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Articles by Amy Jacobsen
A Community Comes Together!
Thank you to everyone who came out for our day of events over OCD Awareness Week. It was a special opportunity to connect as a community!
We were excited to send cards that were made during our events to Not Alone Notes. These cards will be distributed to individuals with OCD in residential treatment programs. We’re grateful to help this amazing organization! Learn more here, https://www.notalonenotes.org.
Thank you for a fantastic OCD Awareness Week!
OCD Kansas Board
OCD Awareness Week Events 2019
We are excited to announce several upcoming events that will be held over OCD Awareness week!
Mark your calendars for Saturday, October 19th, when we will host events for all ages.
Events for Adults with OCD and Related Conditions
- 11 AM – 12 PM @ Homer’s Coffee Shop
- Join us for a relaxed time of socializing in a reserved section of the coffee shop. We will have cards available for you to write a note of support to others with OCD to remind them that they are not alone.
- 3 PM – 4 PM @ Central Resource Library
- Connect with others during an OCD Support Group facilitated by local OCD specialists. Pre-registration encouraged at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/adult-with-ocd-support-meeting-tickets-72195728367
Events for Kids and Teens with OCD and Related Conditions
- 1 PM – 2 PM @ Central Resource Library
- This will be a special time for youth (6-12 years old) to meet other kids, share about their experiences and create a card of support for other kids with OCD. Pre-registration encouraged at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/kids-corner-ocd-kansas-awareness-week-2019-tickets-72064672375
- Parents will be encouraged to stay and connect with one another in an adjacent area.
- 2 PM – 3 PM @ Central Resource Library
- Especially reserved for teens (13-17 years old) to connect with others affected by OCD, share about their experiences and create a card of support for others as a reminder that they are not alone. Pre-registration encouraged at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/adolescent-ocd-awareness-event-2019-tickets-72193052363
Register Now for the 2019 1 Million Steps 4 OCD Walk!
Register now! This year’s 1 Million Steps 4 OCD Walk will be held on June 8th at Roe Park in Overland Park, Kansas! Help us raise funds and awareness for OCD and related disorders! When you raise $25 on your personal fundraising page, you will receive an official Walk T-shirt when you check in at the event!
June 8th at Roe Park
Check-in at shelter at 9:45 AM
Walk the trails together from about 10:15 – 11 AM
Click here to learn more and register!
https://support.iocdf.org/event/overland-park-1-million-steps-4-ocd-walk/e229019
Gather your gang and let’s walk together!
Announcement: Behavior Therapy Training Institute Scholarships for Licensed Psychotherapists
Are you a clinician hoping to improve your training in the treatment of OCD?
OCD Kansas is very excited to announce that we will be offering two scholarships to licensed psychotherapists in the State of Kansas and adjacent areas to attend a future Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI). The BTTI is affiliated with the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) and provides state-of-the-art education and training in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for OCD. We recognize that Kansas is in tremendous need of mental health professionals who are trained and able to treat those affected by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
Please consider applying today and/or share this announcement with potential candidates! Continuing education credits are offered to attendees, and the scholarship will offer you a reserved spot at a future BTTI.
To learn more about the BTTI program, please use the following link:
What you can expect from the training:
• A faculty of some of the most experienced and well respected clinicians in North America
• A working knowledge of Exposure and Response Prevention, the evidenced-based treatment for OCD
• Case supervision
• A rewarding experience with an intimate classroom environment of 30 colleagues
What to do to be considered for the scholarship:
• Submit a ʻLetter of Intentʼ to register with the BTTI addressing all bulleted points below
• Describe your current practice including the types of clients seen and primary treatment philosophy and methodology
• The reasons for your interest in the training program, including why you should receive a scholarship for the BTTI
• The current geographic location of your practice with address and telephone number
• Limit your letter to two typed pages and submit it to OCD Kansas no later than May 31, 2019
Candidates who are chosen will receive a scholarship of $1000. Professional membership with the IOCDF is required and at the candidateʼs expense. The first $400 is to be allocated strictly for BTTI tuition. The remaining $600 is for travel expenses only. This is limited to lodging and airfare. At the conclusion of the BTTI, the candidate is required to submit a copy of their Certificate of Completion and all receipts for permissible expenses. Reimbursement will occur at that time. OCD Kansas reserves the right to interview all prospective candidates. Those who are chosen can expect to receive registration instructions by mail.
We are very excited and proud to offer this unique opportunity to mental health professionals in Kansas! The need for qualified OCD therapists is urgent. For questions, contact OCD Kansas at ocdkansas@gmail.com.
PLEASE DONʼT DELAY. APPLY TODAY!
Sincerely,
OCD Kansas Board
OCD Gamechangers in Denver, Colorado
Be sure to check out the 2nd annual OCD Gamechangers event being held in Denver on March 2nd! This amazing event, hosted by Chrissie Hodges, will include numerous speakers and bring individuals from around the world together to share about their lived experience with OCD.
Click the link to learn more and register today!
Research study announcement!
From the UCSD OCD Research Team:
The UC San Diego OCD Research program is investigating different treatment approaches for individuals with OCD and we are interested in YOUR opinion! So if you have OCD and 25 minutes to spare then please fill out this survey regarding treatment preferences and effectiveness!! It is completely anonymous and will be helpful for future treatment development. Survey can be found here: https://alliant.
