Avo

Hi Tez, Sounds like a great opportunity well done. I think from my point of view the way ocd is made fun of could be worth raising. The people who say they are ' a bit ocd ' and those that think it is in someway a quirky almost positive trait . And don't realise how debilitating it can be and how much distress it can cause.

Well done Ashley. I Like the hoody - I have a similar one, your clearly a trend setter like me

It says all the ones with cat pictures on are now out of stock

Had a quick look - I will have a more thorough look later Ashley . GBG - how many of the cat ones did you?

I have your book PB and have been aware you had a film being made around it. The trailer looks very good! when would it be released? specifically in the UK?

Ocd still seen as the mental health disorder it's perfectly OK to have a pop at. The bake off is very popular so alot of people will have heard that and it helps rubber stamp the accepted view of ocd. I admit I didn't watch it myself but do you think this is an issue the charity could raise with channel 4 , with a view to at least apologising ?

Good luck for tomorrow Lost, you can do it!

That's a very positive post gbg , it's great to hear how well your doing at the moment.

The theme is very much alive for me, its under control - to a point but I know I still perform compulsions around the topic. I am much better than I was say 10 years ago, I was really restricted by it in terms of what I did, routes I took - in one of my previous jobs I had to drive past a secondary school on my commute to work. I actively thought about looking for another route at one point as I thought somehow i was going something inappropriate by daring to drive past it. this caused me genuine distress. I could list other things that I did - which seem extreme and stupid now but I suppose that's what OCD pushes you to. I am much better now by a long way but it still gets you sometimes I am aware I still restrict myself to a point over certain things. I would say I am 75% recovered on this theme still have work to do. I have the song its not like he would make any money out of me listening to it, and I suppose you have to remember the other members of the band were not involved in these vile crimes. Cognitive distortion is a big part of my thinking . Thanks for your advice I do appreciate it.

I have the OCD theme of worrying if I am one myself I know I am not but its the thing I fear. I suppose like OCD attacking your core values - so that plays into that scenario, it really takes very little for me to make such leaps.

Yes that's a good point GBG, l am not sure I am brave enough at the moment but I can see it would be a good ERP exercise.

Some wise words dksea thanks for your response, I think its a mixture of OCD and moral reasons. I have also been ruminating quite a lot - which is my biggest compulsion across all my themes.

Hi Gemma, Thanks for your response in truth I would probably have carried on listening to the song had this not happened. I don't listen to my I Pod that much but do avoid this song when I do. So I suppose technically I am practising avoidance? It is them GBG! the song in question is Last train home. Its been niggling at me on and off for a while now. I take your point about the artist not being the art and as you say many books could be questioned if you looked into the morality of the Author. I think due to the crimes committed and the subject matter it has worried me. its kind of playing to one of my themes. If he had been convicted of assault for example I would probably not have stopped listening. I suppose I worry I am somehow condoning his actions if I carry on listening? Assault if of course wrong too but I put it as less bad than his actual crimes. If it were another member of the band? it maybe would make a bit of a difference but I still probably would struggle with my trying to work out what I should or shouldn't do.

Hi all, Can you help me on the following ? I have a song on my I pod which I have always liked. A few years ago it was proven that the lead singer was a paedophile. It was a very distressing story. From maybe 5 years ago. I have never listened to the song since but it's still on my I pod. My question is. Should I have deleted it as soon as this story broke. I have thought this but never got around to it. However is deleting it some kind of avoidance ? I am honestly not sure which is right in this. Thanks for your help. Avo

I agree with it being best not to try and reply to this person during a bike race, he probably wouldn't have been very receptive and as Gemma says in this case its about basic manners and social awareness. - he could surely have seen from the outfit that Ashley was riding for a charity. I do wonder why OCD is seen as the poor relation of mental health disorders. My wife thinks one of the issues around OCD is it is seen as 'quirky' almost 'cool' and as a result it seems ok to mock it, and subscribe to the stereotypes . I think people see OCD almost as 'harmless' due to these stereotypes, people - or at least decent people would not think of making a Joke about Bipolar disorder or Schizophrenia at least to the face of someone representing a charity of that type as they consider rightly that these illnesses carry some kind of gravitas / seriousness.? is it a case of OCD being less threatening to an individual? i.e if you were stuck in a lift with someone and said you have Bipolar for example that person may feel uneasy as a result? maybe they would worry that a person with Bipolar may be some kind of threat? Say you have OCD in the same situation then the person may feel awkward but not necessarily threatened? Sorry if I am subscribing to stereotypes myself - these are not my personal views on conditions such as Bipolar but it is what I have picked up from speaking to people and reading things over the years. That's where education comes in but as mentioned it has to be the right circumstances.