John Green on how he deals with obsessive-compulsive disorder and 'thought spirals'

Best-selling author John Green opens up to 60 Minutes about living with mental illness and how he copes with it. Sunday at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
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"60 Minutes," the most successful television broadcast in history. Offering hard-hitting investigative reports, interviews, feature segments and profiles of people in the news, the broadcast began in 1968 and is still a hit, over 50 seasons later, regularly making Nielsen's Top 10. "60 Minutes" has won more Emmy Awards than any other primetime broadcast, including a special Lifetime Achievement Emmy. It has also won every major broadcast journalism award over its tenure, including 24 Peabody and 18 DuPont Columbia University awards for excellence in television broadcasting. Other distinguished awards won multiple times include the George Polk, RTNDA Edward R. Murrow, Investigative Reporters and Editors, RFK Journalism, Sigma Delta Chi and Gerald Loeb Awards for Distinguished Business and Financial Reporting. "60 Minutes" premiered on CBS Sept. 24, 1968. The correspondents and contributors of "60 Minutes" are Bill Whitaker, Steve Kroft, Scott Pelley, Lesley Stahl, Anderson Cooper, Sharyn Alfonsi, Jon Wertheim, Norah O'Donnell and Oprah Winfrey. "60 Minutes" airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET/PT. Check your local listings.

[@s.i.r.g3366]

Ocd is torture

[@Just_Ellie4]

Yeah :(

[@linusperssonsgamingchannel7354]

Agreed.

[@kilgroyproductions1658]

I hope one day there will be a cure or at least something that can suppress it more than what we have now

[@Sumadinac1389]

you guys dont know that ocd is cureable ? you can full recover from it

[@DrFirePenguin]

Its literally baked into the hardware of our brains, but it has it's advantages with having pre-calculated certain random situations/solutions ^^

[@SheaNiles]

Self-care and self-compassion can help you better cope with OCD and anxiety. I deal with OCD and social anxiety.

[@elena-251]

How

[@ajkonecny6830]

Same here

[@linusperssonsgamingchannel7354]

​@@elena-251 Medication and ERP is probably the best we have right now. And trying to do things during the day, like exercise for example.

[@toyt100ota]

I rely heavily on exposure. The more I go against my ocd and anxiety thoughts the less trouble they are for me. I also try to be forgiving and compassionate when I slip

[@alifleih]

I so empathize with John Green here. Thought spirals are no joke. A couple of days ago, I struggled with a thought spiral that began at looking at a business card at a nearby market. It had the name and phone number of an old acquaintance. For anybody else, they may look at the card, think "Huh, that's interesting, haven't seen that person in a while" and move on with their lives. For me, it's different. I start to compare and contrast myself to them. I go back in time and think of how much has happened since, and how everyone else seems to move forward while I'm stagnating. I have all kinds of overwhelming feelings about my self-esteem and prospect of improvement. It makes me feel irritable and restless, counting the seconds till I get home. I tell myself, "Thoughts are just thoughts. Acknowledge they exist and engage with the things that truly matter in your life." But it doesn't work. It's a cruel cycle that can be triggered by the smallest things, and all it does is ruin my day. Yet, it's there, and it hurts me.

[@allosch9]

YES! The seemingly simplest things can turn into minutes and minutes or hours and hours of thought spiraling and most people just don't understand it ❤

[@amandasunshine2]

I call them yogurts because a decade ago, a thought spiral about an open yogurt container had me frozen for a long time 😅

[@kit-kat9466]

can we please get the whole interview

[@lisawang3566]

Thank you Mr. John Green for sharing your OCD experience.

[@elck3]

You don't understand how inspiring it is to see a popular, successful person say they have OCD. If they can do it, so can I. It is possible to manage a life and have OCD. Both are possible

[@luvyou-baby]

i have this, i would like to know more about how he manages these thoughts beside exercise

[@TinaOe]

he has a bunch of videos on it, if you look for like, vlogbrothers ocd they come up. his book turtles all the way down also deals with it

[@luvyou-baby]

oh, thank you!

[@SP-jz5dv]

If you haven’t already gotten more info, please look into the work of Dr. Jonathan Grayson, best of luck

[@luvyou-baby]

@@SP-jz5dv im checking it out, gratitude!

