Once Upon an Upset

“When my child is suffering from OCD behavior, one way I can help him is by helping myself first. By asking myself: Am I catastrophizing here? Am I afraid that my child’s behavior is not normal? That I have to fix it immediately? Am I in panic mode about his behavior and worrying about his future? ”

—from 'When My Child is Suffering From OCD Behavior: A Piece For Parents’

Some ideas for how parents can support themselves while their child is experiencing OCD Behavior.

(Suitable for adults.)

When My Child is Suffering From OCD Behavior was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“When I was a younger person, I actually thought the purpose of my body was to get other people to notice it existed.”
—from 'My Body is a Chariot, and Other Things I Wish I'd known as a Teenager’

A conversation about the rocky relationship I had with my body as a teenager, and how I eventually discovered that my body is sacred—a place to cherish, instead of a place to avoid.

(Suitable for teens and adults.)

My Body is a Chariot, and Other Things I Wish I'd known as a Teenager was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“I remember when I was 11, wanting to write a memoir. I had a stepmother at the time who laughed when I told her my plan. “Don’t you need to be somebody before you write one of those?”

—from ‘Am I a Somebody: Two Stories’

Two very short stories—one for adults and one for kids—about the importance of sharing the most authentic version of who we are, without shame, and without needing an invitation to do so.

(Suitable for tweens, teens and adults.)

Am I a Somebody: Two Stories was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

"Most of the time when you hear a story about a cocoon, there’s a caterpillar inside. But not this story. This story is about a cocoon that had a butterfly inside. A butterfly who was afraid to fly."

— from 'The Butterfly Who Was Afraid to Fly’

A terrified butterfly is forced out of her cocoon and into the world where she meets an unexpected friend who encourages her to fly.

(Suitable for all ages.)

The Butterfly Who Was Afraid to Fly was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“Robert Baker had the flu, so he stayed home from work. He was told by his wife and also by his doctor to rest. But he couldn’t. He tossed and he turned and then gave up to watch TV in the living room.”

— FROM "CHANNEL 15 ½"

Channel 15 ½ is about a man who fears the whole world is against him and discovers it’s true. Sort of.

(Suitable for tweens, teens and adults.)

Channel 15 ½ was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“Once there was a girl who was born with glue in her brain.
At first she didn’t know about the glue. She only knew that something seemed wrong about her brain, because so many of her thoughts seemed to get stuck to it.
No matter where she happened to be, she would notice herself thinking these same thoughts, again and again. Even if she tried not to think these thoughts, there they were . . .”

— FROM 'THE GIRL WHO WAS BORN WITH GLUE IN HER BRAIN’

The Girl Who Was Born with Glue in Her Brain is about a girl with a handful of thoughts that keep her from being able to enjoy life as much as she would like to, and what she eventually decides to do about it.

Click here to purchase the illustrated book version of this story.

(Suitable for teens and adults.)

The Girl Who Was Born with Glue in Her Brain was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“Once there was a man who loved his flower garden.
Only red flowers grew in his garden, and he was proud of every one. ‘The finest flowers are red,’ he’d say. ‘And flowers of any other color simply don’t belong here.’”

— From 'Red Flowers'

When a man notices flowers of unfamiliar colors blossoming in his town, he worries they’ll ruin his garden and he tries to ban them.

Red Flowers is a story about how much more beautiful the world is when a person is willing to open up their perspective and let the perspectives of others become part of their own.

(Suitable for all ages.)

Red Flowers was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“I bet a long time ago, what you wanted to have happen in a day was what you needed to figure out how to make happen. If you were hungry, you had to find your food and prepare it, if you wanted shelter, you had to make it or help make it, and if you were cold you’d have to make a fire and figure out how to stay warm.”

— from ‘Thinking About School and Why Some Kids Don’t Like It’

(Suitable for tweens, teens and adults.)

Thinking About School and Why Some Kids Don’t Like It was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“Once, there was a man who had a secret. A pretty big secret. You see, even though he looked like a regular man, inside he was really a pigeon.” — from 'A Pigeon At Heart'

A Pigeon At Heart is a story about a man who felt it was easier to pretend to be someone he wasn’t. Until someone found out the truth of who he really was…

(Suitable for all ages.)

A Pigeon At Heart was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.

“I think what every upset is missing, is a bridge of understanding. There are many people who are builders of these bridges of understanding, but many of them are not building these bridges because the work is so tedious.”

— FROM 'BRIDGES OF UNDERSTANDING’

(Suitable for tweens, teens and adults.)

Bridges of Understanding was written by Jessica Laurel Kane; music by Jerome Rossen at Freshmade Music.

New episodes every Wednesday!

For illustrations, episode transcripts, children’s books and more, visit www.onceuponanupset.com.