"Amen, Amen, Amen" Review

Amen, Amen, Amen:

Memoir of a Girl Who Couldn't Stop Praying (Among Other Things)

By Abby Sher

8/10

My Synopsis:

Abby Sher’s world consists of a lot of different things – acting, writing, dreaming, loving, praying, kissing inanimate objects to ensure the safety of her family and friends, exercising obsessively to the point of exhaustion, scrutinizing every calorie she puts in her mouth, picking up litter from the street so that it won’t cause a catastrophic deadly accident and being responsible for the deaths of everyone and everything even when its all in her head.  Sound strange?  Well to someone with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, it may sound completely normal.  This memoir is a glimpse into the life of a girl suffering from OCD, eating disorders and self-harm.  Welcome to Abby’s world.  Your outlook on life may never be the same.

My Opinion:

Most people think of those who suffer from OCD as germ phobic neat freaks but Amen, Amen, Amen by Abby Sher shows that this is not always the case.  The memoir is a stark look at OCD as well as many other mental health disorders.  It is a world of doubt, repetition, and addiction.  It is a constant struggle for control while having no control whatsoever and Ms. Sher’s writing exposes that for exactly what it is – frightening.  The writing is honest and frank not softening any of the difficult details of the author’s life.  She has led an interesting life as a great foundation for her story onto which she adds the personal mental health obstacles.  There were some points where the story seemed to ramble on just a bit but overall all the points were relevant to the memoir.  The story may appear dull or inconceivable to someone never having dealt with the issues raised but to someone who deals with these things on a daily basis, it is a liberating read.  It opened my eyes to some aspects of OCD that I was not aware of even though I suffer from OCD.  It helped me to realize some things that I thought were quirks or just plain strange are actually my disorder.  A wonderful read for someone suffering from OCD, having a family member or friend suffering from OCD, or just those interested in the topic of mental health disorders.  8 out of 10.