The International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) acknowledges the significance of the recent Presidential Executive Order, Establishing the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission, particularly in its focus on addressing the growing mental health and chronic disease challenges in the United States. That said, we are deeply concerned some of these directives could create significant barriers to effective treatment for those suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and related conditions. Specifically, in Section 5, Subsection (a), Provision (iii), the Commission is tasked with assessing “the prevalence of and threat posed by the prescription of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, stimulants, and weight-loss drugs” as part of the Make Our Children Healthy Again Assessment.
OCD is a debilitating mental health condition characterized by intrusive, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions) that cause significant distress. Affecting more than 240 million people globally, OCD commonly begins in childhood between ages 7 and 12, and again in the late teen years. Up to 3% of children and teens are affected by OCD at some point in their lives.
SSRIs are a critical, evidence-based treatment for pediatric OCD. For young people struggling with OCD, SSRIs provide relief that enables them to participate fully in treatment, school, social activities, and family life — key aspects of healthy development. Without SSRIs, children and adolescents with OCD risk substantial impairment in their ability to function, leading to academic challenges, social isolation, and a diminished quality of life. It is essential that these medications remain accessible to those in need.
The IOCDF urges the Commission to carefully consider the potential unintended consequences of its assessment on youth with OCD and related disorders. We strongly recommend that SSRIs remain an available, effective treatment option for youth.
I am so disappointed by seeing that an executive order has been issued to stop the used ssri’s on kids and teens with OCD as now it has been a life saving and helped kids with ocd live a more normal life go to school and be helpfull to society if he stops this God know s what will happen to our kids he has grandkids and a family think about what families go through with this help I really hope you have the heart and mind to stop this . This is getting out of control to mess with mental health.
Please make sure when you consider SSRI’s for the treatment of ocd that you look at the data and evidence that clearly shows that they are life saving for many, (me included)
Please do not generalize and assume that they are over prescribed and prevent many from receiving these treatments and drugs.
I am 75 years old and have suffered from debilitating Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) since the age of 3. For me to fully function as me I must continue to take Fluoxetine (SSRI inhibitor) on a daily basis. Please do NOT take away this drug.
Limiting SSRI prescriptions would leave me in the same position that my father unfortunately was in–not sick enough to obviously need medical help, but not well enough to function as a stable father.
I am 73 and have had OCD since 9 years old. SSRI’s were not even available until Prozak coming to the market in the late 80’s. My youth was a catastrophe for me, my parents, psychiatrists, family doctors, and school officials that could not figure out why I acted so self destructively. I had severe depressive eposodes and daily anhedonia comorbidly and could not “live up to my potential” in school or the workforce. My life savings have suffered significantly as a result as have my 2 marriages and all my relationships, all to the worst. To say my life was turned upside down and inside out by OCD is not hyberbole, just a fact.
I was finally treated with Prozak in the late 80’s and my depression lessened and was less a daily burden. Other SSRI’s have also been used with important benefit. But my OCD was still active until I was finally diagnosed 7 years ago and my SSRI’s were adjusted up to large enough treatment levels. With therapy my life is unimanginably better,but so late in my life. What could I have achieved for myself and others had I been able to be treated when I was young, when I had a future ahead, a full life to live. SSRI research and outcomes have proven with the truth of science that they are a giant benefit to those of us with OCD and the people we live and work with daily. Without them we are back again to the “great” days when OCD was untreatable for young and old alike. And just think of what money and taxes are made and given by the healthy rather than the unecessarily unhealthy. SSRI”s are as valuable for society as they are those of us with OCD.
Please consider
President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission to ensure SSRIs remain an available, effective treatment option for youth affected by OCD and related disorders.
SSRIs are a critical, evidence-based treatment for pediatric OCD. For young people struggling with OCD, SSRIs provide relief that enables them to participate fully in treatment, school, social activities, and family life — key aspects of healthy development. Without SSRIs, children and adolescents with OCD risk substantial impairment in their ability to function, leading to academic challenges, social isolation, and a diminished quality of life. It is essential that these medications remain accessible to those in need.
Thank you.
Please don’t take important medication from t people suffering from OCD and other related conditions.
I agree with the iocdf.
As a parent of a child who has struggled with OCD for 18 years, I know personally about the agony of this illness. Her SSRI was the first medication that helped with the specific OCD symptoms. Itis crucial not only to her functioning but to her ability to live her life with any freedom or joy.
I know there’s a lot going on right now. Thank you for your attention here.
I urge the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission to ensure SSRIs remain an available, effective treatment option for youth and adults affected by OCD and related disorders, particularly depression combined with bipolar disorders.
SSRIs are a vital tool in treating OCD. Please ensure that they remain available to the individuals who need them. Thank you
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is debilitating and causes significant suffering for both the impacted and the family. Please keep evidence based SSRIs accessible to youth with OCD to manage their symptoms.
My son, now 27 has struggled with OCD asince he was a teenager. SSRIs literally saved his life. Please ebsure that this life-saving and simple treatment remains acaikable for those who struggle with OCD, a debilitating, life-long mental illness.
My daughter, 14, has debilitating OCD and SSRIs along with other treatment modalities have significantly helped in keeping her out of treatment facilities. They are not addictive and should not be classified along with drugs like heroine. They are life-saving medications that have research backed success for more than 30 years.
SSRIs are an important tool to help people, including youth, battle various mental health issues. It is crucial that they remain available for all those who need them.
Please ensure continued life saving treatment with SSRI’s for OCD patients. This is a debilitating life long disease.
Dear senators and committee members, It is with great alarm that the prospect if SSRI s not being available for the treatment of OCD. Our son struggles with this dread disease and the medications along with extensive therapy have made it so he can function is his work and family life. Please duly consider the ramifications before pulling the drug.
My son was having unwanted suicidal ideations and intense anxety ant 12 years old and was diagnosed with OCD. We were very hesitant to put him on any medication but ultimately he started an SSRI and it has made the ideations go away and turned his life around. I would like to support him with other specialized therapies but unfortunately there are very few options in our state (Hawaii). There just aren’t enough mental health specialists here, especially for children. His father also doesn’t agree with me about what temperament is necessary. I feel that SSRIs are his lifeline at least for now, until he is 18 and can choose to seek treatment on his own.
I was on an SSRI after some postpartum depression and I had no problems getting off it after a few months.