My muse– the first person to see each of my scenes– wrote this for me tonight, and of course it made me weep like a baby. Isn’t she just brilliant? I feel so honored and so humbled that she would write a poem– and not just a poem, but THIS poem– about me.
For my blog readers who are local to the Twin Cities, I’d love to invite you to an event next week where I’ll be reading excerpts from my forthcoming YA novel Truest. Two talented Northwestern students will also be reading that night– Marie Pearson and Brienna Rossiter (who, coincidentally, was one of the Truest‘s beta-readers!).
The reading will be at 7 pm at the University of Northwestern on Tuesday, February 11th.
University of Northwestern
Nazareth Hall
Blue Room
3003 Snelling Ave N
St. Paul, MN 55113
It is just north of the Rosedale Mall, and there will be plenty of free parking!
Campus map can be found here.
Let me be clear on one thing: I love literature. I really, really do. That’s why I’m a writer!
But being a writer has also drastically changed my reading experience.
In the words of Billy Collins, “Readers read great work and feel appreciative. Writers read great work and feel a burning jealousy.”
I know I’ve talked about this before, but I just wanted to share that– in some ways– I grieve the true reader’s experience. It’s becoming more and more rare that I can just fully take in a great book with an open, generous heart. There is this little flame of envy that licks all over my body, and while I think it’s a bit uncharitable, it also both reminds me that I’m a writer and fuels my writing.
Though I am terribly grateful that I’m a writer down to my bones, sometimes I do long for those golden moments of childhood when I could just embrace a book with nothing but love. Don’t get me wrong, I still love books– with a deep, passionate, fiery love– but there is usually envy in that matchhead too. Envy and analysis: how did the author do that? Can I do that? What if I were to …
Sometimes I miss it. That’s all I wanted to say.
Había una vez… (Once upon a time) by Carolina Pratto
I don’t want to admit this to you. I really don’t.
But I’ve made such efforts to be honest with my blogging community, and the wonderful, encouraging reception I’ve always gotten from you, my beloved readers, has continually encouraged me to continue with that honesty and integrity.
So today I’m going to tell you something that might make you made at me. Here it is:
Sometimes I get really frustrated with people with OCD.
Five years of freedom and already I am so quick to frustration. Shame on me, right? Then again, the last five years of my life (post-ERP) have been so absolutely incredible that they make me even more frustrated with those who avoid treatment.
The truth of the matter is this: exposure and response prevention is the best and most appropriate treatment for OCD. Quite simply, if you’re looking for a “solution” to your OCD, then I have it for you: ERP. I hear from a lot of people who seem to want a different answer, and yet my bottom line remains the same: ERP, ERP, ERP.
I know it’s scary. (Trust me, I know it’s scary!) But it’s the right answer, and I’m not going to send you on a wild goose chase when I know the right answer. That would be like me telling you to go get chemotherapy for your gunshot wound or that you need insulin for your broken arm. It’s obvious that those aren’t the correct treatment for the issue, and I won’t do that to you.
Research shows that ERP is the best treatment for OCD. My life shows that a person with obsessive-compulsive disorder can redeem the years he or she lost to being enslaved by OCD. No matter how many times you ask me, I’m going to give the same answer.
There. Got it off my chest. Don’t worry, folks; I’m still here for ya! I aim to be a voice advocating for our quiet and oppressed community. But just how I refuse to aid someone in compulsions, I will also refuse to send you down the wrong corridor for help. I’m doing this with the best interest of our community in mind, I promise.
My heart and energies and motivations rest in leading those in slavery toward freedom. Know that.
Someone on Quora asked:
How does your personality compare from before and after the treatment ? Do you feel you are not curious anymore ? Do you feel you are now asking less questions than before ? Is there any reduction or improvement in cognitive performance ? What were the negative symptoms ?
JACKIE LEA SOMMERS 