You're the One Behind the Curtain: OCD Strategies and My Humorous, Obsessive Compulsive Life

An analysis of OCD and strategies to combat it lead off this book, which chronicles the evolution of one man’s OCD over the course of his life. The argument presented is that everyone subconsciously has complete control over their OCD and decides their own rules and stipulations that wreak havoc on their daily lives. Because of this, it can be controlled. These issues are addressed in the introduction as OCD is analyzed. Ten strategies are then presented which will help those with OCD to keep it under control, or to “fight back”, so to speak. The book then takes on a lighter tone as Jon travels through his life story, explaining the evolution of his OCD, as well as recounting humorous and entertaining stories from his life. His childhood and teenage years are filled with tales of pranks and mild rebellion, while he found himself reciting strange chants in his mind and repeating actions to ward off bad luck. As he got older, his misadventures with drunken friends took the place of superstition, until he reached his twenties and faced some major life stressors. At that point OCD got out of control. He fought back with therapy, research, and medication, and slowly got it back under control. In the more recent years of his life, his nieces and nephew act as fodder for humorous tales. Because he has passed the point in his life in which he was forced to face severe OCD, he feels he can help others with their struggle.