This book presents a literary and linguistic reading of obsessive-compulsive disorder to argue that medical understandings of disability need their social, political, literary and linguistic counterparts, especially if we aspire to create a more inclusive, self-reflective society.

Patricia Friedrich is Associate Professor at Arizona State University, USA. She teaches and conducts research on the social/political environments where linguistic expression occurs. Her works dwells on the intersection of power, language, culture and peace. She has published dozens of articles in periodicals, a single-authored book, and two collections for which she served as editor. She is also a published author of literary fiction.

List of illustrations Preface Acknowledgements 1. OCD Inside Out: The Forging of Disorder 2. Recurrent Doubt: A Brief Story of OCD Through its Literary Texts 3. Just for Fun: The Misappropriation of OCD for Humor and the Role of Critical Disciplines in Claiming it Back 4. Someone Else's Words: OCD, Language and Discourse Power 5. Me and my OCD: Memoirs and the Challenges of Self Representation 6. Not 'Just' a Story: Literary Invention, Innovation, and OCD 7. Bioconcerns, OCD Fears, and Other Worrisome Things: Healing Through Narrative Bibliography Index