Video of Mindfulness lecture by Prof. Mark Williams

• • Mindfulness for Life

• TED talk by Bill Bernat

• • How to connect with depressed friends

• Comedy video of dysfunctional therapy session, Bob Newhart

• • Stop It!

Webinars from OCD Action

1. Beyond the myths. Exploring the reality of OCD (Dr Rob Willson and Catherine Benfield), June 2023.

2. Exploring experiences of OCD (Dr Blake Stobie, Olivia Bamber, and Arron Bennett), July 2023.

3. Understanding the recommended treatments: CBT with ERP and medication (Dr Tori Hallett, Dr Stuart Brownings, and Ria Fay), September 2023.

4. How to get the best out of psychological therapy (Prof Paul Salkovskis and Mike Cooper), October 2023.

Articles from the OCD Center of Los Angeles

• OCD Symptoms and Treatment

• Scrupulosity

• Harm OCD

• Pure Obsessional OCD (Pure O)

• Perinatal / Postpartum OCD

• OCD in Children and Adolescents

• Body Image: Don't believe everything you think

• OCD is fake news!

• Accepting And Embracing Anxiety

• Reflections on skin picking and hair pulling

• OCD & Anxiety in the Age of Information

• HOCD: 30 things you need to know

• Mindfulness and Acceptance for Trichotillomania and Dermatillomania

• Excoriation (Skin Picking) Disorder, aka Dermatillomania

Ali Greymond videos (video format, but audio only)

OCD Radio, a series of audio tutorials on YouTube:

• • How to recognize an OCD thought.

  • How reassurance seeking can stop you from getting over OCD.

  • OCD tips and techniques.

  • OCD and avoidance.

  • False memory OCD.

Katie Dath videos

Katie d'Ath is an OCD treatment specialist, based in the UK.  She has an informative series of videos on YouTube:

• • 1. Introduction.

  • 2. Where does OCD come from?

  • 3. How to stop feeling anxious: learning to habituate.

  • 4. OCD treatment: understanding "intrusive" thoughts.

  • 5. OCD treatment: the vicious flower - how OCD is maintained.

  • 6. OCD treatment: dealing with OCD differently - habituation Part 2.

  • 7. OCD treatment: introduction to Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP).

  • 8. OCD treatment: how to stop the thoughts!

  • 9. OCD treatment: why pushing your thoughts away doesn't work.

  • 10. OCD treatment: why you need to do deliberate exposures.

Mark Freeman videos

Mark Freeman is a recovered OCD sufferer based in Canada.  He has a web site and a series of very engaging YouTube videos covering virtually everything to do with OCD.

• • Mark Freeman's web site.

  • Everybody as a brain YouTube channel.

• What causes Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• How long does recovery take?

• How do you identify OCD thoughts?

• Is OCD chronic?

• What is the best natural supplement to cure OCD?

• How do I get motivated to beat OCD?

• Own Your Mental Illness Solutions

• OCD is a weed. Rip up the roots!

• Feeling guilty

• Compulsions lead to obsessions.

• OCD and False / Real Memories

• How do I accept terrible thoughts?!

• how to get rid of anxiety

• OCD Success Story: Meat juice on my leg

• Quitting smoking reduces anxiety, just like quitting compulsions

• Anxiety Disorder Relapse Prevention

• Everyday Mindfulness for OCD and other Anxiety Disorders

• Defeat Denial: Be open about your mental health.

• Meditation & Mindfulness 101

• OCD Recovery & Headaches

• Killing OCD Monsters

• Back to normal after mental illness

• Anxiety disorders are like elephants.

• Mental Health: If you have a brain, you have mental health too.

• Avoiding Anxiety Triggers

• The Police and The Mentally Ill

• ERP Support for OCD: The Uncertainty Curve

• How do you do ERP for Harm OCD?

• Beat OCD Tip #1 - Sticky notes

• Beat OCD Tip #2 - Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP)

• Beat OCD Tip #3 - Start Small

• Beat OCD Tip #4 - Eat Healthy

• Beat OCD Tip #5 - Fight Compulsions not 

• Beat OCD Tip #6 - Stockholm Syndrome

• Beat OCD Tip #7: OCD Themes

• Beat OCD Tip #8: Be unreasonable.

