• The typical school-aged child spends approximately 1,100 hours per year in the school setting.

  • School personnel may be the first to recognize that a student is experiencing difficulties with OCD.

  • Obsessions can include fears of contamination, harm, illness, or death; intrusive thoughts about harming oneself or others; excessive religious fears; a compelling need for symmetry or order; and obsessive doubt.

  • Approximately 75-80% of children OCD have at least one co-existing disorder, such as depression, anxiety, AD/HD, and/or Tourette Syndrome.

  • Left untreated, OCD not only may persevere but also poses a risk for the development of other psychiatric disorders.

  • Although a common psychiatric illness in childhood, OCD frequently goes unrecognized by teachers, parents, and other caregivers.

  • The large majority of school personnel have encountered – or will encounter – students with OCD in their classrooms.

  • Difficulties often associated with OCD include problems with sleep, somatic symptoms (e.g., tenseness, shaky hands), psychosocial functioning, and family stress.

  • At any given point in time, OCD affects approximately 1 in 100 children.

  • Two of the top difficulties students with OCD experience are doing homework and concentrating in class.

  • Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, is an anxiety disorder characterized by the presence of obsessions and/or compulsions.

  • This is an urgently-needed and inspirational book that offers hope through knowledge. The lives of children struggling with OCD will never be the same.

    Gail S., Parent of a child with OCD

  • With exquisite detail and organization, Dr. Adams presents guidelines for educators to help students and their families find relief from OCD.

    Ellen Sawyer, Executive Director OCD Chicago

  • What a difference this book will make. There is nothing like it out there… I look forward to seeing a copy in every classroom.

    Tamar Chansky, Ph.D.

  • …a must-have for school professionals. I’m so glad there will finally be a guide for school professionals and parents to turn to.

    Eric Storch, Ph.D.

  • … well-researched and very thorough with the complexity of OCD easily explained for educators, parents, and therapists. 

    Louise Dabkey, M.S.Ed., CAS, NCSP

  • Everyone interested in helping children with OCD navigate the educational system—school personnel, parents, and mental health professionals—will find the material in this book invaluable.

    John March, MD, MPH
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Gail Adams, Ed.D.
Dr. Adams has worked in the area of children’s mental health issues for over 20 years. As a researcher, she has extensively examined the impact of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) on school-aged children and the role of school personnel in identifying, assessing, and treating OCD. Dr. Adams also is an experienced speaker who has provided educational training on OCD, AD/HD, Tourette Syndrome, and Asperger’s Syndrome to physicians, mental health professionals, school personnel, parents, and students. In addition, she has worked closely with school personnel and parents to facilitate and improve the performance of students with OCD who struggle in school.

Dr. Adams is a retired faculty member in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Northern Illinois University. She serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of OCD Chicago and the Board of the Awareness Foundation for OCD & Related Disorders. She currently is an educational consultant.

Dr. Adams received a B.A. in Elementary Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She earned a Master’s Degree in Special Education as well as a doctorate in Educational Psychology at Northern Illinois University. She has over 30 years of teaching experience from Kindergarten through the graduate level.