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Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile

Conference at Mag Mile hotel will offer news, hope to OCD sufferers

21-Jul-16 – More than 1,600 people are expected at a conference next week on Michigan Avenue that will offer news, support, and treatment for sufferers of obsessive compulsive disorders. The conference, July 29-31 at Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile, will be the world’s largest event dedicated to OCD and related disorders, including hoarding and body dysmorphic disorder. BDD is an obsessive preoccupation that an aspect of one’s appearance is severely flawed.

This is the 23rd annual OCD conference but the first held in Chicago.

Dr. Jeff Szymanski, executive director of the Boston-based International OCD Foundation, says the goal of the conference is to “bring our resources across the country each year to build new support systems, help families find efficient treatment, and change lives.”

The Second City will host a three-hour workshop on how improvisation can help people recover from anxiety disorders.

About three million people in the United States suffer from OCD, according to the foundation. While there is no cure, the disorder can be managed with therapy and medication.