Do We Have to Shake Hands?
OCD Organizations and Support Groups
Updated 19-Sep-2016
OCD Organizations
Related Organizations
Support Groups
OCD Organizations
![[IOCDF Logo]](iocdf.gif)
- International OCD
Foundation (IOCDF) - the OCD organization
(formerly the Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation, or OCF). Visit and
join!
Affiliate organizations:
- OCD Northwest Arkansas
(Arkansas, USA)
- OCD Sacramento
(California, USA)
- OCF of the San Francisco
Bay Area (California, USA)
- OCF of Jacksonville
(Florida, USA)
- OCD Mid-Atlantic -
encompasses Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. (and perhaps
some other states as well).
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
of Massachusetts (Massachussetts, USA)
- OCD Foundation of Michigan
(Michigan, USA)
- OCD Twin Cities
(Minnesota and North Dakota, USA)
- OCD New Jersey
(New Jersey, USA)
- Central New York OCF Affiliate
(New York, USA)
- OCD New York (New York, USA)
- Philadelphia Affiliate of
the National OC Foundation (Pennsylvania, USA)
- OCF of Western Pennsylvania
(Pennsylvania, USA)
- OCD Texas (Texas, USA)
- Awareness Foundation for OCD
and Related Disorders - founded by (among others) James Callner,
maker of the films The Touching Tree and The
Risk. The foundation offers workshop speakers, films/videos,
and books; some
video
clips are available on the web site.
- Children of Compulsive
Hoarders (COH) - "Opening hearts, minds, and homes with
understanding". This is an incredible site with numerous resources,
including state-specific information (e.g., therapists) for the USA
plus Canada and the United Kingdom.
- Clutters Anonymous
(CLA) - uses a 12-step program (similar to Alcoholics
Anonymous) to overcome hoarding. "Our fellowship is based on
suggestion, interchange of experience, rotation of leadership
and service. CLA is not affiliated with any public or private
organization, political movement, ideology, or religious doctrine ..."
- Long Island OCD Support
Network - will boost your spirits just by reading the home page!
(Long Island, New York, USA)
- Obsessive Compulsive
Anonymous - a 12-step program for OCD sufferers.
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Association of Dallas/Fort Worth - sponsors various activities,
publishes a newsletter, and runs a support group. (Dallas/Fort Worth,
Texas, USA)
- Obsessive Compulsive
Information Center - "a resource for information on obsessive
compulsive disorder and related disorders ... more than 15,000
references on file". You can contact the Center's librarians to
perform literature searches, to get bibliographies, and to get copies
of individual articles. Simple queries are free; more complex ones
cost money. Guide
books and
information
packets are also available for sale. OCIC is part of the
non-profit Madison Institute of
Medicine.
- OCD Chicago - is an excellent
source of information on OCD, including these
series of
guides:
- Relief From OCD - A Guide for People with Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder
- Overcoming OCD: A Guide for College Students
- How to Help Your Child - A Parents Guide to OCD
- Got OCD? - A Guide for Teens
(Illinois, USA)
- Our Courage
Defines Us (OCDU) - an "informational and support source
for sufferers" of OCD. The organization publishes a quarterly
newsletter; the articles from the first issue are on-line. The web
site also features a message board and chat room; you need to register
(for free) in order to access them.
- Peace of Mind Foundation -
was founded by Elizabeth McIngvale, who suffered from severe OCD, was
helped by cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), was the first national
spokesperson for the Obsessive Compulsive Foundation (now IOCDF),
and is "a skilled public speaker, and highly sought after guest for
national television and radio programs." Despite debilitating OCD,
Elizabeth is obviously a high achiever. The foundation's web site
is rich with information about types of OCD, treatment, and other
resources. The site features many videos of OCD sufferers and
their families. (A 2005
article
about Elizabeth and her family.)
- Anxiety Recovery Centre
Victoria - formerly the "Obsessive Compulsive and Anxiety
Disorders Foundation of Victoria (OCADF)". The center offers
information about different anxiety disorders, community education
seminars, information about support groups, a small on-line store
from which you can purchase books and videos, and, supposedly, an
on-line discussion forum which, even after registering, I could not
access.
- Ligue TOC - "La Ligue
Trouble Obsessionnel Compulsif a pour mission: d'informer sur la
maladie [et] de soutenir la criation de groupes d'entraide."
