Payton Is Afraid of Dirt

Payton is scared of being dirty. He washes in the kitchen for a long time. He washes in the bathtub for a long time. He rubs…and he scrubs. Payton can’t stop cleaning. He told his family, “I can’t stop thinking about how dirty everything is. What’s happening to me?” Payton’s family was worried. Dad told Payton they were taking him to a psychiatrist, a special doctor for the brain. Payton met Doctor LaBock, who said, “I heard there’s somebody in your head bossing you around.”

After a thorough exam, Doctor LaBock said, “Payton, I think you might have OCD. Do you know what that means?” Payton shook his head. “Well,” said the doctor, “OCD stands for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. It’s something a lot of people have. OCD makes them worry about all different things.” “I challenge you, Payton,” said the doctor, “to come up with something of your own that makes your OCD get a little bit smaller.” Doctor LaBock gave Payton a workbook to follow. That night, the whole family read the workbook. The book taught Payton more ways to fight OCD. Payton kept reading and saw Doctor LaBock every week. Then, he had an idea. The next time it came around, he’d “ROAR it away!”

Payton learned how to scare and shrink OCD whenever it bugged him. He fought OCD every way he could. After a while, he got good at it!