Mental health disorders and illnesses are topics all educators should be well informed about, knowing the signs and symptoms to look out for, how to properly accommodate their students, and how to seek for assistance in order to provide their students with the best resources possible. While there is a plethora of mental health issues one should be knowledgeable on, I chose to focus on obsessive-compulsive disorder. After researching about the disorder and what it entails, the symptoms and experiences associated with it, I feel as though this is a disorder which is commonly misunderstood. It goes beyond repetitive behaviors, it includes intrusive thoughts, difficulty managing obsessions, and of course, the compulsions which are often stereotypically associated with the disorder. As educators, we must truly know what these disorders entail, how they affect students, and the strategies to implement to alleviate them from the stress associated with the disorder. Overall, it was truly eye-opening to see what individuals with OCD face and struggle with on a day-to-day basis, and I hope my slide below serves to reflect just some of this extensive information.

References:

Conditions. (n.d.). National Alliance on Mental Health. 

How to support students with OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder). We Are Teachers. (2021, November 6). https://www.weareteachers.com/students-with-ocd/#:~:text=How%20can%20teachers%20support%20students%20with%20OCD%3F%201,…%208%20Acknowledge%20their%20fears%20…%20More%20items 

OCD in Kids. (n.d.). https://kids.iocdf.org/ 

Teacher’s guide to OCD. Child Mind Institute. (2023, February 23). https://childmind.org/guide/teachers-guide-to-ocd-in-the-classroom/#block_065e4928-ff8b-4136-8a66-8ad3a1cc2b09