Children’s issues

Hiding in Movies

by Bill Brenner June 3, 2010 Children's issues

The author used to pretend he was a character from movies and TV shows. Then he realized his own life was much more interesting. I used to channel my OCD on movies and TV shows with larger-than-life heroes and villains. Star Wars. Superman. Star Trek. It beat the hell out of real life. I guess it started when I was around 8 and first starting to get really sick from Crohn’s Disease. I had just…  [Read More]

The Brenners Invade The White House

by Bill Brenner May 17, 2010 Addiction

The author on returning from a journey that would have been impossible a few years ago. It’s 5:30 a.m. and I’m running on less than four hours of sleep, so excuse any typos that follow… I’m back in my “sunrise chair” the morning after returning from one hell of a road trip that included a private tour of the White House West Wing, a stay at buddy Alex Howard’s place and a stay with our…  [Read More]

The Fear of Current Events

by Bill Brenner May 11, 2010 Children's issues

Digging through storage boxes the other day, I found old, 20-plus-year-old copies of Time Magazine, Newsweek, Mother Jones and a host of others. There had to be four years of them, well over 200 volumes. And so I was reminded — again — of all the fear I used to carry around. As I’ve written before, fear and anxiety were byproducts of my particular brand of OCD, just like my addictions were a byproduct. The…  [Read More]

Parental Overload: No Big Deal

by Bill Brenner April 25, 2010 Children's issues

Nothing like a week of screaming kids to realize OCD aint what it used to be. Mood music for this post: “Mama Weer all Crazee Now” by The Runaways: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0nKcHaQowY&hl=en_US&fs=1&] A week like the one I’ve just had would have been impossible just a couple years ago. The kids were on school vacation, the same week as Sean’s 9th birthday and some very big security events in Boston. I did a lot of speeding back…  [Read More]

MomDay Monday – School Daze

by Bill Brenner April 22, 2010 Children's issues

Every school has its issues. Issues with teachers. Issues with other parents. Miscommunication. Problems with other students. Every school. There’s no getting around it. We’re all human. We all have failings. And a school is, after all, made up of us imperfect humans. But at what point does a school have so many issues it becomes dysfunctional? Is it when the faculty talks out of turn to your child about their parents’ divorce? Or perhaps…  [Read More]

Happy Birthday, My Sweet Boy

by Bill Brenner April 21, 2010 Children's issues

Mood music for this post: “Beautiful Boy” by John Lennon: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uldu_1-JCJE&hl=en_US&fs=1&] You entered the world on Earth Day, nine years ago. Nine years. Wow. You were graced with a beautiful Mom and a Dad with just a few kinks in him. I would always try to hide my OCD, depression and addictive behavior from you, but I wasn’t always good at that. You didn’t seem to mind. In fact, you helped me get well. We…  [Read More]

Happy and Productive in the Debris Field

by Bill Brenner April 20, 2010 Children's issues

The author used to come unglued around chaos. Now it floats past him. Mood music for this post: “Sons and Daughters” by The Decemberists: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5H8DwJI0uA&hl=en_US&fs=1&] Looking at the week ahead, it’s amazing I’m not hiding in a foxhole right now. I’m working from home the first part of the week while the kids are on vacation. Call it half a vacation, though I’m tackling a full plate of work each day. Sean’s birthday is this…  [Read More]

Sticking it to Kids Who Are Different

by Bill Brenner April 9, 2010 Children's issues

The author on why the school sports mentality is leaving kids who are “different” in the dust. Mood music for this post: “Mandocello” by Cheap Trick: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kH6H8wzfl4&hl=en_US&fs=1&] I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how schools tend to deal with kids who are different. Kids like the one I used to be. The school we send our kids to, a private Parochial school, is wonderful on many levels. My favorite thing about it is the…  [Read More]

Like Father, Like Son

by Bill Brenner April 7, 2010 Addiction

The author finds that OCD behavior runs strong among the men in his family. It’s been said that certain crosses run in the family. Addictive behavior. Depression. Yesterday my father had three long stents inserted into his leg. Apparently the entire leg was full of blockages. He eats compulsively, and this contributes to the problem. In 1998 he had quadruple bypass surgery, but the bad eating continued. He’s always been able to bolt down the…  [Read More]

An OCD Diaries Primer

by Bill Brenner March 20, 2010 Addiction

A collection of posts that form the back story of this blog. Mood music: [spotify:track:19n9s9SfnLtwPEODqk8KCT] The Long History of OCD An OCD Christmas. The first entry, where I give an overview of how I got to crazy and found my way to sane. The Bad Pill Kept Me from the Good Pill. How the drug Prednisone brought me to the brink, and how Prozac was part of my salvation. The Crazy-Ass Guy in the Newsroom….  [Read More]

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