Mental disorders

I Was Interviewed Again

May 14, 2013 Mental disorders

This time, I was interviewed for a story about how mental illness can actually make people stronger in their jobs. Check it out on Forbes.com.  

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Julian Assange: Autistic Hacker Or Just An A-hole?

April 9, 2013 Communication skills for the crazy

Last year I wrote a post about a report suggesting autism is an affliction of the brilliant. One man mentioned as an example was WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has described himself as having the “hacker’s disease.” Yesterday, a reader’s comment inspired me to revisit the issue. Mood music:  Leslie Anne LevineThe DecemberistsCastaways and Cutouts The reader [...]

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Control Freak-Out

April 5, 2013 Mental disorders

OCD sometimes makes me feel adrift even when things are going well. I’m feeling it a lot these days and this post, originally written in 2010, captures the malady well. Mood music:  The Day The World Went AwayNine Inch NailsThe Fragile There’s another byproduct of OCD that I’ve described indirectly before, but never head on. [...]

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Human Tourniquets And Freaks Who Love Them

March 29, 2013 Communication skills for the crazy

I originally wrote this three years ago. Looking at it again, it’s an important post describing a time when not even best friends were safe from my insanity. I’ve updated it for the present.  Mood music:  TourniquetMarilyn MansonAntichrist Superstar You know the type. They hang  out with people who act more like abusive spouses than [...]

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Packing For #RSAC and #BSidesSF 2013: An OCD Case Study

February 22, 2013 For travelers

I’m preparing to pack for five days in San Francisco, where I’ll be writing about goings on at RSA Conference 2013 and Security B-Sides. When you have OCD, packing a suitcase is as ritualistic as the compulsive hand washing you’ve heard about. Mood music: Before I had the OCD under control, packing was an all-day [...]

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Out of My Head

September 27, 2012 Mental disorders

Like anyone with a mental disorder like OCD, I spend a lot of time locked in my head. My thoughts will be on what I’m doing the next day or a year out. Or they’re in the past, replaying scenes from long ago. Last night I began the mission to get out of there. Mood [...]

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‘Fixing OCD’ Article Is Badly Misleading

May 2, 2012 Adventures in writing

An article in The Atlantic called “5 Very Specific Ways to Fix Your OCD” blows it from the start — in the headline. OCD sufferers know damn well that you can’t fix OCD. You can only learn to manage it and make it less of a disrupting force in your life. Mood music:  No More Mr. [...]

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The Monkey Will ALWAYS Be On Your Back

April 25, 2012 Addiction

I’m standing at a bar in Boston with my wife and stepmom. They order wine and I order coffee. My stepmom beams and says something about how awesome it is that I beat my demons. I appreciate the pride and the sentiment. But it’s also dangerous when someone tells a recovering addict that they’ve pulled [...]

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Strong Too Long, Or Weak Too Often?

April 23, 2012 Addiction

There’s a saying on Facebook that depression isn’t a sign of weakness, but simply the result of being strong for too long. Somewhat true — though weakness does feed the beast. Mood music: I’m feeling it this morning. I’ve always taken a certain level of satisfaction from my ability to stay standing in the face [...]

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Guilt Chestnut Number 5: ‘You Never Call’

April 16, 2012 Communication skills for the crazy

In a dysfunctional family few are without blame for the things that go wrong. But there’s one criticism I’ve heard time and again that makes me bristle: “You never call.” Mood music: It’s not just that I don’t call the person who says that. It’s that I don’t call a lot of people. I’ve never [...]

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