mental illness

Books About OCD Written by Authors with OCD

| GretchenGales
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Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) affects 1.2% of the U.S. population and around 2% globally. Many people associate OCD with being organized and excessive cleanliness. In reality, OCD is categorized by obsessive thoughts and behaviors that can manifest in many different ways. For me, I have on on-and-off again fear of death and compulsions related to avoiding death. (I talk a lot about this in my essay in The Ear.) For others, this could mean unplugging every device from an outlet before leaving the house to prevent it from burning down.

No matter what it looks like, listening to the experiences of people with OCD is essential for understanding just how difficult the condition can be. Below is a growing list of books written by authors with OCD about OCD. The latest version of this blog was updated in June of 2022.

Nonfiction and Memoir

The MAn Who Couldn’t Stop by David Adam

Part memoir, part scientific investigation, Adam uses his own experiences with OCD (over 20 years of it) and stories from around the world, Adam bravely explores the darkest parts of our mind and questions what exactly defines mental illness.

Under My Bed and Other Essays by Jodi Keisner

While not explicitly about OCD, Keisner’s essay collection addresses the roots of women’s fears, starting with her own ritualistic behaviors. The essays are a combo of both literary and experimental pieces for a unique reading experience. You can preorder the paperback version now through the University of Nebraska Press website.

Because We Are Bad: OCD and a Girl Lost in Thought By Lily Bailey

A lyrical memoir on Bailey’s experiences throughout childhood with OCD. Convinced from a young age she was capable of murdering others with “incorrect” thoughts and excessive, repetitive routines, the memoir progresses into a story of persistence and recovery as Bailey ages. This book is often recommended for fans of Girl, Interrupted and Brain on Fire.

Obsessed: A Memoir of My Life with OCD by Allison Britz

This memoir is perfect for a young adult, Britz setting the stage during her sophomore year of high school. After a dream convinces her that she will get brain cancer, she does everything in her power to prevent it. Soon, her avoidant behaviors prevented her from stepping on cracks and touching her own personal belongings. This memoir tells an interesting perspective about how a girl who “has it all” had to fight to get her life back and save her future plans from disintegrating. The book acknowledges that finding help and healing are very possible.

Poetry

Living in the Brambles: A little book of poetry about my personal experiences with OCD, Depression, and Anxiety by Suzi French

This debut, multi-faceted collection from French includes both form poetry such as haiku and traditional rhyming poetry. A quarter of the sales go towards MIND and OCD UK.

Captive: A Poetry Collection on OCD, Psychosis, and Brain Inflammation by Madeline Dyer

Dyer’s OCD was a result of Autoimmune Basal Ganglia Encephalitis, an unusual disease that causes brain inflammation. The collection details her time in therapy while experiencing both psychosis and OCD. While it is a collection of poetry, this can also count as a poetic memoir about Dyer’s experiences.

Fiction

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

John Green is widely-known for his YA romance and adventure novels alongside his quirky YouTube and TikTok content. Turtles All the Way Down has received a lot of positive praise for its portrayal of OCD and has connected with many YA readers across the globe. Like all of Green’s books, the premise rides on a grand adventure and once-in-a-lifetime event. This time, it’s a billionaire and a grand cash prize. The novel is a perfect exploration of OCD as well as the nature of relationships when suffering from the condition.

OCDaniel by Wesley King

King wrote OCDaniel based off of his own childhood experiences with OCD. As a result, the book is an empathetic look at a 13 year-old keeping his OCD a secret for as long as he can. With the help of a new friend, he becomes more confident in himself. Though OCD symptoms can manifest as early as 7 or 8, King notes in his interview with the CBC that he received pushback about talking about OCD with younger and middle grade children for being “too early” for them to know about mental illness. I don’t know about you, but being told I shouldn’t read something makes me want to read it more. As someone with OCD, I can assure you I would have benefitted a lot more from knowing about OCD earlier than later. So make sure you pick up this book for yourself and any middle graders in your life.

Anthologies

Check Mates: A Collection of Fiction, Poetry, and Artwork About Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder by PEople with OCD

A true representation of OCD means acknowledging that no one case is the same. This anthology features creatives with OCD and their work about OCD. There are a variety of pieces throughout the book to explore the condition, so if you’re looking for broad representation, this collection may be the answer.

Young Adult Books with Mentally Ill Characters (Without Being All About Their Mental Illness)

| GretchenGales
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Representation of all kinds of humans is important. In books, there’s been a push to have more characters with accurate representations of mental illness. All too often, books will rely on stereotypes or depict a character with mental illnesses without doing proper research. Stay faaaaaar, far away from those.

On the other hand, there are also plenty of books that make a character’s mental illness the entire focus. While there is nothing inherently wrong with accurate, well-written books with mentally ill characters, sometimes you just want an interesting plot without mental illness being the primary focus. Or you’re curious to see how a mental illness looks when characters have managed it with coping skills or medication. Either way, it’s worth seeing more mental illness representation in new and accurate ways.

Where are the YA Characters with Mental Illnesses That Don’t Dominate the Plot?

Young adult books are often guilty of this. It isn’t wrong or awful to have books that focus on mental illness. Actually, it’s helping push more productive discussions of mental illness into mainstream conversation.

But teens also need books that have characters managing their conditions without it dominating the entire plot.

Thankfully, more books are coming onto shelves and filling that demand. It’s hard to know the accurate number of books with the combination of mainstream and self-published options available, but finding books featuring teens with mental illnesses is getting easier every day. Here are some of my own suggestions when it comes to young adult books mentally ill characters…without mental illness being the focal point of the story.

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

This suspenseful, dark academia-themed murder mystery book is perfect for readers looking for a main character with anxiety and panic attacks, but still manages to stay on the case until the very end (warning, it’s a cliffhanger).

Without spoilers, Stevie’s passion for true crime takes front and center in this book, but does not ignore her anxiety. Her experience is very relatable and shows that her entire life isn’t dominated by her panic attacks while being realistic about her struggle. The rest of the book is primarily focused on the mystery at hand and developing the characters…AKA, potential murderers.

Horrid by Katrina Leno

Several characters in the book struggle with anger issues, including the main character Jane. It’s also implied that Jane has pica, or a compulsion to chew or eat objects that are not food. Her target tends to be pages of books or flowers.

Though her anger and grief over a family member’s death make up a large part of the novel, her illnesses are more there as a side note as opposed to the primary focus. The novel leaves room for questions about how much Jane’s conditions may have affected her actions.

Like Truly Devious, we’re left on a cliffhanger-like ending, but there doesn’t appear to be any plans for a sequel. It seems more like an ambiguous ending where the reader decides what really contributes to the events.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

The Six of Crows Duology reinvented what fantasy could look like. Bardugo has received well-deserved praise for her fantasy series featuring six astounding characters. Besides tackling ableism from learning disabilities and physical disabilities, Bardugo also masterfully weaves in characters with implied PTSD.

As Alaina Leary wrote in Brooklyn Magazine, “Bardugo writes in multiple perspectives, which does a great deal of justice to her characters’ lived experiences.” This gives all of the characters much more nuance and room to be their whole selves, emphasizing that while disabilities (mental or physical) are a big part of their lives, there is still much more to be seen in their character and the story itself.

Want to see more books like this added to the list?

Keep an eye out for updates and feel free to recommend any books you’ve loved that fit the criteria!