Toronto man donates $10 million to expand OCD treatment center that changed his life

Brian Reeve reached a breaking point seven years ago, when the ritual — from repeatedly walking in and out the door to inserting and removing his contact lenses until everything looked “just right” — had become so overwhelming that he could no longer manage his obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) on his own.

After years of searching for effective care, he received treatment in 2019 in the OCD program at the Frederick W. Thompson Anxiety Disorders Center at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto.

Now in remission, Reeve, a 69-year-old lawyer and private equity investor, says the program was a “game-changer” and a “life reset” and he has donated $10 million to the facility.

Established in 2012, TThe Thompson Centre, the country’s first and only facility dedicated to the research, education and treatment of OCD and related disorders, estimates that approximately 400,000 Canadians live with OCD.

Peggy Richter, head of the Thompson Center and professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, says OCD is a complex disorder defined by intrusive, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors or rituals (compulsions) that are used to relieve anxiety.

While many people associate this disorder with symptoms like excessive washing, checking, or organizing, she says it can take many forms, including repetitive counting or even disturbing thoughts that the person will never act on.

This can start at a mild level, where people may be frequently late due to their rituals, to more severe cases where it becomes “severely disabling,” says Richter.

“People can basically be prisoners in their own homes, unable to perform even the most basic activities of daily living,” he said.

Managing OCD over decades

Reeve says he was diagnosed with OCD in the 1990s. He says that there were limited treatment options at that time.

But he was able to manage it well for most of his life. He built a successful career as a lawyer and private equity investor, and also married and had children.

till 2019 He says the number of rituals – and the time they consume – has increased “almost exponentially”, distracting him and reducing the quality of time he spends with his children.

Reeve had to repeat tasks until they got them right – such as checking if he had set his alarm clock to get up for work the next day.

“Checking once isn’t a big deal, but when it happens 10 times or 20 times, and you have to turn the switch off and on until it feels right, that’s where OCD becomes,” Reeve. told as it happens Host Nil Koksal.

Later that year, his family doctor referred him to the Thompson Center’s intensive OCD treatment program.

Reeve spent four months in the program, participating eight hours a day, five days a week.

He says it gave him a toolkit he could use consistently and ultimately went into remission three years after completing the program.

Extension of care and research

What makes the Thompson Center unique, Richter says, is its broad spectrum of care.

The center provides counseling services for OCD diagnosis and treatment recommendations, as well as options tailored to the severity of each patient’s condition, including psychiatric care, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and an intensive program for severe cases.

Through a network of trained volunteers who have completed treatment, the center offers both group and individual peer support to anyone seeking care through its programs, she says.

The center also has an aftercare program that continues to support alumni of the intensive treatment program after formal treatment has ended.

Richter says Reeve’s donation will accelerate the center’s expansion and relocation, allowing it to move from its current rented space to a permanent home on Sunnybrook’s Bayview campus next spring.

The new facility will have improved amenities, including dining space, closer collaboration with the hospital’s brain science program, and more bed capacity.

The funding will also help establish a Chair in OCD at Sunnybrook and the University of Toronto and provide fellowships to support the next generation of Canadian clinicians and researchers in OCD treatment and research.

As for Reeve, he hopes people understand that effective treatments exist for OCD.

“What we’re trying to do with the Thompson Center is make you feel like you’re not alone walking down the street and there are a lot of resources out there and you don’t have to be embarrassed that you have OCD,” she said.