I just read Howie Mandel's book, Don't Touch Me, in which the renowned stand-up comedian discusses his struggles with "germophobia", ADHD and OCD. He catalogs his numerous fears and neuroses and shares entertaining, harrowing as well as sad stories from a lifetime of dealing with theses conditions. They affected his school years; he never finished high school because it was so difficult for him to focus in class and to concentrate on the work. It affected his relationships as he needed undivided attention and an outlet for his kinetic energy.
Fortunately for him, he found his passion in performing on-stage, in TV series, in movies and lately as host of "Deal or No Deal"
He has travelled extensively, performed at the White House, meeting the Clintons and also he was honored with a star on the walk at Graumann's Chinese Theater.
Many kids and with these problems aren't so lucky and suffer from childhood into an unsettled aduldhood. Drugs are often prescribed to relieve symptoms. However, there are drug-free ways to help a person to integrate and move beyond these disorders. One of these ways is "The Pyramid of Potential" program, a multi-faceted approach which takes into account nutrition, vision, reflexes,sensorimotor problems, hearing , speech and cognitive training (catch-up for phases a child has missed while in a dysfuncional state)
Our goal is not perfection but success in school, in relationships, in life in general.
Mandel very bravely delineated his struggles for us, not sparing himself. He is to be thanked for this and admired for his courage and his ability make a marriage,a life and a career from such unlikely raw material.
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