Saturday, September 28, 2013
Monday, September 9, 2013
There is a very good reason for writing this book.
I started to get feedback yesterday and today from my Facebook page about my book Merry Christmas and a Happy PTSD. What was interesting was that I had to explain to each person I spoke to why I wrote the book to begin with and thought after talking to several people I should put the reason here in this blog.
About ten years ago a friend of mine commit suicide after years of institutionalization from the effects of PTSD. At the time I was working out issues I had with the same thing and writing about PTSD was the furthest thing from my mind. Then about two years ago a man I had served with finished up a career in the Army and abruptly commit suicide. Again I was not ready to write but I will readily say I was devistated by what had happened. Then recently the stat's came out about twenty two veterans from Vietnam through Afghanistan commit suicide every day and after some simple math I figured that in the next seven years more soldiers would die by their own hands than were killed in the entire Vietnam War, a distressing number to say the least. The twenty two suicides plus the newest stat about 30% to 35% of all veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan having contemplated suicide was what pushed me to write.
Having dealt with PTSD over the last forty years and having been quite successful in dealing with it I decided I would write about what I have done in a 'Guide book' or 'How To' format to see if it may be interesting to vets looking for something other than the cookie cutter approach being used today. I have never been treated by anyone in the Mental Health community, never been in a treatment program, never been to support or group therapy and never medicated. I was given a clean bill of health by a Psychiatrist at the VA when I was involuntarily sent there after an initial physical because I had been advised to be completely truthful with the doctors there and told them exactly what I had done as a front line combat soldier. What I have done is not for everyone but what I can tell you is this, I have had a very, very good life and plan to continue this course into the future.
My book 'Merry Christmas and a Happy PTSD is for sale as a Kindle book for $9.99 on Amazon and will be available in paperback by the end of the week, price hasn't been set yet. I've tried to make the book as simple and straightforward as possible, put my email address in the back of the book and am available to answer questions and comments at any time. Thanks, and give it a look if you have a chance.
About ten years ago a friend of mine commit suicide after years of institutionalization from the effects of PTSD. At the time I was working out issues I had with the same thing and writing about PTSD was the furthest thing from my mind. Then about two years ago a man I had served with finished up a career in the Army and abruptly commit suicide. Again I was not ready to write but I will readily say I was devistated by what had happened. Then recently the stat's came out about twenty two veterans from Vietnam through Afghanistan commit suicide every day and after some simple math I figured that in the next seven years more soldiers would die by their own hands than were killed in the entire Vietnam War, a distressing number to say the least. The twenty two suicides plus the newest stat about 30% to 35% of all veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan having contemplated suicide was what pushed me to write.
Having dealt with PTSD over the last forty years and having been quite successful in dealing with it I decided I would write about what I have done in a 'Guide book' or 'How To' format to see if it may be interesting to vets looking for something other than the cookie cutter approach being used today. I have never been treated by anyone in the Mental Health community, never been in a treatment program, never been to support or group therapy and never medicated. I was given a clean bill of health by a Psychiatrist at the VA when I was involuntarily sent there after an initial physical because I had been advised to be completely truthful with the doctors there and told them exactly what I had done as a front line combat soldier. What I have done is not for everyone but what I can tell you is this, I have had a very, very good life and plan to continue this course into the future.
My book 'Merry Christmas and a Happy PTSD is for sale as a Kindle book for $9.99 on Amazon and will be available in paperback by the end of the week, price hasn't been set yet. I've tried to make the book as simple and straightforward as possible, put my email address in the back of the book and am available to answer questions and comments at any time. Thanks, and give it a look if you have a chance.
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