OCD Resources and Information For The Media

Accurate Information About OCD

Information for Media

OCD Chicago Media Center

For more information, contact OCD Chicago at 773-880-1635 or email our Executive Director, Ellen Sawyer, at esawyer@ocdchicago.org

OCD Chicago’s Media Center provides current, accurate information for journalists about obsessive compulsive disorder. We hope the resources on our web site will help you in your coverage of OCD and its frequently debilitating effects.

OCD Chicago is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people who suffer with OCD—a resource to individuals, families, mental health professionals, educators, clergy and the media. For more information about OCD Chicago, click here.

Resources for Journalists

You may have noticed that some television programs and movies feature characters depicted as suffering from OCD. These people are often portrayed as “quirky” comedy figures. Anyone who actually suffers with this disorder is painfully aware that OCD is no laughing matter.

Journalists are in a unique position to influence how OCD is perceived by the public. We are committed to helping you understand OCD and how it affects the lives of millions of people in the U.S. and around the world.

In addition to our web site resources, you can download or request a copy of any of our OCD Guides for adults, parents, teens and college students. Download now or request printed copies.

Listed below are some links to frequently requested information. You can get more detailed information on our web site in the OCD Facts and Individuals sections for adults, and the Parents section for parents helping adult children, young children and teens.

To arrange for an expert interview, please contact our Executive Director, Ellen Sawyer: 773-880-1635 or esawyer@ocdchicago.org. Our experts include members of our Board of Directors and our Scientific Advisory Board.

Frequently Requested Information

About OCD

Who is affected by OCD

OCD Treatment

OCD in the News

News stories are regularly updated on our web site.

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Information for Media

Expert Perspectives

The Boy Who Didn’t Know Who He Was (Teen Obsessions About Homosexuality)

When I first saw Michael, I couldn’t help but notice just how depressed he looked. The red-haired strongly-built seventeen year-old could hardly hold his head up. His parents said that he had been really down for several weeks, but no one knew why, and he wasn’t helping either. He couldn’t seem to come up with the energy to get to school, and preferred to stay in his room, alone. He had been a good student, enjoyed playing on his school’s lacrosse team, and was heavily involved in student government. At a time when he should have been thinking about choosing colleges to apply to, he seemed to have dropped out of life.