Walking with Nathaniel OCD Awareness Rally June 7, 2012

Denis Asselin, stepped out his front door in Philadelphia to embark on a 525-mile journey in memory of his son Nathaniel, who took his life last year after a 13-year battle with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a disorder related to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Nathaniel was 24. With a photo of Nathaniel attached to his walking stick, Asselin is visiting the schools, clinics and medical facilities where Nathaniel had been treated over the years, as well as the places where he experienced the greatest joys in his short life. Asselin’s goal is to raise awareness for BDD, OCD and funds for the International OCD Foundation. The journey will end in an awareness rally in downtown Boston hosted by the International OCD Foundation.

The Walking with Nathaniel OCD awareness rally will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, June 7 at Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park in downtown Boston. A speaking program including emcee David Brown, meteorologist for WCVB-TV Channel 5 and guests, Sal LaMattina, Boston City councilman, Dr. Michael Jenike, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the founder and medical director of the Massachusetts General Hospital OCD Institute at McLean Hospital and Denis Asselin will talk about treatment options and the severity of OCD.

All are welcome. To learn more about Walking with Nathaniel or to make a donation to support the International OCD Foundation’s visibility initiatives and research fund, visit walkingwithnathaniel.org or ocfoundation.org. Funds can be allocated specifically to benefit the research of BDD. Asselin hopes to raise more than $10,000 in Nathaniel’s memory.