(Brussels, Belgium)
- Fondation
Québécoise pour le Trouble Obsessionnel-Compulsif
(in French or
in English, Quebec
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Foundation) - is a non-profit
organization that seeks "to inform the public at large about OCD, and
to offer support to those with OCD and their families." The web site
features FQTOC/QOCDF's annual newsletter on-line, conference DVDs that
you can order, articles, personal testimonies, a lengthy list of OCD
books, OCD videos that you can order, and lists of support groups and
OCD professionals. What really amazed me is that all of the newsletters
and most of the articles and personal stories are available in French
and English translations - somebody went to a lot of trouble!
The newsletters are full of information and recognizing their own
obsessions and compulsions in the personal stories will help OCD
sufferers realize they are not alone. (I haven't even gotten to
the articles yet.)
- OCD Centre Manitoba, Inc.
(OCDC) - an active OCD organization that gives educational
presentations, operates support groups, promotes research, and
more. (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)
- Ontario Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder Network - "Providing information and connections to
people with OCD and their families."
- Phobies-Zéro -
"est un groupe de soutien et dentraide pour les personnes,
jeunes ou adultes, souffrant de troubles anxieux incluant
le trouble obsessif-compulsif. Les services s'adressent
également à la famille et aux proches."
(Sainte-Julie, Quebec, Canada)
- OCD-foreningen (OCD
Foundation in Denmark) - "OCD er en tilstand med tilbagevendende
tvangstanker og / eller tvangshandlinger." A new, but growing, site
with information, contacts, links, and more - all in Danish.
- OCD - Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder - "en samling af Litteratur og Links". Useful
reviews of both Danish and English books on OCD.
- OCD Vriendenkring - "Met OCD gaat het
om een ziekte waarbij de kwaliteit van het leven in aanzienlijke mate
wordt aangetast door angst, dwanggedachten en rituelen. Voor mensen
die hier aan lijden of er meer over willen weten is deze club."
- Shefa Association of OCD -
"is an all volunteer non profit charity which is based on the therapy
experience of the therapists and cured people within 15 years." This
website has an English-language description of the Association. I
don't know if this organization is still active. I used to have a
different web address (URL) for the organization's Persian-language
website, but, checking the Internet Archive, that site appears to
have been hacked. "Shefa" is an Arabic (and Persian?) word for
healing or recovery.
- OCD Ireland - "[A] national
organisation for people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and
the related disorders of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and
Trichotillomania".
- Ossessioni e
Compulsioni - "Benvenuto in OSSESSIONIeCOMPULSIONI.IT, il sito per
trovare le risposte alle tue domande sulla psicoterapia delle ossessioni
e delle compulsioni."
![[ANANKE Logo]](ananke.gif)
- Norse OCD forening, Ananke
(Norway) - "Brukerorganisasjon for folk med tvangslidelse (OCD) og
deres pårørende".
- Foreningen for tvangslidelser/OCD -
"Ny forening for deg med tvangslidelse, pårørende og
interesserte". ("New association for those with OCD, their families
and interested".) Discussion forum, information, links, and a really
cool OCD banner on its pages! (Norway)
- Svenska OCD-förbundet
Ananke (Sweden) - "är en rikstäckande ideell
förening som grundades 1989 med uppgift att stödja
människor med tvängssyndrom (OCD) och närliggande
diagnoser som Tourettes syndrom, trichotillomani
(tvångsmässigt håravryckande) och dysmorfofobi (BDD)
och deras anhöriga." ["Swedish OCD Association Ananke is a
nationwide non-profit organization founded in 1989 with the task of
supporting people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and related
conditions such as Tourette syndrome, trichotillomania (compulsive
hair pulling) and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) and their relatives."]
![[OCD Action Logo]](ocdaction.gif)
- Anxiety Care - is a
London, England charity that "tries to help people suffering from
anxiety disorders to plan, initiate and carry through their own
recovery programmes alone, with the support of charity volunteers,
or under the direction of a mental health professional". The web
site has a chat room and an interesting, although somewhat out-dated,
article
on OCD.
- OCD Action - is a
London-based "national charity for people with Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder (OCD) and the related disorders such as Body Dysmorphic
Disorder (BDD), Compulsive Skin Picking (CSP) and Trichotillomania".
Judging by its extensive web site, OCD Action appears to be the British
equivalent of the U.S. Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation. (OCD Action
was formerly known as Obsessive Action.)
- OCD-UK - "is the leading national
charity, independently working with and for people with
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) ... Our objective is to make a
positive and meaningful difference in the everyday lives of people
affected by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, by providing accessible and
effective support services and by campaigning for improved access and
quality treatment and care for people with OCD."
Related Organizations
- American Academy of Child and Adolescent
Psychiatry (AACAP) - has information on
OCD
in children and adolescents.
- Anxiety Disorders Association of
America - has a lot of information on anxiety disorders, including
an overview
of OCD, an OCD
self-test,
information on how to get
help, and
information on
helping
a child with OCD.
