Despite his medical knowledge, Dr Alex George did not realise he had the disorder until someone else brought it to his attention
Dr Alex George has opened up about his struggles with a severe mental health condition in a heartfelt social media post. The 34-year-old doctor and Love Island star was diagnosed with the disorder just days ago, and described it as ‘a lot to take in’.
“I wanted to share a little update with you on where l am at,” he told his 2.1 million followers on Instagram. “I was diagnosed with OCD a few days ago. It’s not a surprise to me, but it still oddly comes as a shock.
“To be honest, OCD has probably caused me more distress than anything else. But, I already feel better having clarity and I can now begin to work on it to get better.”
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a condition with three main components: obsessions, emotions, and compulsions. Obsessive thoughts are often intrusive and unpleasant, triggering anxiety and a strong urge to act.
Acting on this urge may temporarily ease the anxiety, but the obsessions and unpleasant feelings soon come back, creating a cycle. Compulsions can manifest in various ways for different people, but Dr Alex described having what’s often dubbed ‘pure O’ OCD.
Instead of experiencing physical compulsions, such as an excessive need to clean or count, he will spend hours dwelling on a thought, often after feeling triggered by something in real life. Therefore, obsessively ruminating in his mind is the compulsion he predominantly experiences.
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In a separate Instagram post on the subject, he said: “But effectively in the OCD cycle, it’s a trigger, then ruminating for ages. Hours, literally hours. I can be having a good day, and then I’ll read something, or I’ll get an intrusive thought into my mind, and then boom – like that.
“I’m locked into it. Thought-checking, fact-checking, memories, reviewing what happened, trying to make sense of it. And these are generally things that you are looping over and over again.
“It’s not a natural process of reflection, like we all reflect on things. It is being stuck with things for years. I ruminate over things that happened 10 years ago that I’ve thought about 10 thousand times, that I’ve discussed at length with people that I seek reassurance for. And it never ends. And OCD is such a horrible thing.”
Dr Alex revealed that his obsessive thoughts almost drove him to his breaking point last Christmas. Despite his medical knowledge, he said he could not recognise he was suffering from OCD until someone else brought it to his attention.
“It’s kind of eye-opening,” he continued. “Life-changing to realise that I’ve got real event OCD. That I am in this cycle that needs to be broken, and I have been doing it for a long time.
“It’s probably might have been my teenage years since I’ve done this, and ADHD plays into it with hyper-fixation.” In the video’s caption, he added: “I am not a psychiatrist or therapist so I am just trying to share my experience, so if this video speaks to you please seek professional input.”
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Estimates indicate that one in every 50 people experiences OCD at some point in their lives, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists. The exact cause remains uncertain, although stress, genetics, and brain changes are often considered contributing factors.
Guidance from the NHS explains: “Almost everyone has unpleasant or unwanted thoughts at some point, such as thinking they may have forgotten to lock the door of the house, or even sudden unwelcome violent or offensive mental images.
“But if you have a persistent, unpleasant thought that dominates your thinking to the extent it interrupts other thoughts, you may have an obsession.”
Read its full guidance at the NHS website.