OCD is Like Playing Baseball
A young adult from Kansas wrote the following article about his experience with OCD and how baseball can serve as a helpful analogy. We are delighted to share his article, which was originally published in the Spring 2018 edition of the IOCDF’s OCD Newsletter.
Learn How to Play to Win by Ethan
To have OCD is to have a struggle. Everyone who has it knows this to be true. Whether it’s the struggle over germs, religion, or the perfection of a space around us, OCD can be so overbearing at times that it makes us as individuals feel powerless against it. Often times when battling OCD we feel hopeless, as though there is nothing we can do to avoid the pain and anguish that we experience daily from the illness.
For those of us who live with OCD, we know that it’s not a game. However, when thinking what it’s like to fight against it, I have found it useful to use the analogy of one particular game – baseball. I am not really a sports person, but I have come to enjoy baseball, and I think that of all the games that exist it is the one that relates most to our struggle with OCD. Although Jumanji would elicit stress levels closer to those of OCD, the game of baseball has similarities that can help us to understand how to conquer our struggles, while also being a game that many of us associate with fun.
The analogy starts like this: Baseball is life, the pitcher is OCD, and the ball is an obsession. Every time we come up to the plate, the ball is thrown at us, whether we want it to come or not. When the pitcher throws the ball it is like an obsession coming toward us, something we have to shake off and hit away from us. Batting is done by performing exercises that help us to fight the disease, and just like batting, this takes practice. If we grow lazy, or we decide we are no longer going to try to hit the ball to the best of our ability, the pitcher gains the upper hand.
Now understand that batting is not a compulsion. In fact I would compare the urge to perform a compulsion to the urge to hit a ball that is not in the strike zone. We want to hit the ball away, just like we want OCD to leave us alone, but by doing compulsions, or swinging at a bad pitch, we are taking the easy way out and misguiding our efforts. Swinging at bad pitches just leads to strikes and gives the pitcher more power. As with resisting the urge to swing, there are times when we have to resist the urge to do a compulsion in order to successfully hit the ball.
Unfortunately, once we get good at hitting the ball, once we get stronger in our mindfulness and our OCD exercises, the pitcher may notice and start throwing us curve balls. These curve balls are obsessions or worries that are new and scary to us, or they are old worries that have been presented to us in a new way. It is at these times that we must learn new strategies – new ways to hit new pitches – in order to stay one step ahead of the pitcher, or one step ahead of OCD. It’s when we become afraid of these new pitches that we are unable to hit the ball effectively. This is why we must keep practicing in order to help ourselves and our teammates.
The fact of the matter is that baseball games end, but OCD does not. To many, this may seem an unfortunate truth. However, both in learning to play baseball and learning to manage OCD, we develop skills that we can utilize in other areas of our lives. We can learn to practice, to become more resilient, and to challenge our fears. I believe that if we learn to conquer OCD and to overcome our struggles, it equips us to do anything in life. Although it may not always seem so, our struggles can be our blessings. OCD has made me stronger than I ever thought I could be and, in time, I believe that everyone can learn to fight it – to play this game until it is nothing more than a small nuisance in our head, a tool to help us grow stronger, and a means to an end in the greater scheme of things. So, keep playing the game, keep your eye on the ball, and try to have fun while you’re at it. Because just like baseball, OCD isn’t our whole life or our whole identity, it’s just a small part of it.
Finding effective treatment for OCD
Okay, so you have OCD. Now what?! You may be feeling overwhelmed by searching the internet for therapists without an idea of where to start or how to pick. Fear not, we’ve compiled some great resources to help guide you!
Treating your OCD doesn’t mean a lifetime of talk therapy; Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), specifically Exposure with Response/Ritual Prevention (ERP), is effective and time-limited. However, not every therapist out there practices ERP, and it’s important to find someone who is going to give you the most effective treatment out there. Check out the following articles for some specific how-to’s as you take this next step.
- International OCD Foundation’s Guide on “How to Find the Right Therapist” https://iocdf.org/about-ocd/treatment/how-to-find-the-right-therapist/
- Jon Abramowitz, Ph.D. on “How to Find Help for OCD” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/all-things-ocd/201011/how-find-help-ocd
- BeyondOCD.org on how to “Find the Right Therapist” http://beyondocd.org/information-for-individuals/choosing-a-therapist
Ready to look for help?
Check out https://iocdf.org/find-help/ to find a therapist today!
Not sure what OCD treatment involves? Not sure what level of treatment is right for you? Check out the International OCD Foundation’s page to learn “How is OCD Treated?” https://iocdf.org/about-ocd/treatment/
2018 OCD Awareness Week Events!!
- 9 AM – 11 AM Activities for Youth (under 18) and Parents
- Youth art activity
- Youth also are welcome and encouraged to bring other art, writings, etc. about OCD to share
- Followed by a screening of “Unstuck: An OCD Kids Movie”
- 2 PM – 4 PM Activities for Adults and Loved Ones
- Q&A and education session with Panel of OCD Specialists
- Followed by “OCD Social” for attendees