Some say love is in the air only around Valentine’s Day, but those people don’t know the OCD and related disorders community. Having worked at the IOCDF for a little over three months, I have come to realize very quickly that the OCD and related disorders community has lots of love to give. Our community includes everyone affected by OCD and related disorders: individuals with these disorders, their family and friends, as well as the professional community of therapists and researchers. This community is passionate that one day we will better understand OCD and how to treat it more effectively, with the eventual goal of finding a cure.
There is an enduring bond that unites this community, and that bond is research. Each year, the International OCD Foundation awards grants to the most promising research focused on OCD and related disorders. This is only possible because of the generosity of our donors: people like you. 
Since 1986, we have seen tremendous progress in how OCD is diagnosed and treated thanks to research, and we are proud to say that important contributions have been made by recipients of the IOCDF Research Grant Fund.
Last year we launched our I ♥ Research Campaign to help grow the IOCDF Research Grant Fund and this year we look to build on that success. When I asked researchers that have received funding from the IOCDF Research Grant Fund, as well as donors who have contributed to the fund, to share why they ♥ research, I received wonderful responses; however, there was one response that really stuck out:
“I ♥ research because it helps everyone move real knowledge forward. Mental health problems are especially vulnerable to “quackery” as well-meaning and not-so-well-meaning people make up therapies that sound like good ideas, but have little, if any, evidence to support them. Those untested ideas might bring fame and fortune to their creators, but at great cost and wasted time for people who are suffering and paying for useless treatments. In sharp contrast, carefully conducted research by dedicated scientists adds real understanding to problems like OCD and related disorders, and paves the way toward developing and testing treatments to see whether they really work and why or why not. Good research is painstaking, and also exhilarating. It is exciting when the research team finishes collecting the data and crunches the numbers to see whether the hypotheses were supported. Or not. Unexpected findings are just as interesting as expected ones. They tell a new story that piques curiosity and requires more thought and more research effort. This is science at its best – carefully done by teams of dedicated people who are producing new knowledge. What’s not to love about that?”
Gail Steketee, PhD, MSW, Dean and Professor, Boston University School of Social Work
This February we want you to tell us why you love research, and to support our I ♥ Research Campaign by helping us increase the amount of research we can fund. Make this your year to embrace research!
A donation to the I ♥ Research Campaign is investing in hope for those living with OCD — hope that one day we will know what causes OCD as well as the best way to deliver treatment, so that lives are interrupted as little as possible.
As a small token of our appreciation for your support of the I ♥ Research Campaign, if you would like, you can opt to receive one of the following gifts to show your family and friends that you ♥ research!
- Anyone who makes a gift can receive an I ♥ Research bumper sticker.
- If you make a gift of $25 or more, you could receive an I ♥ Research tote bag.
- If you make a gift of $50 or more, you could receive an I ♥ Research coffee mug.
This Valentine’s Day, give the gift of LOVE with a donation to the IOCDF Research Grant Fund. Once you donate, don’t forget to tell us why YOU love research by leaving a comment below or sharing with your friends and followers on Facebook or Twitter. Make sure to use the hashtag #IHeartResearch!
Sam Bailey
IOCDF Development Associate
Make your gift today!
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