Traversing These Never-Ending Gulfs of Fear and Silence - One Man's Struggle Growing Up with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Is the Subject of Evan Wechman's 'Family Illness'

NEW YORK, May 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Journalist Evan Wechman (https://familyillness.com/) announced the publication of "Family Illness," a new novel chronicling the life of Steve Goldberg, a young Jewish man whose moving and poignant battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is based on Wechman's own lived experience. Like so many, Steve and his family fight to understand and contain the chaotic monster of OCD: a nearly uncontrollable mental force that tortures its victims with ceaseless repeated thoughts and fears. "Family Illness" is available directly through Austin Macauley Publishers™ or via Amazon.

"Living with a mental illness is essentially being trapped inside your own mind," said Wechman. "We traditionally see OCD victims depicted as someone who's a germaphobe, constantly washing their hands and obsessed with cleanliness. That can be a part of it, but the real question should be: why is someone engaging in this behavior? 'Obsessed' is a word we often take for granted and is misused. Obsession isn't eating your favorite ice cream too often, or following your favorite musician's career. Real obsession isn't enjoyable. It's rigid and limiting and painful – a central feature of OCD. A lonely mental prison with bars of thought."

"These repeated thoughts are insidious, driving people toward irrational and sometimes dangerous behaviors," Wechman explained. "And these behaviors can drive away those we love the most. OCD can bring a tormented existence that is as difficult to control as it is to explain to another. That is exactly Steve's journey in this book. It's where he is mentally, for a large portion of his life, and I wanted people to see that living with mental illness often means living alone. It means fearing the exhaustion that your illness eventually brings to those you love. So isolation becomes the worst part of it, leaving you wondering if anyone will ever understand you or what you're going through. Because no one can recover alone."

For more information on OCD, "Family Illness," or Wechman's other projects, visit him online at www.familyillness.com.

About Evan Wechman

Author, journalist, and professional speaker, Evan Wechman often addresses political and cultural topics in his work, including obsessive compulsive disorder and other mental health issues. Evan grew up suffering in silence from the damaging effects of OCD, but taught himself how to fight back and thrive. Now he works to help erase the stigma of living with mental illness in a society that is often unprepared or unwilling to acknowledge the problem.

Learn more at: www.FamilyIllness.com.

Media Contact:

Evan Wechman
1-845-893-2742
[email protected] 

SOURCE Evan Wechman

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