News

OCD Awareness Week (#OCDweek) is a worldwide event that serves to dispel myths about obsessive compulsive disorder, break the stigma around mental illness, and provide education about the disorder and how to support those affected.

For the over 200 million people worldwide living with OCD, public misconception can prevent them from accessing the timely, effective treatment they need to move from suffering to thriving.

This #OCDweek, whether you share facts, tell your own story, or otherwise support OCD Awareness Week, you are making a powerful difference.

We are excited to announce that we are holding a “Meet and Greet” event on Thursday, September 26, 2024. This event aims to raise awareness and educate the community about OCD. This will be a wonderful opportunity for the affiliate to meet with people who wish to learn more about OCD. This event is ideal for individuals and families living with OCD, as well as family members and supporters of those suffering from OCD.

The event will be held at:

Acton Public Library
Grady Thomas Room
60 Old Boston Post Road
Old Saybrook, CT 06475

Time: 6:00pm to 7:30pm

This event is free. Refreshments will be provided.

Please RSVP to [email protected] if you’re interested in attending.

Download the event flyer.

Link to the survey: https://mun.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0IfpyDnwpATBnJs

Click here to download the study’s flyer.

We are presenting a colloquium – “Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Getting Help and Support for Recovery” – on Wednesday, October 9, 2024 at Sacred Heart University (SHU) in Fairfield, CT. Christina J. Taylor, Ph.D., OCD Connecticut Clinical Board Advisor, and OCD Connecticut board members will discuss the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of OCD. The presentation is sponsored by The Human Journey Colloquia 2024 Series and is free and open to the public.

The panel will be held at 2:00 PM in the Loris Forum in the Martire Building at SHU, 5401 Park Avenue, Fairfield, CT.

Together with the Fairfield County OCD Support Group, we have organized an informal social gathering on Wednesday, August 28th. The gathering will take place at Pistachio Café 2, located at 1245 Chapel Street, New Haven, CT at 6:00pm (the cafe closes at 8:30pm). This is a decent sized spot with indoor and outdoor seating, and metered street parking. Please note there are two Pistachio Cafes in New Haven. We’ll be meeting at the one on Chapel Street, not the one on Whalley Avenue. This get-together will allow us to connect and support each other face-to-face in a relaxed environment. For more information, you can contact Amy at [email protected].

Together with the Fairfield County OCD Support Group, we have organized an informal social gathering on Tuesday, July 23rd. The gathering will take place at Maison Mathis Cafe, located at 304 Elm St, New Haven, CT at 6:00pm (the cafe closes at 9:00pm). This is a decent-sized location with indoor and outdoor seating. Metered street parking and a paid parking lot are in the center island. This get-together will allow us to connect and support each other face-to-face in a relaxed environment. For more information, you can contact Amy at [email protected].

In this NYU Langone Insights on Psychiatry podcast, Dr. Christopher Pittenger, Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine and Director of the Yale OCD Research Clinic, is interviewed about the biology and treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), including novel potential treatments such as psychedelics, neurofeedback, glutamate modulators, and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Also discussed is why OCD is so underdiagnosed and what clinicians can do to spot it.

Dr. Pittenger was a guest speaker at a recent OCD Connecticut Lecture Series event at Yale on June 18, 2024, where he discussed the same topics. Click here to go to the podcast.

Dr. Pittenger, a renowned psychiatry researcher, is a leading figure in the field. He earned his MD and Ph.D. from Columbia University and later returned to Yale University, his undergraduate alma mater, for research and residency. Pittenger’s research focuses on the brain’s role in creating thought, feeling, and consciousness, as well as how brain dysregulation leads to mental suffering. His work has been particularly focused on OCD and Tourette syndrome, and the cortico-basal ganglia circuitry. He co-founded the Yale Program for Psychedelic Science, focusing on how molecules like psilocybin and LSD can teach us about brain and behavior, potentially leading to new treatments for neuropsychiatric pathology. Pittenger is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the International OCD Foundation and OCD Connecticut, and a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, American Psychiatric Association, and American Neurological Association.

Dr. Pittenger’s website is https://medicine.yale.edu/profile/christopher-pittenger/.
The Yale OCD Research Clinic website is https://medicine.yale.edu/psychiatry/ocd/.

Click here to download the study’s information sheet.

The OCD Advantage is an online forum created by Joseph Ettinger. Joseph has struggled with OCD his entire life. He’s been on and off medications, has done ERP therapy, and tried every tactic in the book. And now, he has completely restructured his relationship with OCD. For so long, he struggled to find an online community that truly felt like a community. He struggled to feel like he was getting to know others; there was a lack of interaction, collaboration, networking, and more. That is why he started The OCD Advantage. Joseph plans to make this the most collaborative, interactive, and networkable community to date. In time, you’ll find vibrant dialogue and collaboration, resource sharing, courses and lessons that he is putting together, virtual meet-ups, and more. But above all else, you’ll find AUTHENTIC AND LASTING FRIENDSHIPS BEING FORMED. Click here to go to the forum.