- Family Village - a
"Global Community of Disability-Related Resources", has a concise
page of
links to organizations and information relating to OCD.
- First Steps to Freedom -
offers various services for people with OCD and other anxiety disorders.
- HealthyPlace.com
OCD Center Homepage - is a mental health site offering information,
E-mail lists, chat rooms, etc.
- Internet Mental Health -
"a free encyclopedia of mental health information" designed by a
Canadian psychiatrist. The
OCD page
has an on-line diagnosis feature; separate, comprehensive
bibiliographies of research papers on diagnosis, treatment, and cause;
and a number of on-line, OCD articles from the Harvard Mental
Health Letter.
- Invisible Disabilities
Association (IDA) - "Unfortunately, people often judge others
by what they see and often conclude a person can or cannot
do something by the way they look. This can be equally
frustrating for those who may appear unable, but are
perfectly capable, as well as those who appear able,
but are not."
- Messies Anonymous - helps
messy and disorganized people.
- National Anxiety
Foundation - has information on
OCD.
- Tourette Syndrome Association
Support Groups
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Meetup
Groups - lists 45 discussion/support groups in 4 countries (as of
August 2011) that deal exclusively or in part with OCD.
("Meetup is the world's largest
network of local groups. Meetup makes it easy for anyone to organize
a local group or find one of the thousands already meeting up
face-to-face.")
I shamelessly grabbed links to many OCD support groups from the following sites
(and from other sites on a smaller scale):
- Attacking
Worry, Anxiety, OCD, and Depression - meets at two locations on
different days. (Petaluma and Santa Rosa, California)
- Bay Area OCD Support Group
(Obsessive Compulsive Foundation of the San Francisco Bay Area) -
meets once a month. (Daly City, California)
- Berkeley OCD Support
Group (Berkeley, California)
- OCD Center of
Los Angeles - conducts a weekly OCD support group and a weekly
support group for family members. (Los Angeles, California)
- Parents Helping Parents -
has a support group for parents of children with OCD. (Palo Alto,
California)
- Lori Riddle-Walker, MFT - runs
an OCD support group in San Diego County. (Escondido, California)
- Sacramento
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Support Group - meets twice a month.
Scroll way down to the section, "Local Groups", to find the OCD group.
(Sacramento, California)
- San Francisco
OCD - is a support group that also has an on-line discussion group.
(San Francisco, California)
- Fairfield County OCD
Support Group - is "a professionally assisted OCD support group
organized and moderated by two prominent mental health professionals."
The group meets once a month and is open to both OCD sufferers and
their families and support givers. (Fairfield, Connecticut)
- OCD
Support Group (Mental Health Association of Connecticut) - meets
twice a month. (Wethersfield, Connecticut)
- Yale OCD
Support Group - meets bimonthly and is sponsored by the Yale School
of Medicine's OCD Clinic. (New Haven, Connecticut)
- NeuroBehavioral
Institute Support Groups - sponsors several support groups:
- Adult OCD
- Children/Adolescent OCD
- Tourette Syndrome
On the calendar page,
scroll down below the calendar for information on the OCD
support groups. (Boca Raton, Florida)
- Obsessive-Compulsive
Disorder - meets bimonthly and is open to adult OCD sufferers and
family members. (Fort Lauderdale, Florida)
- OCF of Jacksonville runs
(i) an OCD support group and (ii) the Mothers of
Obsessive Compulsive Children & Adolescents (MOCCA) support group.
(Jacksonville, Florida)
- GOAL
OCD Support Group - inspired by Dr. Jonathon Grayson's GOAL
(Giving Obsessive-Compulsives Another Lifestyle) program, "is a
professional-assisted group, meaning that while a therapist is present
at every meeting, the group is run by members." The group is sponsored
by Dr. Charles Mansueto's Behavior Therapy Center of Greater Washington.
Although primarily intended for BTC patients, up to 5 non-BTC people
are welcome at meetings. (Silver Spring [White Oak], Maryland)
- Obsessive-Compulsive
Disorder Support Group - lists people to contact for more
information about the group. (Wheaton, Maryland)
- OCD Foundation of
Michigan - lists supports groups in Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Farmington
Hills (tricholtillomania), Grand Rapids (see Anxiety Resource Center
below), Lansing (see the Delta Presbyterian Church below), Lapeer, and
Royal Oak.
- Anxiety Resource
Center - co-founded by Alan
Carriero of OCD Grand Rapids, has a number of support groups
that meet in the oldest standing firehouse
(pictures)
in Michigan:
(i) Teens with Anxiety, and the following Adult groups -
(ii) Compulsive Hair Pulling,
(iii) Adult OCD,
(iv) Compulsive Hoarding, and
(v) General Anxiety.
