New Channel 4 series "Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners"

[Biccy]

I'm in too x

[Claire1704]

Me too! X

[Guest legend]

me please

[Mel1971]

watching the latest instalment cos of my complaint with ofcom .. the bleach queen is back on and surprise surprise another couple of hoarders!!!

[Northern Star]

I haven't got the energy to watch tonight's "entertainment". They need to realise that life with OCD can be hell, can even be a death sentence for some people. Even some of those paid to help don't "get it"; what hope is there for these morons making this programme? Actually, if they wanted to "get it" then they could; it just needs a little empathy, willingness to listen and some compassion, ironically features that are normally found by the bucket-load in OCD sufferers.

[Mel1971]

i agree wholeheartedly Jo, its very draining just watching this rubbish, ofcom dont seem to be doing much and i dont really think i can watch much more of this drivel

xxx

[Northern Star]

Their viewing figures have already dropped, hopefully more and more people are switching off every week . If they won't listen to reason, or to human stories, then maybe they will listen to their viewing figures.

[Claire1704]

Well there's an hour of our lives we'll never get back. We've basically just spent the last hour watching people do housework and throwing stuff away.

But my boredom was occasionally broken by feelings of intense annoyance when:

In the first 10 minutes the body builder guy (Mark?) was described as 'bizarre' and 'unusual'. I had the same issue with my curtains a couple of years ago, so thanks for that.

The way the terms 'obsessive' and 'compulsive' were interchanged.

There was no suggestion that Mark has had any help for his symptoms, or if he wanted it, or the reason why he has the compulsions he does.

That woman he was helping (I wasn't interested enough to remember her name) saying "we're both OCD."

Cheyza (?sp) - the narrator referred to her several times as a "germaphobe" but she never referred to herself in those terms at all...

Also Hayley had a diagnosis of OCD in 2007 - there no suggestion of any help she'd had. In fact there was no suggestion that any of the people involved who had a diagnosis of OCD could have help. But of course if the programme makers realised that a person with OCD should have help to rid themselves of unhelpful behaviours, and not encourage them, then this programme wouldn't have been made at all.

Of course if you'd been affected by any of the issues in this programme you can go to their website. Can I just ask - what issues did they actually discuss? Dust allergies? Stopping yout cat doing it's business on your carpet?

Then above all there was that incredibly condescending voice over "Experts believe that blah blah blah....." I consider myself an expert in OCD. I believe they should be ashamed of themselves. And embarassed.

*steps down off saopbox*

[Guest orange socks]

again i feel that i have no right to comment on this thread as i still havent watched more than 5 mins of the programme nor read all this thread , but i was just wondering if anyone knew if the participants of the programme felt happy with the content or if they felt exploited and misrepresented ? ?

would have thought that if they didnt feel happy with it all maybe that would have added weight to your campaigne and helped the cause. can those people be contacted to help the fight or were they happy with it ?

i snooped on ''the other ocd website'' shock horror and someone came looking for support after 'seeing herself' in the documentary so it helped at least 1 person - yeh!!! at least there was 1 !

but ye....going back to fighting the cause if the participants were on board too that would help with the fight

(apologies if my post simply doesnt apply or make sense - not seen programme- read thread....or had any sleep )

Edited February 28, 2013 by orange socks

[Ashley]

After three episodes, and over 5 million viewers combined, just one person seeking help is a shocking indictment of how badly channel 4 have got this. Last night channel 4 when talking about the bodybuilder instead of educating people with OCD (or in this case maybe OCPD) to challenge their behaviour to improve their quality of life, they were reinforcing faulty beliefs and all along these people have been passing on those faulty beliefs to others, with their own problems.

This morning, this was posted on our Facebook page.

i have a new boss in my school she making my life hell with her ocd
i can not keep the school clean as she likes it can i have a clener thats has ocd to come to my school and clean it i am in the surrey area j6 m25

I am willing to bet this guy saw the programme and thinks those of us with OCD go around cleaning properties.

I am making one final attempt with Channel 4. This is part of the email sent today, if there is no reply I need everyone to help us in a formal complaint process to ch4 and Ofcom.

My aim in emailing firstly Alison, and now yourself was to try to give Channel 4 the courtesy and the opportunity to listen to our concerns and hope that you would respond in a way that gave me confidence that you had actually heard our concerns, but Alison was very dismissive, and I am yet to get a response from yourself.

I would welcome your response by the end of the day (Thu 28th Feb) because I feel the damage being caused to awareness about OCD by your programme means I should now be considering a formal complaint. I was hoping to avoid that by engaging those at channel 4 responsible for the programme in meaningful conversation to ensure no future programmes would be commissioned and that lessons had been learned.

