Morna’s Birthday Ceilidh!
Matt (author) is Web and Digital Media Officer for the OCD Action Youth Panel
OCD Action member, Morna, has decided not to throw a usual 16th birthday party.
The Aberdeenshire OCD sufferer has decided to turn her big day into a fundraising ceilidh [a traditional Gaelic social gathering] for the charity, inviting friends and family to donate money to a cause that is very close to the Scottish girl’s heart.
The 15-year-old believes that it is vitally important to raise the profile of OCD, as well as a charity which has done so much for her fight against the condition.
“The enthusiasm and friendliness (at OCD Action) makes me hopeful that others with OCD will find OCD Action and receive the help and support provided,” said Morna.
“Although I may be on the road to recovery, OCD Action is helping me and will help many others along the way.”
It has been a tough couple of years for the teenager, but having responded well to treatment, she is looking forward to the future and helping the charity in spreading awareness for a condition that is often misrepresented.
“In 2010 I was a contented ray of sunshine, but by 2012 I was a worn out shadow; I was tired of the monotonous battle that was raging in my mind.
“In terms of treatment of my OCD, I have been extremely lucky – I have had several superb psychiatrists and received treatment that our family unanimously believes has had an immense impact on my ability to cope.
“The profile of OCD, and the respect for psychology needs to be raised; without psychiatry and medicine, I cannot imagine how life would have been,” she added.
The World Health Organisation ranked OCD in the top ten most debilitating illnesses, and it is a condition that Morna believes is not given the respect it deserves.
The Scottish teenager, who will turn 16 in June, wants to see a greater level of support for OCD suffers – one that OCD Action aims to provide – and see the condition receive more public attention.
“Not everyone is able to receive the same level of support,” she added.
“By fundraising for OCD Action, I hope that people who may not otherwise have received the help they require can gain access to it and enter our friendly support network.”