[@freddiebeltran8174]

@john green ❤wow 👌

[@jennicablack]

I hate ocd. 😒

[@davidm2.johnston684]

What an ending though

[@michaeltnk1135]

But running gives you time to do nothing but think

[@mayaenglish5424]

Unless you are out of shape, and then the thoughts are mostly Ouch oh F%ck Why am I doing this? Gah my lungs hurt, ow! Cramp cramp ow ow ow. Which for John might be better lol. Also audio books are a thing! Plus it has been proven that if you take care of your body it has a positive impact on your mental health (It's not some magic cure all or anything, but it is something).

[@michaeltnk1135]

@@mayaenglish5424 I just go to the gym and lift weights. My cardio is pretty good, so I never felt the need to go for runs. The times I have though, I’m thinking about things unrelated to running

[@mayaenglish5424]

@@michaeltnk1135 👍 You're just better at running than I am then lol. Yeah I also stick to weights and cardio, but more because running is terrible.

[@3rdStoneObliterum]

Yeah that's a pretty good Description

[@elena-251]

Wow

[@elena-251]

Where Can I find all interview🙏please 😊

[@mrhorrorjunkie7873]

People think I like living like this and that I enjoy having OCD. Let me reassure you, I ABSOLUTELY HATE IT AND MAKES LIFE A LIVING HELL!!!!

[@seniaromero1516]

So sad to hear this 😂

[@christopherc9935]

this is my life

[@jomer697]

👍

[@hasamshajuneja123.]

❤

[@miltonleon6362]

Is there a placew were we can watch the whole interview?

[@PINGPONGROCKSBRAH]

www.cbsnews.com/news/the-fault-in-our-stars-author-john-green-on-reaching-young-adults-and-dealing-with-mental-illness-60-minutes-2019-07-14/

[@number1authority]

65 degrees downtown Los Angeles...

[@canned_bread8022]

anyone with OCD watched this more than 10 times?

[@YellowSquidsBootyAttack]

I didn’t know John green was all about this I only thought he was that funny guy’s videos the history teacher played

[@zoransandorovmusic1794]

Eckhart Tolle is the cure for this,i am living proof,no more OCD for me.Excercise is also great

[@lofibeats1512]

Hi, I am also battling with OCD. Would you be so kind and tell me how Eckhart Tolle helped you with this? I wan't to get off medication. Anything helps :)

[@fallingleave5287]

​@@lofibeats1512 Hi does the medication not help?

[@ryan_blueproductions6037]

Lol love vids XD and memes

[@number1authority]

Omg me two

[@thunderbolt2145]

Green deals with this sh!t? Ive had it for about 45 years.

[@ExcitedAnacondaSnake-hg8ec]

54k views for something addressing the mentally ill. Millions for some fool assaulting a judge. This is our society.

[@josephnicholaszuniga7073]

You could play tetris!!

[@buzzcutbiene2211]

I will never eat salad again it is too dangerous

[@yemkonhongha8148]

OCD can be controlled by Buspirone. ❤❤❤

[@josephgeneral3420]

OCD is so lame

[@ethurean9967]

egg

[@DUBSTEP_KUSH305]

Third

[@UnbelievablyGauche]

It would be funny if the reported kept asking about blood in the salad while running with him

[@wittykittywoes]

no it wouldn’t

[@psychiatry-is-eugenics]

.

[@melodykuromibebbies2138]

interesting username

[@psychiatry-is-eugenics]

Psychiatrists , actually the whole medical and legal system , actually all of humanity ; despises people who are ignorant and weak . People who are near the bottom of the social ladder .

[@morganmcmanus2738]

Okay, but the thought of there being blood in the salad and that just being the thing he thinks and the way he just said it with a completely straight face is kinda funny. Not the ocd but I thought it was funny because of how irrelevant it would otherwise seem.

[@wonder_platypus8337]

It's not funny to experience trust me. It's debilitating.

[@A123-c6j]

I got better and healed, as the Prophet Muhammad, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, used to say that a person should seek refuge in God from obsessiveness, and that this should end. This is really the best treatment.

[@ragdollpunk9527]

But it really ain't,my friend. I'm no man of God, but I have enough respect for your faith and your people to say that refusing the means that God gave these individuals to help those less fortunate is unwise.

