Danny Whittaker from the My Own Worst Enemy website, an online support community for anyone battling with depression or anxiety related mental health issues, recently interviewed our patron, Professor Paul Salkovskis. The result was this fascinating insight into OCD and Paul's views on everything from how he likes to refer to OCD, to views on causes and family involvement.

In our April members magazine, Compulsive Reading we published our summary of the 'Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC)' annual report of IAPT data for the year 2014/15. In our summary we reported that the data showed big differences in recovery rates for people seeking treatment for OCD with local IAPT services across England.

For those that don’t know what IAPT is, the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies initiative was introduced across England to improve access to psychological therapies, such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). Each region has its own local IAPT service commissioned by local Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG) and all with their own local name (i.e. Let’s Talk, Healthy Minds, Talk Liverpool).

The ‘Psychological Therapies Annual Report on the use of IAPT services’ is published annually and presents a picture of activity in IAPT services and of the people that used them. The report published both national data and local CCG data broken down to reports on recovery data per condition, including OCD.

Last week NHS Digital (the new name for the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC)l) published the new and their fourth annual report of IAPT data for the 2015/16 period. We will once again review it and summarise on it in our next OCD-UK members magazine and on this website, however for those interested in stats, here is the top line from the report ( for all conditions treated, not just OCD):

As OCD Awareness Week concludes we want to thank each and every one of you that got involved in some capacity. Whilst we may not have received lots of media coverage this week we want you to rest assured all of your efforts HAVE reached people, and HAVE made a difference.

As one of our friends commented this morning, #OCDWeek is as much about informing undiagnosed sufferers as it's about educating the wider public of OCD and that is exactly what OCD Awareness Week achieved.

This week we have had both emails and telephone calls from people who now know they have OCD all because they saw OCD Awareness Week content somewhere, and we also know that people have reached out to those sharing #OCDweek content, and we don’t know, but it’s just possible those people now feel less isolated.

This week is OCD Awareness Week, and each day we will be publishing a different account of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

As we conclude OCD Awareness Week, we promote the international flavour of the week, with this fascinating story from Audrey in Canada.

I am writing this article in the hopes that someone will read it and feel hopeful that they will be able to gain the upper hand in their battle with OCD.   

I am a 59 year old College teacher, happily married for 35 years, with 2 young adult kids.  I have battled OCD in one form or another for the past 34 years, with intermittent episodes during my childhood and adolescence. I would like people to know that there isn't a single approach to winning this war (and yes sometimes it has felt like a war). I believe that the answer lies in consistent, near-daily challenges to the behaviours and thoughts that underlie this condition.  In my case, medication has proven an invaluable help.  I have been fortunate to benefit from the expertise of excellent psychologists.  An extremely supportive husband has been at the foundation of my near-recovery. 

As a young child, I was obsessed with the need to be honest.  I remember having to keep track all day of things which I needed to confess to my Mom. The theme of honesty revisited me during my adolescence, though it was an intermittent struggle. The tenacious onset of OCD really occurred in my mid 20s, about one year after our marriage.

This week is OCD Awareness Week, and each day we will be publishing a different fact about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). We encourage our followers to copy the text and/or image and retweet/post across their social media pages.

OCD Awareness Week - Fact 7
OCD is no joking matter, the D in OCD means it is a disorder that causes great distress and disruption to a person's life.

This week is OCD Awareness Week, and each day we will be publishing a different account of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

During OCD Awareness Week we have heard some honest and candid stories from some brave people, some of whom have commented that they know they will always have to live with OCD. So we asked an OCD specialist to talk to us about recovery and if people will always have OCD. Professor Paul Salkovskis shares his view...

What to expect after good quality treatment for OCD: Recovery, Cure, Resolution or just learning to live with it?
By Professor Paul Salkovskis (Professor of Clinical Psychology and Applied Science, Department of Psychology, University of Bath).

For OCD Awareness week 2016, I have tried to briefly tackle this tough issue at the request of OCD-UK. This is just a short piece written quickly, so please forgive me for the various things I have undoubtedly left out, and for the misunderstanding which may arise from my clumsy phrasing. 

This week is OCD Awareness Week, and each day we will be publishing a different account of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

As we conclude OCD Awareness Week, Bronwen tells us how important it is that through OCD awareness week even more people are made aware of the effects of OCD, understand treatment options, and fight to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health.

As is the case with many other people diagnosed with OCD, I can look back and see signs of OCD from the age of 15 years old, however it would be five years later I managed to get a diagnosis. Also similar to other individuals, I find that my OCD peaks and troughs as a result of life events and stress. My OCD may be considered a type of magical thinking, where most of my obsessions relate to preventing harm to others and the world around me, and my compulsions involve me repeating actions until they have been done on a safe thought or until it “feels right”. As OCD worsens, the more space it takes up- at times I find it difficult to get dressed, go up and down stairs, walk in the street, turn on and off light switches, and type on a computer.