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Manga Creator Aoi Michiyuki Posts Manga About OCD Diagnosis

Apollo ni Sayonara manga creator Aoi Michiyuki posted a four-page manga on her Twitter page on Thursday. The manga focuses on the time when she failed as a first grader to understand why one plus one equals two and was told she has obsessive-compulsive disorder.

The creator noted that the manga is sort of a gag comedy, but it brings up painful feelings at the same time. In the manga, Michiyuki recalls a doctor that taught her it is not a problem to forget some things and it can be good to make mistakes. Even now, the man's words continue to help her. The creator suddenly remembered incidents from her childhood and decided to draw the manga.

In the story, Michiyuki was often praised in kindergarten, so she thinks elementary school will also be a piece of cake. However, the problems begin on day one. The girl does not understand the concepts of "1" or "2," let alone why one plus one equals two. Her classmates understand, but Michiyuki is left out and struggles to finish a worksheet.

Michiyuki's teacher asks her why she is taking so long to finish the worksheet. She is very nervous because her mother got angry with her when she failed to understand an explanation of "one plus one equals two" with apples. During cleaning time, Michiyuki had to ask her teacher again whether her seat number was ten. The girl was brought to a neurologist and received the diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

The neurologist told her it was fine to forget what he said. He told Michiyuki that even adults don't know why one plus one equals two. The girl was shocked. The doctor explained that even without knowing why, people can remember and accept the fact that one plus one equals two. The neurologist told Michiyuki that she was smart to be held up by this philosophical problem.

Due to the confidence boost, Michiyuki started to wonder if she was a genius on the way back from the doctor. After watching commercials for a cram school and going there, she became able to process the numbers she saw. The girl thought of it as a game. After that, she was able to complete worksheets quickly in math class. And even now, she can move past her doubts about trivial things thanks to what she learned from the neurologist.

Other introspective manga creators have posted manga about why quitting a job is no cure for depression, the brutal realities of idol fan life, falling out of love with a favorite anime, and the depression of office ladies in Japan.

[Via Yaraon!]