Helpful Books for OCD

[Megs_Mom]

Medical intervention has been the best tool that we have found for our daughter, and we are so hopeful that it will continue to work. We use long term Azith, and have Prednisone in the fridge for an emergency exacerbation.

 

We also find that using ERP therapy (Exposure & Ritual Prevention) has been very useful as a coping tool. When I did not understand OCD, I was very frustrated, and felt that I no longer had the parenting ability to help my child get through the day or to overcome challenges. Our entire house was in crisis, and I felt like I could not discipline or reward her without falling into a trap. There are books that are very helpful in understanding the OCD component that has suddenly invaded your home. I regret the times that I punished OCD behavior without understanding what it was. We are much happier in our house when we know why a behavior is happening, illogical or not. So here are some books that we found very helpful just to understand the new life we found ourselves living for a while - I'll add links to buy, but you should be able to find them at your library if you wish - the links will give you the accurate title and author!

 

For parents to read, to understand the wide scope of behaviors that OCD can cause (seriously, these are both awesome books - pick one!):

 

Aureen Wagner's "What to do when your child has Obsessive Compulsive Disorder" http://www.amazon.com/What-when-Child-Obse...6985&sr=1-1

Tamar Chansky's "Freeing your child from OCD" http://www.amazon.com/Freeing-Your-Child-O...6655&sr=1-3

 

To read with children, to help them understand what is happening in their brains:

"What to do when your brain gets stuck" - a fabulous workbook for kids and parents - lots of helpful tools: http://www.amazon.com/What-When-Brain-Stuc...5922&sr=8-1

Aureen Wagers "Up and down the Worry Hill" http://www.amazon.com/Down-Worry-Hill-Chil...6985&sr=1-3

 

If you want to do ERP therapy at home for mild to moderate OCD:

John March's "Talking Back to OCD" http://www.amazon.com/Talking-Back-OCD-Pro...6655&sr=1-2

 

And if you are a nutty obsessive mom like me, and you are frustrated by therapists & really want to know what they are supposed to be doing with your child in ERP therapy, then you can read the rather dry book by John March "OCD in Children and Adolescents: A Cognitive Behavorial Manual" http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=sear...+march+ocd'

 

For kids with sensory issues, which seems to go hand in hand with PANDAS, I suggest "Sensational Kids" http://www.amazon.com/Sensational-Kids-Chi...7202&sr=1-1 or "The Out of Sync Child". http://www.amazon.com/Out-Sync-Child-Recog...7202&sr=1-2

 

For rage issues, try "The Explosive Child" by John Ross. http://www.amazon.com/Explosive-Child-Unde...7300&sr=1-1

 

If you hate to read, try just reading "what to do when your brain gets stuck". It is such a great workbook for kids and adults of any age.

 

And if you want some immediate gratification today, the website about OCD by OCDChicago is fabulous. http://www.ocdchicago.org/. They have a great section for educators, stories about kids, etc.

 

If you keep reading about OCD, but are not sure that is the issue for your child, I also really like Aureen Wagners book "Help & Hope for Anxious Children". It explains a lot of different types of anxiety and may help you to see your child's challenge more clearly. http://www.amazon.com/Worried-No-More-Anxi...6985&sr=1-2

 

Anybody have any others that were helpful along the way?

[dcmom]

Thanks, as always Meg's mom.

 

I can tell you, "What to do when your brain gets stuck" is really helping my dd, age 9. She was resistant to discussing pandas or ocd untill we started that book. Now she always asks to do a second chapter at night. While she is not really fighting the ocd yet, she is starting to be able to identify it a bit.

 

It didn't help dd, age 6 during her episode. She was just too far gone to work on it. Now that her sister is doing the workbook- she is asking- so I will start with her soon!

 

Just ordered two of Aureen Wagner's books!

[smartyjones]

i am a huge fan of "The Explosive Child". even though i believe my son's explosiveness to have a medical cause, this book gives good tips that seem to help us get him under control. it was very helpful for me over the summer in giving me a plan of something to do to keep me from getting almost just as explosive.

 

i also like "Freeing Your Child From Anxiety" by Tamar Chansky. as i've written here before, my son is not forthcoming in his reasons for things - now he can say if there is a reason or it's 'just because'. usually it's 'just because' something is out of order or not what he expected. i get very hung up on the lack of thoughts when reading how to help from an OCD perspective. this book has good practical solutions without delving into the reasons and thoughts.

 

meg's mom - you've given such an extensive list - is there a way to bookmark this at the top with the other threads?

[Megs_Mom]

bump - I have to log off, there are so many new people, can someone bump all of Buster's posts on PANDAS FAQ and Diagnostic chart?!

[Megs_Mom]

There is another book that I think someone else has recommended before, that I wanted to add to this list. Lee Baer's "Imp of the Mind" is a great book about obsessive "bad thoughts". It's a great read for parents. Here is the amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Imp-Mind-Exploring-E...6684&sr=8-1

 

Also, here is the link to Explosive Child, which is recommended above - and is a great addition to this list for parents: http://www.amazon.com/Explosive-Child-Unde...6969&sr=1-1

[Megs_Mom]

bump

[LNN]

Also want to add "Tiger, Tiger, Is It True?" by Katie Byron http://www.amazon.com/Tiger-Tiger-True-Questions-Smile-Again/dp/140192560X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296128736&sr=8-1.

 

It's not ERP specific - more a story for young children on how to do a reality check and not let irrational worries take over.