[Guest orange socks]

is there any point approaching any tv shows like that one chris evans does .......the one show is it ? (as just an example....sure there are others which may be more suited) -could that be an idea - you know to publicise the truth about ocd - and dispel the myths that people feel channel four are giving out ?

or would that just publicise the channel four programme and make things worse?

just a thought?

i mean ....actually go on the show to voice concerns and get the truth out there

or radio shows for that matter - radio 1 , radio 2

i do feel there is no such thing as bad publicity - especially if we can get an even bigger audience listening to the truth about what ocd really is off the back of the channel four programme ....we could use it as a platform

any point too uniting with other mental health charities to collectively voice concerns ? i'm thinking big here

Edited February 28, 2013 by orange socks

[Ashley]

any point too uniting with other mental health charities to collectively voice concerns ? i'm thinking big here

Time to change and Mind have spoken to Channel 4 to echo our concerns I am told, but until they are public and vocal, OCD-UK and the OCD community stand alone in being the only ones to be vocal about this.

[Guest orange socks]

Time to change and Mind have spoken to Channel 4 to echo our concerns I am told, but until they are public and vocal, OCD-UK and the OCD community stand alone in being the only ones to be vocal about this.

i've been talking to one of the chaps from rethink about something else both today and yesterday as i do media awareness for them .....wondering if i should ask him then if rethink can do any more ?

Edited February 28, 2013 by orange socks

[Northern Star]

I am making one final attempt with Channel 4. This is part of the email sent today, if there is no reply I need everyone to help us in a formal complaint process to ch4 and Ofcom.

Please let me know if/how I can help at all with this when the time is right.

[Ashley]

Well, no reply, not even a courtesy, 'I have received your email and will get back to you tomorrow' from the commissioning editor, so I guess we have no choice but to make our complaint formal. Will see if my inbox has a response in the morning.

[Claire1704]

How do these people sleep at night?

I emailed C4 the other day and got the standard "we're sorry you've felt the need to complain and have logged your complaint blah blah blah...."

I've just submitted the following to Ofcom:

"Having got no response from the programme maker I appeal to you. As an OCD sufferer I was appaled by the inaccurate representation of a chronic disabling illness. It was treated as something that is just a bit of a quirk. Yesterday one person in the programme was referred to as "bizarre". It misleads people into thinking its just about people liking to be clean. Colleagues at work have been laughing about the disorder today, which has made my personal life exceptionally difficult. Channel 4 have made a mockery of their own pledge to raise awareness of mental illness. In particular I draw your attention to a comment made by a participant in the programme yesterday - the swimming pool owner "if we get a cleaner they have to be OCD" he laughed. OCD is awful, and can lead to suicide, as channel 4s own programme a few months ago highlighed. Please please do something about this before mine, and others' lives are made even more difficult."

Ash, Let me know if there's anything else I can do.

Claire

[LondonTown]

It makes my blood boil everytime I read the updates on this thread!

I have received 2 identical standard replies saying my complaint is logged! And, one from the Disability Exec that Ashely and Paul S also received and have still yet to hear back from Ofcom and that was two weeks ago!

So here is my reply that I have sent back to C4 Enquiries, The Disability Exec, Ofcom, Betty, My Local MP and the Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt!!

"Hello

Please see the trail of resonses to my email below. I am unclear as to what has happened to my compaint? I can't find any information on your website about your formal complaint procedure and what happens after "Please be assured your complaint has been logged and noted for the information of those responsible for our programming" ?

I am presuming, like any other organisation there is a protocol to follow up a complaint. I have worked in the NHS and as any nurse will tell you we are acutely aware of the complaints procedure which terrifies most staff. Is my complaint being treated in the same way? I obviously want there to be a follow up / investigation. I'm afraid none of the responses I have received have dealt with my complaint. Quite frankly it is an absolute insult (added to injury) to receive the standard reply below (from two different C4 staff I must add)

"Thank you for contacting Channel 4 Viewer Enquiries regarding OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE CLEANERS.

We are sorry to hear that you find this programme disgraceful and misrepresentative of people with OCD. Please be assured your complaint has been logged and noted for the information of those responsible for our programming.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact us. We appreciate all feedback from our viewers; complimentary or otherwise"

My complaint has "been logged", what exactly does that mean? In my line of work as a Mental Health Nurse, if I or any of my colleagues had practiced in a way that caused any harm to an individual we work with there is a procedure to be followed, which would lead to an investigation and a disciplinary depending on the severity.

Why, therefore is my complaint not being treated in the same way - C4 has probably caused untold damage / harm with this absolutely dreadful series 'obsessive compulsive cleaners' to potentially thousands of people and yet you have just "logged my complaint".

I'm afraid that just is not acceptable - I really don't care if you are in the TV business or not, you are people just like me and everyone else and you should be answerable to the harm you are causing by continuing to air this utter misrepresentation.

