Bill Brenner

From youngest child to oldest son: Anatomy of an identity crisis

by Bill Brenner August 8, 2011 Children's issues

When a sibling’s death turns the baby of the family into the oldest son, you get an identity crisis filled with anger and confusion. As part of my treatment for OCD I’ve had to dig deep into my Revere past for clues on how I got this way. Recently, this huge piece of the puzzle presented itself. Mood music: [spotify:track:5QJ7GsolBcJP0tQnEZIU6i] I’ve written at length about my brother Michael, who died of an asthma attack when…  [Read More]

A Personality Defect We All Share

by Bill Brenner August 6, 2011 Communication Skills

When you hear about people with conflicting personalities, the image of an insane asylum patient comes to mind. If that were indeed the accurate picture, we would all be committed. Mood music: The truth is that we all have more than one personality. We can be one person in one group setting, then go to another group setting and become somebody else. I don’t think that’s such a bad thing, either. This all came up…  [Read More]

A Clean Map to a Helpful OCD Diagnosis

by Bill Brenner August 6, 2011 OCD

I found a great article on Newsmax.com that describes OCD perfectly. It also helps the reader figure out what to do with a diagnosis. A lot of it is what I’ve already written about, but it’s less personalized. In this case, that’s good. Mood music: What follows are excerpts and how I relate… OCD symptoms are usually associated with a condition of debilitating and disabling anxiety. It’s not easy to diagnose OCD and determine what…  [Read More]

U.S. Loses, AAA Credit Rating. Mental Health Tested Next

by Bill Brenner August 6, 2011 Fear and anxiety

For a lot of people with mental illness, world events can have a crushing effect on sanity. Especially when those events can have a direct effect on the personal finances. Mood music: For me and my OCD, it used to be that way all the time. The recent financial crises, including the latest news about the U.S. losing its AAA credit rating, would have sent me into a sharp tailspin a few years ago. I…  [Read More]

When Playing It Safe Makes Things Worse

by Bill Brenner August 5, 2011 Children's issues

I had coffee with a friend from the security industry yesterday. I thought I was coming to offer feedback on something having to do with the profession. Then he told me about a mental-emotional problem. Mood music: [spotify:track:4DA95pyBe6QORPGvTEuMWQ] He told me he had a bunch of medical tests and they discovered that a small corner of his brain doesn’t work as well as it should. The result is that his short-term memory frequently takes a…  [Read More]

BlackHat, Defcon, BSides: Symptoms Of Withdrawl

by Bill Brenner August 4, 2011 Addiction

Funny thing about how my brain works: I’m working from home, loving that Erin and the kids are right here with me. I’m getting a ton of work done, and the weather is perfect. But there’s a pull in the back of my brain, and it’s coming from Las Vegas. Mood music (Despite my recent post about Vince Neil, I do like his cover of this Aerosmith classic): http://youtu.be/_HHLWvfAPMA I’ve mentioned before how I love…  [Read More]

Lesson Of The Debt Debate: We’re All Selfish Bastards

by Bill Brenner August 3, 2011 Political discourse

Those of us with addictive personalities are selfish. You could say we’re the most self-centered people on the planet. It’s ALL about us. But I’m starting to realize we’re not the only ones who fail to consider the greater good. Mood music: I got to thinking about this stuff after reading the latest post in the “For Attribution” blog written by my friends Meredith Warren and Fred Van Magness. The post was about the vote…  [Read More]

My Name Is Bill. I’m Addicted To Stuff

by Bill Brenner August 2, 2011 Addiction

Given all I’ve written about my recovery from addictive behavior, you’re probably wondering why I’ve dragged you back into this dark room. The simple answer is that my fight is far from over. Mood music: This post is the opening salvo of what will be a weekly series on the 12 Steps of Recovery and how they apply to me. Since the start of the year I’ve been focusing more intently on the AA Big…  [Read More]

Caught On Camera: The Aging Process

by Bill Brenner August 1, 2011 Coping tools

Remember that post I wrote about the time I tried to be Jim Morrison? Well… Mood music: My stepmom found some photos of the younger me during a recent cleaning spree. Here I am, with long hair and very large glasses, circa 1992: That hair was halfway down my back before I decided to chop it a year later. Now, nearly 20 years later, the hair is ON my back. I still have pretty big…  [Read More]

13 Years Married To The Love Of My Life

by Bill Brenner August 1, 2011 Love

Erin and I have been married for 13 years. We’ve been together for 18. I don’t know where the time goes, but as I sit here typing this I’m the luckiest — and most grateful — guy on the planet. Mood music: We celebrated Saturday and my mood spectrum that day symbolizes what she’s had to put up with quite accurately. I was in a good enough mood in the morning and by afternoon I…  [Read More]

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