An anniversary to forget: One man’s voice Contributing Author – Edward Joshua
Karen Bontrager
Founder Crisis to Courage for Men I Podcast | 16-24 | ★ Money & Thought Leader | TBRI Trauma Clinician | LMHCA Therapist | ACC Trauma Coach | No Fear in Love Race President | Coaching | Scholar | Fierce Men’s Advocate
Today is the day I almost never returned.
Life I had, I no longer yearned.
All I know was that my goals I never met.
Feeling worthless, yet family was all set.
Alone and far away from home at the time.
Nobody around to talk to, feeling as though I have committed a crime.
Healthy in body, but not in mind.
Looking around to see spiritually what I will find.
I try to remember what weighed me down,
Maybe it was, that my family was not around?
Being alone was nothing new I did it before.
Maybe this time, that year I wanted more.
Then, I think of the heavenly birthdays and Xmas’ I would have had.
Thinking of my family; surely, they would have been sad.
I stopped and never succeeded in my what would have been my self-inflicted death?
I thank God I did, so much I would have missed out on, if I did take my last breath. ?
I love my family, please forgive me, this is your anniversary to.
A reminder of what you went through. ?
Thank you, Edward Joshua for being a Contributing Author to the Relationships Matter Monday posts for Men. We greatly appreciate you sharing your own #crisistocourage4men poem regarding the suicidal thinking you once had. It was amazingly courageous.??
Image by?Free-Photos ?from?Pixabay ?
Thank you for reading.
Your thoughts are very appreciated.
Author’s Bio
Karen Bontrager helps 16-24-year-old men, and fellas, 25+ stuck there due to complex trauma, make permanent shifts in their behavior from merely surviving in life to thriving through transparent coaching/counseling in one-on-one conversations and in group work, and through topic sensitive trauma-informed workshops in a program called, “From Crisis to Courage.” With this ontological approach, I partner with my clients to discover their essence, (aka highest and best self) by powerfully reflecting and listening to them. My clients quickly learn how to generate self-awareness and to voice their own relationship needs in a clear, constructive way by learning key coaching techniques/evidenced based counseling approaches/tools to work past their traumatic events and addictions to move forward. The clients are then equipped to develop healthy relationships with key relationships: parents/siblings/friends, and with intimate dating partners because they have learned how to proactively use their voice.
She does a weekly Relationships Matter Monday LI article/poem/commentary for 16-24-year-old men and fellas, 25+, stuck there due to trauma, is a frequent contributor here, and has a bi-monthly podcast called Crisis to Courage to give gentlemen an honorable platform for learning how to use their voices in a way which gets respected, instead of turning to the old standbys: anger, isolation, and numbing behavior, so they can be the men they were made, formed, and created to be.
Crisis to Courage Podcast for Men Links below:
Are you a man, 16-24, or more mature, 25+ which feels stuck mentally, and is not able to move forward due to a traumatic past, which shows up as anger, isolation, or various numbing behaviors, and needs support? Or, do you feel something gets in the way emotionally from you loving self, others, or having the life of your dreams, but are not sure what? Please DM me on Linked In for an opportunity to talk.??
By design you can control
3 年It’s an experience I can write about today, in the hope it helps others, although the feelings may be different and the healing process is over a shorter or longer time. Seek help before you get to this point.
Founder Crisis to Courage for Men I Podcast | 16-24 | ★ Money & Thought Leader | TBRI Trauma Clinician | LMHCA Therapist | ACC Trauma Coach | No Fear in Love Race President | Coaching | Scholar | Fierce Men’s Advocate
3 年“Being alone was nothing new I did it before. Maybe this time, that year I wanted more.”
Founder Crisis to Courage for Men I Podcast | 16-24 | ★ Money & Thought Leader | TBRI Trauma Clinician | LMHCA Therapist | ACC Trauma Coach | No Fear in Love Race President | Coaching | Scholar | Fierce Men’s Advocate
3 年“I try to remember what weighed me down. Maybe it was, that my family was not around?”
Founder Crisis to Courage for Men I Podcast | 16-24 | ★ Money & Thought Leader | TBRI Trauma Clinician | LMHCA Therapist | ACC Trauma Coach | No Fear in Love Race President | Coaching | Scholar | Fierce Men’s Advocate
3 年"Healthy in body, but not in mind. Looking around to see spiritually what I will find."
Founder Crisis to Courage for Men I Podcast | 16-24 | ★ Money & Thought Leader | TBRI Trauma Clinician | LMHCA Therapist | ACC Trauma Coach | No Fear in Love Race President | Coaching | Scholar | Fierce Men’s Advocate
3 年"Alone and far away from home at the time. Nobody around to talk to, feeling as though I have committed a crime."