I don't want standard replies or justifications for the programme - no amount of justification will make this programme OK - I want to know what you are going to do about it? I would also like to know how you can justify this to your committment to the Time to Change Campaign which I am a Voluntary educator for!

This programme must cease to be aired immediately - it is a national health risk. My parents won't support me after 25 years of OCD because they think it's just like this terrible programme - do you know how that makes me feel? Do you have any idea how unbelievably painful OCD can be - it has ruined my life - BUT I intend to keep fighting it and with the support of wonderful charities such as OCD UK and it's members, I and lots of others will get better. What we certainly don't need, is programmes like this which do nothing but cause harm.

I absolutely want to know what is being done and what is happening to my complaint?

I have copied in my local MP and I have also copied and pasted this email to the Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt via his online Department of Health email and I am still awaiting a response from Ofcom"

Don't know what else to say except lots of swear words out loud in the safety of my own lounge LT

Edited March 1, 2013 by LondonTown

[carolj]

Hadnt thought of the local MP, or Jeremy Hunt. My MP helped me get my son's benefits sorted out several years ago and of course they all want our votes! I'll message them later today.

Ive also sent a message to 'Time to Change' to see what they are doing. (Sorry if someone has already done it, this thread is getting quite long now!)

[Mel1971]

I am still absolutley astounded at what that person put on the facebook page??? It just shows how damaging this programme is and how much its set awareness back.

I wish they would get a team of psychiatrists in, trained in dealing with ocd and ocpd and properly diagnose the parcipants we have seen so far - i bet you that a lot would have ocpd or just a bit of control issue due to some past trauma - even the ones that supposedly have ocd have no real high anxiety which is strange, i have seen my daughter and ex husband so anxious they are literally stuck in one position and cant move, their breathing is altered, their pupils dilate and they feel dreadful - i saw none of this in any of the programmes! i know im not a doctor but i have lived with someone with ocd for over 20 years

i havent heard anything from ofcom although they did say i wont hear for two weeks, but whatever i can do to help Ash, let me know

i understand what you mean hayley but i guess we shouldnt have to defend ourselves, we are trying to be a voice of reason and education against a programme that has blatantly misrespresented and discriminated against us - grr sorry hon, this programme winds me up! xx

joe public are ignorant of the true facts and are just taking on board what the programme is telling them about ocd, that shows from comments on facebook and tweets etc unfortunately

Edited March 1, 2013 by Mel1971

[Guest orange socks]

aww i understand mel xx

to be honest i havent watched the programme and i really cant bear to...... its so hard living with ocd ( as i know you know )that to watch it on tv as well - its just something that i dont wanna do - i never watch programmes on ocd - especially not ones with me in

but ye.....i can see how upsetting this programme has been for the ocd community - i vote we contact other programmes as i suggested above and we go on there and tell them the truth about ocd-

i'll do it - i'm not afraid to ....... thats how we put them straight i guess...... not really sure if letters to the 'powers that be' will reach the millions that have been misinformed to re-educate them - i think a more direct approach is needed if we want to re educate .

you might get an apology from the 'powers that be' but that isnt gonna re educate people is it ? the 'powers that be' are slow in replying so that the programmes that have been made have all been aired - then they'll apologise and they wont make another series anyway coz the viewing figures are dropping - so they're just biding their time til the programme has run its course

(my uneducated and misinformed opinion- probably wrong anyway )

p.s sorry if i am wrong above - i am waffeling on when i dont know half the facts ....and i am so sad to see how this programme has upset everyone - it makes me very sad )

Edited March 1, 2013 by orange socks

[Mel1971]

never uneducated or misinformed hon

lorna's friends mum is on next week, so dreading that and I know she doesnt have ocd!

[carolj]

As a cleaner Mel?

[Guest orange socks]

never uneducated or misinformed hon

lorna's friends mum is on next week, so dreading that and I know she doesnt have ocd!

oh gosh...really - might watch that episode then.....

i'm sure that if i'd of watched the programmes i would have been burning with passion and anger too ! - its horrible being misunderstood and mis represented isnt it !

[Mel1971]

Yes Carol, she was seen in the opening credits hoovering the dog, she was also seen at the end of this weeks programme folding loo roll - you will recognise her she has a broad west country accent! tall, slim with brown hair - her names Penny.

" I get a sense of satisfaction and pride in my cleaning and never find it a chore" from Pennys interview on the website - just smacks of ocd doesnt it - NOT!

I do wonder if C4 have tweaked her interview because a lot of whats on there about ocd being complex etc is not what she would say, she has always said she loves cleaning and shes a bit 'ocd' about it - she tried cbt according to the interview but didnt work - so i wonder if its ocpd that shes got - which means ocd centred CBT wouldnt work.

Edited March 1, 2013 by Mel1971

[Ashley]

Fuming... more to follow.