People you’ve never met who feel isolated and alone, go to google in distress, type in phrases about drugs and alcohol, myths, suicide, mental illness, eating disorders and more.
They land on my stories and your stories and many of them become part of our tribe. Some look up the names of your loved ones because they want to know more, they look at your pictures and read what you have to say.
They’re important. No one remembers facts, figures and most of the time, directions. They remember your stories because those are what move their souls and make them feel something. A lot of learning happens in those narratives.
I am an emotionally naked mental health speaker, and author of the Book, Diary of a Broken Mind and co-author with Kim O'Brien PhD, LICSW of Emotionally Naked: A Teacher's Guide to Preventing Suicide and Recognizing Students at Risk. I raised two boys, Richard and Charles, and lost my younger son, Charles to addiction and suicide on June 5, 2015. I help people foster a culture of connection to prevent suicide, reduce substance misuse and find life after loss. My motivational mental health keynotes, training and workshop topics include suicide prevention, addiction, mental illness, anxiety, coping strategies/resilience, and grief.
As talented and funny as Charles was, letting other people know they matter was his greatest gift. And now the legacy I try and carry forward in my son's memory.
Mental Health Speakers Website. Trained in ASIST and trainer for the evidence-based 4-hour training for everyone called safeTALK.
View all posts by Anne Moss Rogers
2 thoughts on “People need your emotionally naked story”
The stories are definitely what connects me to many others. Understanding the struggle and seeing the brave souls attempt to heal and find their way is something facts and figures can’t portray. These things might be helpful, but it is in sharing our personal struggles and experiences as we walk our path, that we become another flashlight on the journey. As we shine our light, that path for others becomes more illuminated.
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The stories are definitely what connects me to many others. Understanding the struggle and seeing the brave souls attempt to heal and find their way is something facts and figures can’t portray. These things might be helpful, but it is in sharing our personal struggles and experiences as we walk our path, that we become another flashlight on the journey. As we shine our light, that path for others becomes more illuminated.
So beautifully said, Don. People remember how you make them feel and if it’s relatable, they feel they are understood and not alone