When I wrote ALL FOR YOU, I was contemplating giving up writing. I was angry about a lot of things, some real life, some related to writing but all in all, I was not in a good place. I put everything I had into that book and thankfully, my editor fell in love with it.
But I was lucky in another way because I had an outlet for the dark that was bubbling up inside me. I’ve written about coming home from Iraq because it fundamentally changed something inside me – I suspect that none of us can deploy and come home the same. We’re different, we’re adjusting to new normals.
Some of our brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, have a harder time coming home. Some don’t know how to ask for help. And so many times, we stand by the sidelines and we don’t know how to offer help.
It’s the impossible question. What do I do?
I can’t tell you what to to do. But if you suspect that someone is going to harm themselves, stay with them. Call someone for help. Do not leave them alone.
And if it’s you? If you’re in a dark place that feels like it will never get better, it will. I promise you, it will. Just hang on for today. For tomorrow.
Ask for help. Please ask for help. Because there are people who love you, who need you, who are counting on you to be strong enough to say I can’t do this alone.
I wrote ALL FOR YOU because sometimes the strongest of us don’t know how to ask for help.
If you or someone you know needs help, you can call 1-800-273-8255 or you can go to http://veteranscrisisline.net.
Thank you for sharing this, Jessica, and thank you for telling Reza’s story! I can only hope that if the situation arrises, I can offer help to someone else.
Enjoy,
TBQ
Thanks for writing this book and for sharing this with us.
I can’t even imagine the trauma of returning from a war zone, where you have been for a year, and have to deal with “normal” life. Especially when children are involved. Thank you for your wonderful stories, and your amazing characters. I hope somehow, to find a way to help.
Reza’s story was amazing and I’m so glad you shared it with readers. It was a tough one to read, but it is one of my favorites …. for a lot of reasons.
The most difficult thing is to admit there’s a problem. And then to find help. Thank you!