• Beat OCD Tip #9: Mental health is physical health

• Beat OCD Tip #10 - YOU ARE NOT YOUR THOUGHTS

• Beat OCD Tip #11 - Feelings

• Recovery Pro Tip: YOU ARE NOT YOUR FARTS

• BRAINS NEED TO POO, TOO: Talk about your mental health!

• 5 ERP Tips for Anxiety: #1 Buy Ice Cream

• 5 ERP Tips for Anxiety: #2 You can stop the compulsions

• 5 ERP Tips for Anxiety: #3 Talk to Strangers

• 5 ERP Tips for Anxiety: #4 The Pain is not the Problem

• 5 ERP Tips for Anxiety: #5 Always Punch Hard

• Anxiety #126 - Raw Meat OCD

• Anxiety #237 Eating everything in the cupboards

• Anxiety #576 - OCD door checking

• Anxiety #642 - OCD Hand Washing

• Paranoia and Being Watched

• New Year, Same Brain

• Mark's Ultimate Holiday Regifting Guide

• Mental Health & Fitness Goals

• How to Deal With Intrusive Thoughts

• Anatomy of a Compulsion

• 12 Tips to Support Therapy for Anxiety Issues

• Mental Illness is Like Drowning

• The Inventory - a basic mental health & fitness tool

• Irrational Worry VS Rational Worry

• When do you tell dates about your mental illness?

• Straight OCD (HOCD, POCD, AOCD, etc)

• Q&A #1 - OCD at work, recovery, and the strength to do healthy things

• Q&A #2 - Existential uncertainty, real thoughts, and my children

• Q&A #3 - OCD and Social Anxiety

• What if therapy isn't working?

• Stop Hitting Yourself in the Face with a Hammer

• Recovery/Mental Health/Mark Question Time

• How can I be less distracted?

• What to look for in a therapist

• How to understand mental compulsions

• When panic attacks become a barrier to recovery

• Values Exercise - Sweet, Sour, Heroes

• How to Identify Obsessions & Compulsions

• What Are You Practicing?

• Are you a sunset or a math equation?

• What helped you overcome a mental health challenge?

• Overcoming Derealization & Depersonalization (DeRP)

• OCD as an addiction

• A Simple Mental Fitness Exercise for OCD Recovery: Stop Checking Your Phone

• Bigots and violence and compassion and action

• What would you give up for safety?

• A thankful bodyscan meditation for any body

• How do you define recovery? (MHQ+A)

• Why does caffeine cause anxiety?

• Overcoming food contamination anxiety w/ Jimmy

• Will a high carb diet kill you?

• Interview: Matt's Recovery Toolbox

• The fine line when talking about anxiety recovery

• Travel Anxiety: Checking & Depersonalization

• Travel Anxiety: An Antidote to the Fear of Death

• What is an intrusive thought?

• Relapse, contamination, checking, a funeral for your mental illness, and more!

• How to stop ruminating about intrusive thoughts

• The intrusive thought garbage between us

• When anxiety comes back!

• Practicing Loving-Kindness for Anxiety

• How are your practices affecting your life?

• The Weakness of Recovery

• The Mind Workout - UK book launch contest

Articles concerning POCD, wrongly seen as a risk

• Obsessive–compulsive disorder and child safeguarding

• Extreme OCD 'Misdiagnosed' As Paedophilia

Resources concerning wider approaches, such as nutrition

• • Balancing Brain Chemistry by Peter Smith, www.balancingbrainchemistry.co.uk/peter-smith/1/Brain-Chemistry-HOME.html

  • Integrative Therapies for OCD, www.greatplainslaboratory.com/articles-1/2017/7/10/integrative-therapies-for-obsessive-compulsive-disorder

Worksheets for therapists

• • CBT Worksheets for Therapists, www.psychologytools.org/download-therapy-worksheets.html. Down load free worksheets to help your CBT activities.