Product Description

As many as 1 in 30 adults and 1 in 100 children currently suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It is much more common than was previously thought, with up to 2 million people being affected in the UK. Sufferers experience intrusive thoughts and anxieties resulting in compulsive behaviour that can seem bizarre to those that have no experience of the disorder. Why would someone feel compelled to touch the four walls of a room in a clockwise fashion as soon as he enters it? Why would someone look at an object 3 times with his right eye, followed by his left eye?OCD sufferers are aware that these rituals are excessive and irrational, but they cannot control their behaviour. They are plagued by intrusive thoughts that they cannot banish from their mind and are often tormented by these thoughts which they find profoundly disgusting or upsetting. The cause of OCD is still not known, but it does appear to run in families and can occur together with other disorders such as depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders and Tourette s syndrome.Dr Frederick Toates, an experimental psychologist relates his own experiences of obsessional neurosis and his successful quest for a cure in th

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45503 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Review
"A well-written, enjoyable and thought-provoking book" British Journal of Clinical Psychology

Joan Bond, Director TOP UK
...helpful both to those who suffer from the condition and to those who wish to help but struggle to understand.

About the Author
Dr Frederick Toates is a distinguished psychologist and Reader in Psychobiology at the Open University in the UK. He is the author of several books including Biological Psychology: an integrative approach. He suffered from OCD for many years, before overcoming it by means of the approach explained and made simple in this book.

Customer Reviews

An unusual and valuable guide
This is a remarkable book. Its subject matter is obsessive compulsive disorder but it is unique in being written by a primary author who is both an expert on the disorder and a sufferer at one and the same time. Psychologist Dr. Frederick Toates, who writes this book with his wife Olga, shows unusual courage and honesty in his detailed autobiographical account of his own suffering. He follows this by a detailed analysis of the different treatments available for the disorder, often enriching discussion of their effectiveness by accounts of his own experience with them. He also analyses the nature of the condition – what is it and how does originate - as a brain malfunction, for example, or an effect of early socialisation? The combination of expert knowledge and direct personal experience is rich and powerful. The book is written in a readable, accessible style. It should be seen as essential reading for sufferers and also other experts working on the problem. I would also highly recommend it to GPs (who are likely to encounter this condition among some of their patients) and to both general readers and to psychologists who are interested in unusual psychological states. This new edition has the added dimension of studies contributed by Dr Olga Coschug-Toates of creative people who suffered from the condition (they range from Darwin and Ibsen to Glen Gould). A comprehensive and exceptional account of a surprisingly common psychological problem!

Outstanding and insightful.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder by Fred Toates is a truly wonderful book. Having been struck down by this mental illness, I sought to find out as much about it as possible. To a sufferer of the disorder, this book could not fail to provide comfort and enlightenment. I suddenly became aware that I wasn't alone in my suffering. Whilst reading the book (in less than two days!!), I kept on saying to myself, "That's me!!".... "I do that..." "Oh my God, this is uncanny"
It was as though the book was written FOR me at the same time as being ABOUT me.
The first section of the book is devoted to an autobiographical account of the authors life as a sufferer of the affliction himself. He is very honest and emotion comes through in his words. The rest of the book concerns aspects of the disease itself, case studies, tried and tested methods of treatment and a very interesting chapter about famous people through history that suffered from OCD.
In conclusion I say this. Just to read this book in itself is to take many steps forward to combatting the anxiety and debilitation that OCD brings to the sufferer.
This book MUST be read.

Out of the Closet Disorder - Compulsive Reading!
Darwin, Dickens, Satie, Brian Wilson...at least we're in good company. And of course, Dr Frederick Toates, a truly brave and incisive author who articulates his own story and those of many others in a professional yet wholly human way. Even those who have not personally experienced OCD for themselves cannot help but empathise with the ostensibly peculiar illness that it is. The seemingly bizarre thought processes and equally disturbing behavioural rituals sometimes associated with these.

Dr Toates digs deep and is not daunted by what he uncovers in the analysis of this still frequently misunderstood disorder. This is absolutely essential reading, not only for those who suffer from OCD, but particularly for all those related to or living with sufferers. The overrall message of the book/study is perfectly realistic and optimistic without glossing over the often horrendous symptoms of the illness. It further offers various techniques and approaches for the sufferer to experiment with in trying to better understand their thoughts, behavioural patterns and themselves. The book seeks to root out possible environmental influences in the shaping of the obsessive mind whilst not dismissing the slightly stale 'serotonin' thesis of other theorists.

It is clear Dr Toates believes there is a further universe of possible explanations yet to discover in the study of this obscure yet widespread disorder. I have suffered from the obsessive symptoms of OCD ever since I was about 11. I was only diagnosed with OCD by the time I was 26. I am now 29. For all those years like many sufferers, I often thought I was simply barmy, or suffered from something far more severe. 'Nerves' never seemed a precise enough explanation for me. I have since learnt that I suffer from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, and cannot describe the relief I first felt when I was diagnosed with this: a brochure given to me by a therapist told stories of people with uncannily similar obsessions to me. At last my illness had a name! Though the effects were and still are severe at times, at least I have a better understanding of the illness which has shaped so large a part of my life and work.

Reading Dr Frederick Toates' book 'Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder' will, for those OCD sufferers yet to be diagnosed, no doubt have a similarly liberating effect.