Hey, it's Thursday, which means we're coming at you with a short feel-good story from a past guest. Hope you enjoyed the clip. This week, Howie Mandel. You've talked about when you were growing up and the bugs under the skin. Your perspective as to the impact that had was what? I'm not a psychologist, but I do remember vividly the feeling I had when they discovered that I'd been bitten by a sand fly and it laid its larva in me. And when I had these itchy little bumps and you scratch them and then you watch that itchy little bump crawl away under your arm to another place. I mean, it's like a horror film that you are the horror film. And the horror film didn't stop, so my mom took me to a doctor and that doctor decided to put me on display. There was a dermatology convention in Toronto because we didn't know what the answer was and they hadn't seen this in humans. I think cattle get it and they put me on a table in my tighty whiteies on a table as a little boy and the nurses would hold me down and then they would show them these bumps and then the bump would move and then he would take liquid nitrogen and put it on the bump. And liquid nitrogen is so cold it burns and I'd watch my skin sizzle and bubble and then it would open up and obviously kill the larva and I was screaming. They did one and then my mom, who didn't know what they were going to do, took me, unstrapped me from the table and said, your animals, don't do this and carried me out and I went home. And then every night we would pick one and then she would take a rough washcloth and alcohol and just rub it and rub it and rub it. At first it felt good but keep rubbing it until the skin broke and it would bleed and it opened until she got them all. So that was when I was, I think I was about six or seven, I don't know, I can't remember exactly how old I was. But that even talking about it holds, so... Talking about it holds what? It's hard to, you know, it's traumatized. Even today? Sure. I had things living under my skin. So, and so I have like an ick factor. Your mom too was afraid to join? Yeah, they were all, you know, and her mom. I remember her mom, I'd go to my grandmother's house and my grandmother would be outside waxing and polishing the porch, the concrete porch. I remember my crib. Somebody would come over and touch the crib and when I was a baby I couldn't even speak but I remember that when they'd leave my mom would go. Like, wind exit or whatever she sprayed on it and wipe it. So, you know, all these things, not that this is her fault, I just, I have OCD. What would happen with the warts on your hands from? Well, I was the, before everybody knew about all these antibacterial things, I had, this was during the talk show. I had, I knew that on this talk show, no matter who came in, I had to shake their hand. So, my friend is a surgeon and he gave me, I had a tub of that, whatever the surgical scrub is, he gave me that. I had that under my desk. So, I would, all day long, I would just have that surgical scrub. What I noticed is I started getting warts on my hands and I later learned that I had disinfected my hands so much that I had actually killed the good bacteria. So, I lost that and that's how I got it. A wart is like a virus, you know. So, I'm not negating the use of antibacterial but in moderation, not even moderation, use it normally. I just soaked in it. You still have a particular scenario you go through when you get to a hotel room? Yeah. Yeah, in a hotel room. I tap the comforter off the bed. I won't touch it or touch anything it touches. If there's carpet, I put down towels and make a path. I stopped using a black light. I used to use them. I know, I was using a black light but it just makes me crazy. And you're okay with kissing and hugging, right? Certain people. Yeah, yeah. Not everyone. Right. Yes. Yeah. I have children. What about the aviator movie, Scared You? It didn't scare me. I use it as an example. You know, Howard Hughes was probably one of the most productive, brilliant. At EDF, we don't just encourage you to use less electricity. We actually reward you for it. That's why when you use less during peak times on weekdays, we give you free electricity on Sundays. How you use it is up to you. EDF, change is in our power. How so to ship weekday peak usage by 40% for earn up to 16 hours of free electricity per week subject to fair usage care for all seasons and seasons. Visit edfenergy.com forward slash hard-hiredmanpower. Everything from aviation to filmmaking to creating the bra. You know, here's a guy that could do it all. And OCD overtook him to the point where at the end of his life, he's in the fetal position lying naked locked in a room peeing into a cup. And I've said to people, if you don't understand, you know, how close I am to that. And that's what I fight every day. It's not... Do you really feel that way though? Yeah. Yes. Yes. I could go down that little rabbit hole or worm hole and make myself not want to touch anything, anybody and, you know, I get the comfort in retreating from the world. And what prevents you from doing that? Terry, medication and therapy. And in what ways have you found the medication and therapy helpful? I wouldn't be on medication if it wasn't for Terry. I wouldn't have been diagnosed if it wasn't for Terry. And you resisted medication for a long time? I did because I was afraid that it would... I have a certain amount of success because of who I am and medication alters who you are. You know, it can alter who you are. I am, I'll be honest with you and my family makes fun of me. I'm kind of...which is easier for me to live. I'm numb. And Rich told me 32 years he's never seen you cry? No. I don't have fear. I don't have emotion. I don't have...I'm numb. I look for those...that's why I look for thrills to feel alive. I love rollercoaster. I want adrenaline. I want to feel scared. I want to feel something. I don't have that. So if you take the medication that I'm on, or at least the way it's affecting me, I don't feel anymore. But I can...but what's been good is it hasn't curbed my desires. I enjoy...I have enjoyment. I enjoy...or satisfaction in creating something, in producing something, in making something happen, in discovering something that I've never seen before. Are you happy? That's a good question. I think for the most part I'm content. Happy is a hard place for me to get to. I think it's a hard place for anybody to get to. Depending on what your definition of happy...I have moments where I'm really happy. You know, but those are flashes. You know, something happens, you go, wow. So I got moments of happiness. I spend a good amount of time in contentment, and I fight off darkness, always. It's a fight. That's it for now, but if you're hungry for more in-depth with Grand Ben Singer interviews, head over to youtube.com. You can dive into our deep library, which includes more than 2,000 clips spanning 12 plus years. Thanks again for listening.
