Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-
Compulsive
Disorder

Twenty-First Century
Medical Library

By Bruce M. Hyman, Ph.D.
and Cherry Pedrick, R.N.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder was published in 2003 by Millbrook Press Inc. We’d like to tell you more about this valuable new resource. Below is a look at the book jacket from our book.

Amy hated to get her hands sticky or dirty. As a little girl, art class was especially hard to deal with. She couldn’t understand why they had to work with paint, glue, paste, and all the other messy things. After art class she went to the bathroom to wash her hands, but they never felt clean. After being back in class ten minutes she’d feel like her hands were sticky again, then be off to the bathroom. As a teenager, Amy’s obsessions seemed to worsen.

Jason was afraid of harm coming to others, not so much by doing something to harm them, but by not doing something. When he went though doorways, he touched the right side of the doorway, then the left, then the top. If he didn’t do this, he thought harm could come to a family member. He knew all this didn’t make sense, but he did it anyway, “just in case.”

For most people, cleaning, worrying, and collecting are just optional activities that aren’t given much thought. Sometimes overdoing it a little is bothersome to ourselves or others, but no big deal. For people with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, these behaviors seriously interfere with daily living and can cause great distress.

Long ago, most mental health professionals thought obsessive-compulsive disorder was untreatable. But thanks to decades of research into the disorder, there is now hope and help for people struggling with OCD.

Bruce M. Hyman, Ph.D., LCSW is in private practice in Hollywood/Fort Lauderdale, Florida and director of the OCD Resource Center of South Florida. He specializes in the treatment of adults and children with OCD and other anxiety disorders. Cherry Pedrick, RN is a registered nurse and a freelance writer living in North Las Vegas Nevada. They are the coauthors of The OCD Workbook: Your Guide to Breaking Free from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Cherry Pedrick is also the coauthor of The Habit Change Workbook: How to Break Bad Habits and Form New Ones, The BDD Workbook: Overcome Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Body Image Obsessions, and Helping Your Child with OCD: A Workbook for Parents of Children with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.