[@A123-c6j]

@@ragdollpunk9527 I respect your opinion, my dear brother, but this is what really happened. The sound of reciting the Qur’an is very, very relaxing and calms the soul. It has nothing to do with the clerics. It is only a good way to comfort yourself. I say this after I suffered a lot. I am suffering and there is no medical treatment. They say spend your time meditating, i.e. meditation. I can't even sit down, sleep, or eat well. I said to myself, I'm ready to do anything until I get cured of this thinking. Why don't I try Quran therapy? This is bad. And I advise you to look and read the Qur’an without any bias or preconceptions. I do it only because you want, and I am sure that you will find very beautiful things in it. It is not like any book. Increase your culture, you will not lose anything. He looks at you with pity, as if you are going to die, and they prescribe treatments for the book and others that are very harmful, and they say that they will reduce. I do not want to continue suffering, but they say that there is no cure, and from this nonsense, but after I applied this, I was cured and ended. I miss my dear brother, and thank you. I wish everyone a speedy recovery, God willing

[@husainsattar4671]

Salaam could you tell me what you listened to which Surahs and how many times? Thanks

[@A123-c6j]

@@husainsattar4671 May the peace, mercy, and blessings of God be upon you. Welcome, my dear brother. When I was suffering and I was in a very bad condition and I thought it would never end, I read about treatment with the Qur’an, and really, really, I listened to Surat Al-Baqarah in its entirety for a week every day. After the week, I started reciting Surat Al-Baqarah once every day, and I listened to Surat Qaf as well, and I began I read it seven times every day along with Surat Al-Baqarah, and after that I started to get better and better, and I began to feel happier, and even the bad dreams ended, to the point that I said to myself, “Am I really that bad?” It is an amazing thing, very amazing, Glory be to God, and after that, even when I recovered, I continued reading it and began fasting two days a week, Mondays. And on Thursday, as the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, used to do, I improved a lot and my mental and physical health became better. Praise be to God. Truly, the Qur’an is a precious treasure. Do not ever leave it. Never despair and think that you will not get better. Do like me and pray to God sincerely, because you will not find a person who can bear your condition or understand you. They will get bored even if they love you. They will think that you are exaggerating or that you are the reason for not stopping. No, but God, the Creator, understands us and helps us no matter what, even if all of humanity sees this matter as trivial. God created us, and if we get sick, He heals us. After you, you were in that very bad state and you recovered, God willing. I decided to help people who suffer from this obsession and guide them to the correct and guaranteed method of healing, which I personally recovered from. Just trust in God, and there is no power nor strength except in God, the Most High, the Great. I wish you a speedy recovery, and when you recover soon, God willing, do not forget to help people and guide them to the path of treatment because they They are really suffering, may God bless you. As for the number, I used to read it daily and continued to read it even after I recovered. You can read over water and then drink it as well, because water preserves it, and this is very useful and widespread. May God grant you success.

[@A123-c6j]

@@husainsattar4671 May the peace, mercy, and blessings of God be upon you. Welcome, my dear brother. When I was suffering and I was in a very bad condition and I thought it would never end, I read about treatment with the Qur’an, and really, really, I listened to Surat Al-Baqarah in its entirety for a week every day. After the week, I started reciting Surat Al-Baqarah once every day, and I listened to Surat Qaf as well, and I began I read it seven times every day along with Surat Al-Baqarah, and after that I started to get better and better, and I began to feel happier, and even the bad dreams ended, to the point that I said to myself, “Am I really that bad?” It is an amazing thing, very amazing, Glory be to God, and after that, even when I recovered, I continued reading it and began fasting two days a week, Mondays. And on Thursday, as the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, used to do, I improved a lot and my mental and physical health became better. Praise be to God. Truly, the Qur’an is a precious treasure. Do not ever leave it. Never despair and think that you will not get better. Do like me and pray to God sincerely, because you will not find a person who can bear your condition or understand you. They will get bored even if they love you. They will think that you are exaggerating or that you are the reason for not stopping. No, but God, the Creator, understands us and helps us no matter what, even if all of humanity sees this matter as trivial. God created us, and if we get sick, He heals us. After you, you were in that very bad state and you recovered, God willing. I decided to help people who suffer from this obsession and guide them to the correct and guaranteed method of healing, which I personally recovered from. Just trust in God, and there is no power nor strength except in God, the Most High, the Great. I wish you a speedy recovery, and when you recover soon, God willing, do not forget to help people and guide them to the path of treatment because they They are really suffering, may God bless you. As for the number, I used to read it daily and continued to read it even after I recovered. You can read over water and then drink it as well, because water preserves it, and this is very useful and widespread. May God grant you success.

[@SAIMfsd-fd9cf]

Kleptomania

[@SAIMfsd-fd9cf]

I want wife with ocd ? m 28 here

[@Targeted_1ndividual]

Come on man

[@kevinagee4364]

somebody forgot how to be awesome

[@YenaPrinskin]

there is not deal.

[@ferdianeary822]

❤