F42 is code

Taj Khan shares what is the F42 Project?

The F42 Project is a way for me to raise awareness about what OCD really is through T-shirts, apparel, and a touch of humor along the way.

Why did you create the F42 Project?

The goal is to share my experience with OCD and start conversations that help people better understand it, what it actually feels like, and how it affects someone’s life. I wanted people who have OCD, and people who don’t know much about it, to learn, understand, and cope more easily.

While I was in CBT and exposure therapy at Rogers, I came up with the idea of making funny T-shirts. That small idea eventually grew into what the F42 Project is now. It helped me a lot, and I hope it will help anyone who decides to be part of it.

How do you think the project can help people?

I think it can help by giving people a way to distract themselves, bring some humor into what they’re going through, and feel more understood. Humor helped me a lot. In therapy, I used to make jokes about OCD and come up with funny slogans like “Just thug It Out.”

People in my therapy group loved it, and it really helped them too. It made everything lighter and gave us a way to cope with something that can feel overwhelming.

Why the name “F42”?

F42 is the official diagnostic code for OCD in the mental health classification system.
Most disorders have a code that’s two numbers, then a decimal, then another number.
OCD is one of the only ones without a decimal, which I think is pretty funny especially considering the stereotype that “everything must be perfect.”

Naming the project after F42 felt like a meaningful and humorous way to honor that.

If someone sees ‘F42’ on a T-shirt, what do you hope it does?

I hope it acts like a mobile billboard that challenges the global stigma around OCD.
When someone wears the shirt, they’re helping spread awareness of what OCD really is not the stereotype, but the real experience.

The humor makes it easier to talk about and opens the door for conversation.
Someone might see “F42,” ask what it means, and suddenly there’s a moment of connection and understanding.

By wearing the T-shirt, you’re saying:
“This is what OCD really feels like. This is what I or someone else might be going through. Let’s talk about it.”

And that conversation can help everyone.

Understanding OCD a Teen Perspective: Questions About Their Experience & Coping

What does an “OCD moment” feel like for you?

It feels like you’re trying to do something simple and fun, like making a cake, something that should be creative and easy. But instead of enjoying it, your mind sets strict rules.
You start arguing with yourself:

“Can I use blue frosting?”
“No, it has to be orange.”
“Can I make a double layer cake?”
“Don’t question it just follow the rule.”

Something that should be your choice suddenly becomes controlled by fear, pressure, and rules that don’t make sense. That internal fight is what an OCD moment feels like for me.

What are you trying to achieve with your compulsions?

For me, compulsions are about preventing something bad from happening, either in the near future or eventually.
Different people have different goals in their compulsions, but for me it is about trying to stop a negative outcome. It feels like if I don’t do the ritual, something terrible will happen.

What are some things you do (or could do) when you feel an obsession starting?

I try to distract myself or pull myself away from the obsession.
When I’ve been doing well in treatment, sometimes I’m able to simply not do the compulsion and sit with the discomfort.

But coping skills differ for everyone.

Are there specific triggers that make things worse, or things that help you feel better?

Triggers vary for everyone.
For me, a trigger can be anything that feels “incorrect” doing something the “wrong” way, looking at something wrong, or making a choice that feels like it will cause a bad future outcome.

For example:
I might want to eat a banana, but my mind says, “Eating a banana right now is wrong, and it will cause something bad to happen later.”
Even if the banana is healthy, OCD says it’s “incorrect.”

Things that help me feel better include distraction, doing activities that take up my full attention like playing ‘Spot It’, doing the Wikipedia game, or anything that occupies my whole mind so the anxiety softens.

How has treatment changed your relationship with intrusive thoughts?

Treatment has helped me manage how I let those thoughts enter my mind—or whether I let them in at all.
If they do come in, I now know how to handle them instead of letting them take over.

Questions About Support & Values

How can I best support someone without enabling their OCD?

Be direct. Ask:

“How can I help you without triggering your OCD?”
“How can I support you without making it worse?”

The person dealing with OCD usually knows what helps and what doesn’t but not always. Sometimes you must try different approaches, and it can be hard.

How can I best support myself without escalating my OCD?

It depends on you.
If you don’t understand what you’re experiencing, talk to a therapist, a trusted friend, a parent, or a guardian.
They can reflect back what they see, and that perspective can help a lot.

What is your biggest goal for when you’re not dealing with OCD?

Recognize what OCD is, understand your triggers, figure out what helps you avoid or reduce them, and eventually stop the cycle.
Basically: identify it, reduce it, and learn how to prevent it. “Stop, drop, and roll.”

Questions to Understand Their Journey

When did you first notice these patterns, and how have they changed over time?

I realized it was OCD after I broke my arm.
When I couldn’t do anything physical, the mental rituals became intense, and I used them to feel like I had control.
Through treatment, I realized I’d had OCD my entire life just not this severe.
The peak was after I broke my arm, but after therapy, the symptoms became much smaller.

How much time do obsessive thoughts or compulsive behaviors take in a typical day?

It varies for everyone.
At my worst, it took up almost my entire day.
After therapy, it’s minimal now and sometimes doesn’t happen at all.

What’s one thing you wish people understood about living with OCD?

OCD is exhausting. It makes every task ten times harder. It makes you question everything and wastes so much time and energy.
People think OCD is just about being neat or organized, but it takes many forms, such as perfectionism, contamination fears, moral worries, or the kind of “mental compulsions” I deal with.

There is no one version of OCD.