Not lighthearted craziness, or a comic disorder of the mind: what it’s like living with OCD

In this candid extract from her new memoir, actor Tuppence Middleton describes her lifelong battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder, and asks for those with the condition to be treated with more sympathyMy mind is full of scorpions. Devious, nimble little beasts that have occupied my head for the best part of 30 years. A cerebral itch, impossible to scratch. They wield their own special power over my brain, shaping the architecture and rhythm of my thoughts. An immovable nest, weighing heavy in my skull. I know these creatures well, but they know me better. I am their dutiful puppet, stuck inside an endless loop of sleepless nights and watchful days.They answer to another name, this nest of scorpions, the writhing black mass that lives inside my head: obsessive-compulsive disorder. Continue reading...