Breaking Boundaries

Representing mental illness in children’s literature

The Boy Who Cried Ghost is a spooky, thrilling, heartwarming and funny story for fans of Goosebumps, Jennifer Killick’s Dreadwood series and Phil Hickes’s The Haunting of Aveline Jones. It was inspired by my love of horror movies: Hocus Pocus, The Goonies, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Casper and my older brother who used to tell the most terrifying ghost stories when we went camping.

Richard is just starting Year 6 when he has to move with his mum into his grandma’s old house. He is angry, resentful and filled with worry about making new friends at a new school. He is also consumed by obsessive behaviours, low self-esteem and grief. I always think the best ghost stories are nothing to do with the ghost, but instead explore what it’s like to be haunted by trauma. Over the course of his journey, Richard has to learn to accept himself and understand how to start dealing with his Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

I once heard OCD being described as ‘brain lock’ - which is a perfect description - and I’ve also heard it referred to as ‘catastrophic thinking’. For me, it starts off with an obsession, which is an unwanted and distressing thought or impulse. This then leads to a feeling of extreme anxiety and the need to carry out a compulsion, which is a repetitive behaviour aimed at reducing those feelings of fear, dread and anxiety. What follows is then momentary relief, but the intrusive, obsessive thought comes back and the whole terrifying cycle begins again.

As a child, OCD completely took over my life. I engaged in a lot of repetitive behaviour. For example, I was convinced that there would be a fire in my house unless I checked the light switch in my room every night; I could spend hours turning the light switch on and off. I also remember getting a lot of intrusive thoughts as a kid. One day I was having lunch with my grandad and I remember thinking: “He eats really loudly!” This led to a feeling of real shame and horror that I’d had such a bad, unkind thought - I therefore felt that I was bad and unkind. This was usually followed by a panic attack and the overwhelming feeling that I had to confess how naughty and mean I was to someone in order to get rid of the ‘bad’ thought.

OCD is and helped me begin to challenge my intrusive thoughts. He taught me that we are not just our thoughts and that just because we think something, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true or that we have to act upon it.

I eventually got help when I was seventeen. I was sent to The Priory, who are experts in treating people with acute mental health disorders. I saw a brilliant therapist there called Jerry, who helped me to understand what

For parents of children with OCD, I always like to give practical tips - for example, you could spend some time exploring the websites for OCD-UK and OCD Action. I like to remind people that saying things like: “I’m SO OCD” just because you like things to be neat or tidy can be quite harmful and offensive to people who suffer with the disorder. There are also some other brilliant children’s books which deal with OCD, such as The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson, A Flash of Fireflies by Aisha Bushby and When I See Blue by Lily Bailey.

As an adult, I read Because We Are Bad by Lily Bailey, which was life-changing and really helped me understand what I had experienced myself as a child and teenager with OCD. I would also recommend the following books to adults who work with children and teenagers with OCD: The Man Who Couldn’t Stop by David Adam, Pure by Rose Bretécher and Brain Lock by Jeffrey M. Schwartz.

I think these books portray the terror and uncertainty of OCD particularly well and would really help people understand the complexity of this mental health disorder.

I hope that The Boy Who Cried Ghost shines a light on what it’s like to live with OCD and severe anxiety. Of course, I hope children are going to love all the jokes, puns, thrills, jump scares and chills! Being able to help people understand that OCD is so much more than liking things to be tidy is a huge bonus. Sometimes mental illnesses aren’t taken as seriously as visible injuries or illnesses. Lots of people who have

OCD have already contacted me to say that Richard’s story has really resonated with them and made them feel seen, understood and valued.

It would be wrong of me to say that I’m now doing brilliantly and everything is wonderful and that

I’ve been magically cured of my OCD. OCD is a terrifying mental illness that can last a lifetime. Just like Richard in The Boy Who Cried Ghost, it’s something I’m still learning to live with and cope with. I certainly feel more hopeful and occasionally even feel a sense of peacefulness wash over me, usually when I’m reading a book, playing with my son in the park, or watching a crime thriller on TV with my husband. I hope The Boy Who Cried Ghost will offer that same sense of hope and comfort to young readers.

IAN EAGLETON Author www.instagram.com/ian.eagleton www.x.com/MrEagletonIan

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