(Grand Rapids, Michigan - click the easy-to-miss "contact us" link
in the upper right-hand corner of the page for the exact address)
- OCD
Support Group - appears to meet the third Monday of each month at
the Delta Presbyterian Church.
No contact information is provided, so be sure to check the church's
Upcoming Events
Calendar beforehand. (It does meet the third Monday
of the month and contact information can be found in the OCD Foundation
of Michigan's Support
Group Listing.) (Lansing, Michigan)
- OCD Twin Cities
Support Groups - lists these support groups:
- Eagan Support Group (Eagan, Minnesota)
- Support Group for Adult Children, Spouses & Friends of
Clutters/Hoarders (Edina, Minnesota)
- Twin Cities OCD Support Group (St. Paul, Minnesota)
- East Metro/Stillwater Parent Support Group (Stillwater,
Minnesota)
- Adult OCD Group (Dinkytown, Minnesota)
- SupportWorks®
Online - lists OCD support groups in Mecklenburg County, North
Carolina. The main page
appears to be a good resource for people wishing to start their own
support groups. (Mecklenburg County, North Carolina)
- Philadelphia Affiliate of the
National Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation - has 3 support groups:
- G.O.A.L. -
is an adult support group structured around Dr. Jonathan Grayson's
"Giving Obsessive-Compulsives Another Lifestyle" (GOAL) idea.
- F.O.C.U.S. -
is a support group for "Families of Obsessive-Compulsives:
Understanding and Sharing". The group is not just open to family
members, but to anyone who is in a supportive role for an OCD
sufferer.
- Teen - is
a support group for teens with OCD and related disorders.
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
- Philadelphia OCD
Interest Group - organized by
Monnica Williams, Ph.D.
(Dr. Williams moved to Kentucky in 2011.) The group "is for people
with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and people with an interest
in OCD." You can sign up for E-mail alerts about the next scheduled
meetings. (Philadephia, Pennsylvania)
- OCD Texas -
maintains a list of support groups in Texas.
- Austin Center for the Treatment of
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - provides meeting space for the
following support groups:
(Austin, Texas)
- OCD and Anxiety Support
Group in the Dallas Fort Worth DFW Area - meets twice a month and
welcomes family and friends. (Bedford, Texas)
- Dallas/Richardson/Plano
OCD Support Group - is a professionally-led group, meeting once a
month, which is open to OCD sufferers (teens to adults), family,
friends, and parents of children with OCD. (Dallas, Texas)
- OCD
Support Group - is a professionally-led group sponsored by the
Houston OCD Program
(Houston, Texas)
- New
Braunfels OCD Support Group - is sponsored by
River Bend
Counseling and meets once a month. (New Braunfels, Texas)
- Action on
Mental Illness (AMI-Québec) - has separate OCD and hoarding
support groups, each open to both sufferers and caregivers. The web
page has a calendar of the monthly meetings and the times and locations
of the meetings. (Montreal, Quebec, Canada)
- Fondation
Québécoise pour le Trouble Obsessionnel-Compulsif
(Quebec Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Foundation) - lists some support
groups under the web site's aide/help heading
(French,
English).
Also, the organization's on-line annual newsletters have a section
on support groups
(French,
English)
that may includes groups not listed on the web site.
- Kitchener-Waterloo
O.C.D. Support Group (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada)
- Newmarket OCD Support
Group - has suspended its meetings, but it will continue to
provide support to and act as a resource for both existing members
and for new individuals seeking help. (Newmarket, Ontario, Canada)
- OCD Centre Manitoba - conducts
several support
groups. (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)
- OCD Niagara - is
"a volunteer group dedicated to providing a support and information
network in the Niagara Region for those with OCD, their family and
friends." (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada)
- OCD Ottawa - is actually
two support groups: the OCD Support Group and the OCD
Parent/Spouse/Caregivers Support Group. Aside from its support group
function, the web site includes useful articles about OCD and its
treatment. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada)
- Phobies-Zéro:
groupe de soutien pour troubles anxieux et obsessif-compulsif -
"Les groupes de soutien et d'entraide de Phobies-Zéro
permettent d'offrir des outils et des approches positives, de
développer de nouvelles attitudes et de nouveaux comportements
qui aident les usagers à envisager la vie sous un angle nouveau
et ainsi favoriser une croissance continue."
(Sainte-Julie, Quebec, Canada)
- Regina OCD Support Group
(Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada)
- Saskatoon OCD
Support Group (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada)