Hiding OCD, late diagnosis, and using creativity to wrestle back control, with Alan Sowersby

Dan is joined by Alan Sowersby to talk about about his OCD diagnosis, 25 years after he first showed signs of the condition. We discuss how OCD has affected his day-to-day life, what he's been through to help him better manage its impact on him and his family, how things have changed since he retired during the lockdown, and why he decided to tell his story in a new book, 'Breaking My Silence'.There is a ton of stuff in this conversation that helps explain OCD's disruptive impact on someone's life, and how accepting it as a part of his make-up has made a huge, positive difference to him over the past few years. It's been an education and a real pleasure meeting and getting to know a bit about Alan's life through the build-up and recording of this conversation, and I think all of that is reflected in the chat.Here are the timestamps for when each of our core questions is discussed, so you can fast-track to Alan's answers:0:00 Introduction to GoodEnoughChats and Alan 4:26 Why are you sharing your mental health experiences with us today? 13:46 How has your last week been?28:08 How has your relationship with your mental health evolved?43:30 Have there been any lightbulb moments along the way?53:24 If someone facing a similar problem came to you today, what's the most important thing they can do?If you'd like to chat with Alan about his experiences, reach out to him via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alansowersbyauthor/To find out more about his book, 'Breaking My Silence', visit: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Breaking-My-Silence-longer-anxiety-ebook/dp/B0CYGLGNV6If you're interested in sharing your mental health story to help others who might be going through something similar, you can connect with me on LinkedIn too: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbowsher/Find the show on your favourite podcast platform and follow us on all our socials via this link: https://linktr.ee/goodenoughchatsWhy is GoodEnoughChats a thing? There is a mental health crisis for men aged between their mid-thirties and early fifties, and one of the things we know can make a positive difference is encouraging men to open up about what's on their minds. Each episode of GoodEnoughChats features a new guest who has volunteered to share their experiences to help destigmatise mental health amongst men. The discussions are all centred on the same five questions, but each one tells a unique story that might be useful for someone else to hear. We want to build a bank of these chats so they are there for people when they need them.If you have been affected by some of the issues addressed in this conversation, please know that you are not alone and there are some fantastic places you can turn to for help, including (but by no means limited to):NHS, https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/mental-health-services/ The Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), https://www.thecalmzone.net/Samaritans, https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/Mind, https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-services/seeking-help-for-a-mental-health-problem/where-to-start/