There is a wealth of fantastic websites, pages, books, podcasts, brochures and videos to find out more about OCD. We have just included some of the more popular or common sites which are consistently referred to.
Websites
New Zealand based Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Aotearoa (PADA) has information for new parents concerning Perinatal OCD. It is common for new parents to experience intrusive thoughts concerning their baby, particularly contamination and harm themes.
Have a good look around the Mental Health Foundation site for events, peoples’ stories and information about mental health in general. Included is useful information and readily available contacts, helplines and support groups.
Voices of Hope is a NZ website which is about providing help for those struggling with mental health issues by promoting mental well being, empowerment and recovery.
Like minds like mine is also a helpful website to explore about mental health and ways of combating discrimination and stigma.
Changing Minds is a national not for profit organisation operated entirely by those with personal experience of recovery from mental health and/or addiction issues. If you want to be more involved, check out this programme which is designed to train and support a growing network of people to champion positive mental health messages in communities.
International websites
The IOCDF, and OCD-UK and OCD Action are well established advocacy organisations in the United States and United Kingdom. There is so much valuable information on these sites; it is definitely worthwhile to browse and checkout the various links to specific issues and advice.
Articles, podcasts and videos
The OCD Stories podcast Real stories that inspire and educate those with OCD. There are interviews with therapists and with people living with OCD. The stories include weekly podcasts, usually released on a Monday, and personal written accounts , usually about 45 minutes to an hour long. This is an excellent resource and covers a wide range of OCD topics. There are many episodes to listen to and you might not know where to start!
You might like to start with searching some of these episodes in the first instance as they provide some general information from authors of some books listed in the Resources section and therapists, e.g any episodes from Johnathan Grayson, Steven Phillipson, Jon Hershfield, Joan Davidson, Chrissie Hodges, Rose Cartwright ( nee Bretecher), Lily Bailey, Mark Freeman, Russ Harris and Sean Shinnock.
They are truly inspiring and uplifting, offer so much hope and you are sure to have many “ahh hah’ moments.
For parents of children with OCD, therapist Natasha Daniel’s website Anxious Toddlers to Anxious Teens provides practical advice.
Books
You might like to approach your local library to order some of these.
There are so many books to choose from but the ones we have listed here include some accessible books as well as some which cover treatment and the various themes of OCD. These are some of the books which are referred to in the OCD Story podcasts when Stu Ralph, the founder, seeks good references from speakers on his podcast. Please read previews or reviews by visiting either Book Depository, Goodreads or Amazon.
Abramowitz, J.S 2021 The Family Guide to getting over OCD. Reclaim your life and help your loved one. New York. Guildford Press
Baer, L. 2001. Imp of the mind. New York. Penguin.
Challacombe, F., V.B. Oldfield and P. Salkovkis. 2011. Break free from OCD; Overcoming Obsessive Compulsive Disorder with CBT.Great Britain. Ebury Publishing.
Davidson, J. 2014 Daring to challenge OCD: Overcome your fear of treatment and take control of your life using Exposure and Response Prevention.Oakland CA. New Harbinger.
Grayson, J. 2004. Freedom from Obsessive –Compulsive Disorder; a personalised Recovery Program for living with Uncertainty. New York. The Berkeley Publishing Group.
Harris, R. 2007. The Happiness Trap. Australia. Exisle Publishing.
Hershfield, J. 2021 When a family member has OCD Tantor and Blackstone Publishing.
Hyman, B.M., T.Dufrene. 2008 Coping with OCD.Oakland, CA. New Harbinger Publications.
Hyman, B.M., and C. Pedrick. 2010. The OCD Workbook: your Guide to Breaking Free from Obsessive-Complusice Disorder, 3rdEd. Oakland, CA. New Harbinger.
Lebowitz, E.R 2021 Breaking Free of Child Anxiety. Oxford University Press
Purdon, C,. and D. A. Clark. 2005 Overcoming Obsessive Thoughts: How to Gain Control of your OCD. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger
Schwartz, J., and B. Beyette. 1997. Brain Lock. New York. Harper Perennial.
Sedley, B. 2015. Stuff that Sucks. Great Britain. Robinson and Stuff that’s Loud co-authored with Lisa Coyne.
Winston, S.M, and M.N. Seif. 2017. Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts: A CBT based Guide to getting over frightening, obsessive, or disturbing thoughts. Oakland CA: New Harbinger.
Memoirs and Fiction Books
Adam, D. 2014. The Man Who Couldn’t Stop. London. Picador
Bailey, L. 2018. Because We Are Bad. OCD and a Girl Lost in Thought. Surrey. UK. Canbury Press
Bretecher, R. 2016. Pure.London. Unbound
Green, J. Turtles All the Way down. 2017. Dutton Books.
Toten, T. The Unlikely Hero of Room 13b
Youtube Clips, Documentaries and Movies
There are also many videos available: a couple are listed below.
Unstuck An OCD Kids Movie – documentary about kids with OCD
Living with me and my OCD by Claire Watkinson