About the IOCDF

IOCDF Mission Statement

The mission of the IOCDF is to ensure that no one affected by OCD and related disorders suffers alone. Our community provides help, healing, and hope.

IOCDF Vision Statement

Our vision is that everyone impacted by OCD and related disorders has immediate access to effective treatment and support.

The IOCDF provides up-to-date education and resources, strengthens community engagement, delivers quality professional training, and advances groundbreaking research.

Our History

The International OCD Foundation began in 1986, when a group of individuals with OCD gathered while enrolled in some of the first medication trials for OCD treatment.

The principal investigator of one of the studies was Wayne Goodman, MD, then a junior faculty psychiatrist who started the OCD program at Yale University School of Medicine. It was Dr. Goodman’s idea that some of the participants meet together during the clinical trials to discuss their experiences of having OCD. Together, they talked about trying to access treatment and coping with the isolation of not knowing anyone else with OCD. Virtually none of them had ever met another person with OCD prior to enrolling in the trial.

After realizing the importance of mutual support and community, the group established itself as the Obsessive Compulsive Foundation (OCF). They began to cast their net as wide as possible to see who else was suffering in silence.

Boldly, they wrote to ABC’s 20/20 describing OCD and suggesting that the producers do a segment on it. Consequently, in March of 1987, 20/20 ran a segment on OCD featuring a number of the OCF Founders. The small group of Founders was then flooded with 20,000 inquiries in the days following the 20/20 segment.

Now, the Foundation had to determine what they could do to help. Read more about the IOCDF history.

About Us

The International OCD Foundation is a donor-supported nonprofit organization. Founded in 1986 by a small group of individuals with OCD, the Foundation has grown into an international organization serving a broad community of individuals with OCD and related disorders, their family members and loved ones, and mental health professionals and researchers around the world. We have affiliates in 25 states and territories in the US, in addition to global partnerships with other OCD organizations and mental health non-profits around the world.

The Foundation aims to improve outcomes for individuals with OCD and related disorders by:

  • Providing resources and support for those affected by OCD, including individuals with OCD and related disorders, their family members, friends, and loved ones.
  • Promoting awareness about OCD and related disorders to the OCD community and the general public.
  • Increasing access to effective treatment through:
    • Educating mental health professionals about evidence-based treatments.
    • Providing a forum for professional collaboration and networking.
    • Supporting research into the causes of and treatments for OCD and related disorders.

Looking for more information about our work? Visit our profile on Charity Navigator!