![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/a14a35ff-c4dc-490a-879e-431eff466f47-VPC_HOWIE_MANDEL_DESK_THUMB.jpg\"\/)
![\"play\"](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/appservices\/universal-web\/universal\/icons\/icon-play-alt-white.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Howie Mandel talks ‘AGT’ sexiness, live-show vibe from makeup chair<\/p>\n
During a pre-show makeup session in his dressing room, “AGT” judge Howie Mandel explains performer pressure, crew precision on the day of a live show.<\/p>\n
Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY<\/p>\n
Howie Mandel<\/a> wasn\u2019t diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) until his 40s, but he says the condition profoundly impacted his entire life.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t remember not experiencing OCD,\u201d the \u201cAmerica’s Got Talent<\/a>\u201d\u00a0judge says over the phone, just two days after his 70th birthday.\u00a0<\/p>\n Obsessive-compulsive disorder affects an estimated 1.2% of U.S. adults<\/a>, and OCD sufferers usually go undiagnosed<\/a> for 10 or more years. Mandel says the condition is deeply misunderstood \u2014 his symptoms, which he calls debilitating, stretch far beyond \u201cgermaphobe\u201d stereotypes.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI can’t tell you how many people in the course of a week will come up to me and say, \u2018I have a little bit of that.\u2019 Well, you don\u2019t have a little bit of OCD,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n The comedian has been a partner of NOCD<\/a>, a company that provides video-based OCD therapy, since 2022. Now more than ever, Mandel recognizes the need for accessible, reliable mental health care, especially with the growing concerns around “AI therapy<\/a>.”<\/p>\n Mandel has become a strong advocate for seeking mental health support, but his own journey wasn\u2019t easy.\u00a0<\/p>\n ‘I can\u2019t show up, and my life stops’<\/p>\n People with OCD may experience uncontrollable and recurring thoughts (obsessions), engage in repetitive behaviors (compulsions), or both. These obsessions and compulsions can vary from person to person<\/a>. Some people couldn\u2019t care less about dirt and germs, but are fixated on \u201cbad things\u201d happening to people they love and care about.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople interpret OCD as being persnickety or being really neat or fastidious, that is not OCD,\u201d he explains. \u201cOCD is a nightmare if you are diagnosed with it\u2026 and a lot of people have it and are misdiagnosed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Mandel still has people insist their hands aren\u2019t dirty; that he can shake them. But what those people don\u2019t understand is that it’s not as simple as just shaking hands.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, it\u2019s about getting triggered into thinking there\u2019s something on my hand, and then being stuck at a sink, scalding my hand for the next 12 hours,\u201d he explains. \u201cNot being able to carry on life (as a) husband, father and provider. I can\u2019t show up, and my life stops. I’m in this nightmare where I think terrible things are going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Intellectually, he knows these terrible things will not occur. But that makes it even more horrific, he says, because he can\u2019t control his dark thoughts. Or, he is compelled to do a ritual to quell them: \u201cIt drives you nuts, and you can\u2019t function. It\u2019s debilitating.\u201d<\/p>\n