Whenever I make a presentation based on my first book I get an opportunity to focus on both anti-bullying as well as mental health issues. I found it very effective in removing mental health stigma especially for school age children, which I believe is very important.
During the presentation I talk about my struggle with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and how I persevered to take back control of my life. Here are some of the facts I talk about:
- My most crippling OCD symptoms consisted of my mentally picturing images of bullies who had tormented me in the past. These images would soon become further attached with an unspeakable irrational fear… that they would force me to hurt my loved ones if the images were not ‘neutralized.’
- For the first five years of my mental illness, my single greatest struggle and obstacle became simply telling someone what was going on. However, I was finally able to discuss this openly and got started with the therapy and medication that I needed to defeat OCD. At last, I was able to change my pessimistic perspective, willingly engage in cognitive behavioral therapy and begin to make significant progress with my illness. Eventually, I was able to derive a lasting positive impact after spending only 16 days in Rogers inpatient treatment facility.
- Today, I am thrilled to report that I have finally regained control over my once ever so incapacitating mental illness! Though my ordeal has now reached this much better point, there are millions of others out there who continue to struggle hard with similar issues on a daily basis. I am here to tell those fellow sufferers that this does not have to be their long-term fate. Just as I took back control of my life, they too are capable of freeing themselves from the powerful clutches of this or similar mental health issues.