How the
doctor
stopped
mummy
doing
odd things...
by Victoria Lowry
Illustrated by Sandie Lowry
Based on the characters from the Little Bear series
by Martin Waddell & illustrated by Barbara Firth.
Redrawn with permission of Walker Books Ltd., London SE11 5HJ.
www.walker.co.uk
I’m going to tell you about my mummy.
She sometimes does some odd things...
I’m going to tell you about my mummy.
She sometimes does some odd things...
In the morning I
brush my teeth for
2 minutes like the
dentist told me to.
Mummy brushes
her teeth for
10 minutes and
does it 3 times.
Sometimes she
takes so long it
makes me late for
school.
I’m going to tell you about my mummy.
She sometimes does some odd things...
Before tea time I wash
my hands with mummy
and daddy.
But mummy takes
much longer
washing her hands.
By the time mum’s finished
washing her hands we’ve eaten
our tea and her tea is cold.
Before I go to bed I have a bath.
I play with all my toys and splash around,
it is such fun!
When mummy baths she takes hours.
She washes every part of her body very
carefully, lots and lots of times.
Daddy can get very cross
because he really needs the loo!
It can be hard...
I’m late for school.
We never eat tea with mummy.
And I don’t see her because she’s
always in the bath.
She is always washing!
Daddy gets upset because
he doesn’t know how to help mummy.
But he says the doctor will help...
I thought the doctor was really cool.
He had stickers in his office and
gave me a lollipop!
Best of all he said he could help mummy!
Apparently mummy
has something called O.C.D.
(It stands for something big and long called
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)
The doctor told me all about OCD...
Some people with OCD
always check!
Check before they stand up...
Check before they walk...
Check before they leave the room...
Just always check!
They check because
they are scared.
They think that if they don’t
check they might lose
something and something
bad might happen.
Some people with OCD always keep things,
Keep old newspapers,
Keep empty cans,
Even keep the rubbish!
Just keep everything!
They keep things because they think they
might need it someday. They think if they
throw it away something bad might happen.
Other people
with OCD always wash!
Wash their clothes...
Wash their hands...
Wash their face...
Just always wash!
They wash because they are scared of
germs. They think that if they don’t
something bad might happen.
Like my mummy!
Lots of people have OCD.
Both mummies and daddies can
have it and even kids.
It is not like a cold, you can’t catch it
from someone else.
It is to do with the way your
brain deals with worry.
You see we all worry...
I worry about... something!
The difference is that my brain tells
the worry to go away and it does.
In people with OCD their
brains don’t know what to
do with the worry. Instead of
going away it gets bigger and bigger.
To try and stop it getting any
bigger, people with OCD do
things to try and make it go away.
The doctor said: ‘In your mummy’s case
she is worried about germs.
Her brain does not tell the worry to go
away so it gets bigger and bigger.
Your mummy has to try and make the
worry go away all by herself.
She does this by washing lots and lots.
More than other people do.
If her brain learns to make the worry
go away, then she won’t have to
wash as much anymore.’
‘Mind you I can’t teach overnight.
There is no magic potion to make it
all better in a flash.
It will just be you and daddy for a while’
‘It is going to be tough
for your mummy.
She might even get worse
before she gets better
because we expose her to
what she is scared of.
She might have to take
medication for a long, long time.
But in the end she will be better. Knowing you
love and support her will make it easier.’
The doctor did help mummy.
Mummy had to work hard and it
didn’t happen quickly.
But it was worth it.
Thanks to the doctor and all
mummy’s hard work she’s better now.
Let me show you...
Now in the mornings mummy brushes
her teeth for the same time as me.
Now mummy washes her hands with daddy
and me and eats tea with us. She likes it lots
more now as it’s not cold.
Now mummy spends half as
much time in the bath.
This makes daddy happy as he
no longer has to wait for the loo!
Most importantly now
mummy has more time
to play with me...
We are a multidisciplinary national service funded by the
National Specialist Commissioning Team in order to provide treatment for the
most severely ill patients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
and Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) in the form of intensive
home-based therapy, outpatient, and inpatient treatment.
National and Trustwide Services for OCD/BDD
South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust,
Springfield Hospital, 61 Glenburnie Road, London SW17 7DJ.
Telephone: 020 3513 6961
South West London and St George’s
Mental Health NHS Trust