Verified by 
What if I misspell a word?
What if I write something that proves harmful to someone?
What if the germs on my fingers somehow make their way onto my keyboard, through cyberspace, and onto the keyboards of countless readers who then contract some deadly disease I might be carrying?
What if the words in this piece don't add up to a multiple of three?
What if I offend God with any language I use?
What if I someday need the previous draft that I just deleted?
These are just a few of the "what-if" questions a blogger with OCD might face while attempting to convey the complexities of life with, and treatment for, OCD. I know, because as I sit here at my computer writing this inaugural Beyond The Doubt post, I am contemplating a good many (but not all) of the above possibilities.
My name is Jeff Bell, and I'm a longtime radio news anchor, author, mental health advocate, husband, and father. I am also someone with OCD, which means that as of today I am a blogger with OCD. There are probably at least a dozen OCD blogging punch lines to insert here; and those of you familiar with my writing and penchant for OCD humor know how tempted I am to do just that. I will, however, spare you my twisted sense of humor--at least for now. Instead I will ask for your input.
When the folks at Psychology Today asked if I'd be interested in doing this blog, I jumped at the opportunity, mainly because I thought such a forum could be a great way to expand my outreach--an ongoing mission to do what I can to raise awareness of OCD. Since going public with my story in early 2007, I have traveled the country doing interviews, giving talks, and writing about this disorder. I have joined the board of directors of the International OCD Foundation and have become one of its national spokespersons. And I have written a second book, attempting to put onto paper the many life lessons that I believe this "doubting disease" has to offer everyone-with our without OCD.
Why this relentless preoccupation with OCD outreach?
The short answer is that my advocacy motivates me like nothing else. The more I've been able to pursue my OCD awareness goals, the more I've been able to tackle my own challenges with this all too often debilitating biochemical brain disorder. It's a phenomenon I've grown to think of as Greater Good motivation, and I hope to explore it in future posts. In the meantime, though, I want to know what issues YOU would like to see covered in this blog. Treatment challenges? The latest research? Available support? Neuroimaging? Media coverage? Slices of life with OCD? What do you think?
I am not a doctor. (Nor do I play one on TV...or even on the radio, where I spend 25 hours every week.) I cannot offer any professional advice. But I can--thanks to my connections in the OCD community--tap the expertise of the leading OCD docs in the country. And I can--thanks to years' worth of obsessions, compulsions, and cognitive behavior therapy--share with you a wealth of firsthand knowledge about life with OCD and its treatment.
Let's do this together. Weigh in with your interests below, and I'll do my best to point this blog in those directions. I'm excited--and, yeah, a bit apprehensive about a few of the "what-if" questions. But I'll make you a deal: forgive my occasional typos and I'll forgive yours. In fact, in the spirit of OCD exposure therapy, here's one to get us started: Thank You
