Rob O’Brien – Medium

Rob O’Brien

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Human Parts

‘The Adopted’: how the Dutch rallied to honour their liberators after WWII

Thousands of American soldiers died liberating the Netherlands from Nazi Germany. After the war, the Dutch started adopting their graves…

Sep 13

‘The Adopted’: how the Dutch rallied to honour their liberators after WWII

Sep 13

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Human Parts

Whatever Happens, Grief Will Have Her Way

Shaken by her sudden death I took a camera into mum’s house to tell her story, my way. But grief had other plans.

Mar 21

Whatever Happens, Grief Will Have Her Way

Mar 21

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Published in
Human Parts

My Accidental Britpop Mum

After mum’s sudden death I fell into a hermetically sealed ’90s music bubble. And now it’s time to leave.

Nov 10, 2022

My Accidental Britpop Mum

Nov 10, 2022

Published in
Human Parts

‘After’: a 9-minute documentary that tried to kill me

We don’t talk about grief properly. And it’s only when I turned the camera on that I started to understand why.

Oct 18

‘After’: a 9-minute documentary that tried to kill me

Oct 18

Vale! Jack the Back

Dr.John O’Brien, or dad, was the world’s first full-time spinal surgeon. He left Sydney on the P&O Himalaya in 1963 and never returned…

May 13

Vale! Jack the Back

May 13

Published in
Long COVID Connection

Don’t forget about the ME/CFS, Long Covid carers. We need help.

Acceptance is a big part of the role for new carers. But no one told me I’d be trapped in a time loop explaining this disease to a society…

Jul 6, 2023

Don’t forget about the ME/CFS, Long Covid carers. We need help.

Jul 6, 2023

Published in
Long COVID Connection

ME/CFS: ‘You explain to people what it is, or you fight people about what it isn’t’

As advocates your job is to keep on talking, keep on posting and hope that one day things will change.

Dec 7, 2022

ME/CFS: ‘You explain to people what it is, or you fight people about what it isn’t’

Dec 7, 2022

The last migrant worker

Migrant worker abuse is global, horrific and systemic. But we still only view their lives as numbers or props in a 2-minute brand video.

Nov 17, 2022

The last migrant worker

Nov 17, 2022

Marjolein vs. The Mangrove

In a three-year battle with the Dutch government’s UWV for ongoing disability support, it’s clear we’re not supposed to win.

Sep 6, 2022

Marjolein vs. The Mangrove

Sep 6, 2022

Published in
Long COVID Connection

ME/CFS: When I sold my wife’s bike I said ‘goodbye’ to a healthy life, for now

It’s a win for the disease. But to the former skiers, climbers, campers and weightlifters: I salute you all.

May 6, 2022

ME/CFS: When I sold my wife’s bike I said ‘goodbye’ to a healthy life, for now

May 6, 2022

Rob O’Brien

Rob O’Brien

Writer & documentary filmmaker based in Amsterdam. Stories published in NYT, Independent & Penthouse. I write about things that move me.

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