Purpose: To increase understanding and sensitivity to children who suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
Materials: Downloaded the "OCD exercise" below.
Activity:
• Instruct the students that as they read the paragraph, they must count all of the times the letter "e" occurs in the passage. They cannot read the passage and then go back and count -- they must count as they read. Also, tell them that they can't keep track on paper or on their fingers, because they don't want anyone to know that they are counting. Have them read for a few minutes.
• Next tell the students to try to read & count the “e’s" again, but this time, have them also imagine that they have a feeling that if they count incorrectly, something bad is going to happen. Have them read for a few minutes.
Discussion points:
• This is an example of what kids with Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) experience. They have a need, or the feeling, that they need to complete something, and if they don’t do it correctly, something bad will happen. They know that the feeling that something bad is going to happen is irrational, but they can't resist the thought and need to count, or in some cases wash their hands, etc.
• Discuss that on top of this, they are trying to avoid having other people notice their obsessions or rituals, and they have a hard time focusing their attention on other things.
• Discuss the feelings involved in carrying out this compulsion. Did the students feel anxious? Did anyone doubt themselves and worry that they made a counting and had to start again, or worry that someone had seen them?
• Ask the students if they were able to understand anything they were reading. They will likely respond “no”. Discuss that because students with OCD can sometimes only focus on their obsession/ritual, and not other things, it may seem like they are inattentive, slow at processing, or unable to do things (for example, they may not comprehend the paragraph that was read but not because of a reading difficulty).
Materials:
