Lightning Strike Survivor Justin Briggs: How to Overcome Fear and Find Purpose

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Hello and welcome to Overcome, a mental health podcast.

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I'm your host Travis White and I am excited for today's episode.

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This is a place where you can speak about your mental health.

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And I'm here tonight with Justin Briggs.

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Justin is a husband, father, author and lightning strike survivor.

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He has built the life of his dreams and is here to help individuals remove blocks,

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overcome fears, find their passion in life and achieve their dreams.

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Justin, welcome to the show.

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Thank you.

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Glad to be here.

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It's a pleasure having you.

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And I'm just going to turn the microphone right over to you and have you tell us about

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your journey.

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Yeah, I would say the biggest thing for me has been kind of overcoming a lightning strike.

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like you said, I don't love the term survivor, but I definitely did survive it, which I'm

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happy to still be here and still going afterwards.

1:07

was actually 10 years ago, I

1:12

a couple weeks ago was the 10th anniversary.

1:14

And it's very closely tied to my youngest daughter who just turned 10.

1:21

So it happened a week after she was born.

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So my wife was just coming out of the hospital.

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We have a newborn at home.

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It happened when I was working.

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So I actually was...

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in the field, I was working as a backpacking guide at the time.

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And it was, I would say, the most, you know, transformative event that I've experienced.

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I've talked to a lot of people, you know, other survivors, that it just kind of changes

1:46

everything.

1:51

There's, you know, the time before it happened and the time after kind of

1:57

separate points of my life.

2:00

And what do you remember most vividly about the strike?

2:06

Luckily, I stayed conscious for it.

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mean, it happens a lot of times where you can be killed instantly.

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It's one of the uh highest fatality of any kind of incident like that.

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I can't remember.

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I did a bunch of research when I was in the hospital right afterwards just to kind of see

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where I was at.

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It's like a 70 to 80 % fatality rate for lightning strikes.

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So happy to be in the minority there in the group of survivors.

2:42

staying conscious during it was definitely a blessing.

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The times where people are knocked unconscious or it messes with everything in your body,

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you can have your heart stop or stop breathing.

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So, thankful that none of that happened.

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But the kind of most shocking thing for me was the inability to move.

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So, I would call it like a paralyzed for a short period of time, where all the energy and

3:11

electricity went into my body but didn't exit.

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So what happens a lot of times is it will kind of go in, you know, one part and exit

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another part.

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It went into my leg.

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It came up from the ground and just absorbed all of that energy.

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And so, you know, our bodies are all energy and electricity and it just seized every

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muscle in my body.

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So I was basically kind of

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like in the fetal position laying on the ground, but any point in my body that could bend,

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know, arms, wrists, legs, everything was kind of seized up and stayed in that position for

4:04

a while.

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And so I was kind of just panicked for the inability to move.

4:11

Yeah, that's crazy.

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I can only imagine like what was going through your head at that time.

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How long did it take for you to like grasp like what really happened to you in that

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moment?

4:24

It's hard to say because it was, you know, I guess I knew what happened instantly with

4:24

the, you know, it's like a like an explosion.

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So with the, you know, concussive force and the sound and the light, you know, it's a huge

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flash of light, obviously.

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And so I knew what happened instantly.

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But really, you know, laying there on the ground immobilized was just like, OK, well,

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I'm not dead, which is great.

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And kind of taking the stock of, know, okay, well, I'm breathing and I could, the only

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thing I could move was my head.

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So I was just, you know, locked up on the ground.

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And I think the first thought was, okay, well, I can't move, but can I, you know, kind of

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getting a bearing of what senses do I have?

5:17

So I was in the middle of a hailstorm is actually how it started.

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So it a summer storm, lots of hail.

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So there were hailstones covering the ground.

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So I kind of rolled over and put my hand and my face in the ice cubes basically and

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couldn't feel any cold, which was really surprising.

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You're laying in ice, it should feel

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and I couldn't feel anything.

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So not being able to move and not being able to sense that was I would say the most

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shocking and terrifying part of it.

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Luckily, would say within a few minutes I was able to start getting some movement kind of

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like from my core and getting to the point where I could

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shift my weight a little bit and start to move.

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So we had other staff was out there, the participants that we were guiding were out there.

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So was kind of like the need to get back to everybody and kind of assess the situation.

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And so once I was able to move, the first thing that I was starting to do is kind of like

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an army crawl that I could.

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move my arms enough to wiggle my body a few feet um to get back to everybody else.

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And that's just bizarre.

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I can't even imagine being a bystander and just being odd.

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I don't even think, me, I know what to do to even help you out.

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But what did your initial physical injuries look like?

6:55

So when we finally got to the hospital, was probably several hours, you know, because we

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were back country to get to a good hospital.

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Major extent of it was like muscle fatigue, muscle enzymes.

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So they compared it in the hospital to

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running a marathon or doing something extreme, you know, extremely taxing on your muscles

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in a very short period of time.

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so their concern in the hospital was, I can't remember the name of it, but it's whatever,

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enzyme happens when you, you you use your muscles, and that being dumped into my

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bloodstream kind of in a short period of time.

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Uh, so

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just checking liver functions, kidney functions, making sure everything internally is

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still healthy and safe.

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So it was a lot of flushing things out, know, checking, taking blood regularly and

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checking that just to make sure those things were okay.

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That was like the first couple of days.

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Had a ruptured eardrum and a little bit of

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blood in my ear from the concussive force.

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So I have about, I haven't had it tested.

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My wife definitely can tell one side is different than the other, maybe like 70, 75 % in

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one ear versus the other.

8:23

And I would say the biggest lingering thing is what it affected in my leg.

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where it kind of came up my

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right leg and had a burn scar on my leg, really affected everything in that area.

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So my foot, my ankle going up my lower leg was pretty bad for a while and took a lot of

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physical therapy to help with that.

8:54

And do you have any lingering pains or was it pretty much all gone now?

9:02

Physically, no, everything's gone.

9:06

I would say it took probably, I don't know, four or five years before, you know, feeling

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back to normal.

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Initially, it was a lot of nerve pain, a lot of nerve damage, a lot of soreness and just

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kind of weakness.

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I did...

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Like I said, the physical therapy was definitely a game changer.

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There was actually like one place that I went to that does, it's like a, can't remember if

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it's an infrared or whatever it is, but it's some kind of laser light therapy that was

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crucial in like the healing process.

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So everything in my foot and ankle using that laser therapy was...

10:01

Such a big difference before and after.

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Yeah, I can imagine.

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I've actually heard a little bit about kind of that laser infrared light therapy and it,

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from what I understand, it does wonders to heal.

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And side note, just me being me, but we actually got this thing my wife and I did.

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And it's this thing that you put up your nose when you start feeling sick in this infrared

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light.

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And if you do it at the right time, your signs and symptoms completely go away.

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think it takes like two or three times and it's actually really helps.

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Yeah.

10:39

Nice.

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Sorry, sidetracked there, but uh yeah, they're great.

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They're just these little teeny things.

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uh Let's get more, let's dig more into like the emotional side of things here.

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was the most difficult part of recovery when it came to like the emotional side and

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psychological recovery part.

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I would say, you know, it's a traumatic event kind of in all aspects.

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So obviously, you know, there's the physical side, you know, mentally and emotionally kind

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of the, you know, I wouldn't consider it PTSD level.

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My dad had PTSD.

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I've talked to a lot of people who have...

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gone through that, I wouldn't say it's at that level, but they're definitely, know,

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lingering kind of things that would, you know, bring up or affect my emotional state,

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mental state.

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you know, obviously storms just in general for the short period afterwards, you know, it

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was like very sensitive, you know, it's like, I can.

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I can feel it or sense it off in the distance, like I'm going inside, even if it's not

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raining.

12:07

And I think the biggest thing was the explosion, like the light and kind of bomb going off

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sensation stuck around for a while to where I would have

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dreams and it would be like you know that's kind of like the end of the dream like not

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even attached to anything else it would just be like I wake up like in a panic because the

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you know strike just happened and not it's not like I had a dream about being back there

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it's just like you know unrelated and the explosion goes off you know in my mind and I

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wake up

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in a panic.

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And that lasted for definitely a few years afterwards and kind of took a lot of time to

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process the event and, you know, beyond the physical healing, the mental and emotional

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healing to get past that, you know, fear that had so much control over me.

13:17

Yeah.

13:19

Did you have to use any sort of therapy or anything to get through the nightmares or the

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somewhat PTSD that you explained to, did you have to use any type of therapy or how did

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you overcome that part?

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So really, not in a traditional sense of going to a therapist, but the same idea of

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talking about it with friends and family.

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And really, I think once my understanding of the event and kind of the things that led up

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to it and things afterwards, that understanding

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and kind of acceptance shifted.

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That was when I really noticed, you know, being able to let go of things and there was

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less of that fear and anxiety around it.

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Yeah, that would be tough.

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Another thing that I'm curious about is you said you had a newborn at the time.

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How did that, let's see, I'm trying to think of how to word it.

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How was your wife able to navigate the situation with a newborn and did you have any other

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kids at the time or was it just the one?

14:37

Yeah, so our oldest daughter was three at the time.

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ah Yeah, so, yeah.

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So the, I find it funny, the initial conversation that we had, which I still kind of joke

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around with my wife about it.

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So she was, you like I said, a week out of the hospital, she had had a C-section for the

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birth.

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So major surgery, she's still recovering at home and trying to take care of a young kid

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and a newborn.

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So I had only been at work for a few days, but we were able to communicate.

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So even when I was working and the schedule was very weird where we would work a week at a

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time and then have a week off.

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So when I would go away,

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out of the house and gone for a week straight.

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It's not like coming home at night, but still able to communicate.

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So I'd be able to call when I got service or send texts.

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So she was used to be checking in every once in a while.

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And so the strike happened.

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I've been in the hospital for a few hours.

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They say everything's looking okay and decided to...

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call my wife and check in with her and let her know everything that was happening.

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And as soon as I got on the phone with her, she kind of launched in about her day, what

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she was going through and the pains that she was having and her stomach was upset and all

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the different things that come with recovering from surgery and a C-section.

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And so just kind of letting her vent and it was...

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a good five to maybe 10 minutes of just decompressing, talking about her day, everything

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that was going on before I let her know what was going on with me.

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And when I told her, she didn't believe me.

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was like, that's not funny.

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Don't joke around about stuff like that.

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So I had to send her a picture of my burned up foot in the hospital.

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She, I didn't want her to freak out because obviously she has so much going on herself.

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But you know, I'm good, I'm alive, I'm, you know, mostly intact and, you know, I'll be

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home as soon as possible.

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yeah, the fact she's got mad at me for not saying something immediately.

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whatever I'm going through, just interrupt me and tell me like you're in the hospital,

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but, you know.

17:04

I would have probably done the same thing and let my wife vent before I said anything,

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just because it's like she's getting out her frustration before, I the bigger blow.

17:17

Yeah.

17:18

Yeah, it's all crazy.

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And those dark moments that you've been explaining and how were you able to...

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Stay strong for your family even while you're struggling.

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So like I said, the kind of realization or understanding of why all of this happened in

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the first place was really instrumental for me.

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And it definitely took a while, you know, it wasn't a quick process.

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So I think once I had kind of talked to people about the incident initially,

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It took a while for the realization to hit, but so it came to me where I basically called

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this into being or, you know, created this thing happening to me without even intending to

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or realizing it.

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So it was probably a year or so before the strike happened.

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I was talking to my wife, sitting outside, you know, summer thunderstorms off in the

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distance.

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I've always been fascinated by lightning, just the power and magnitude.

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People describe it like the temperature and energy of the surface of the sun and an

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instant.

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And it happens all over the place, but it's not something that we can really comprehend

18:40

that much power.

18:48

And just kind of random comment to her that,

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I said it, I wonder what it would feel like to be hit by lightning, not realizing.

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And she laughed it off and didn't really pay much attention to it or talk about it after

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that, just something random that I said.

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And I'm glad I put the stipulation that if I could survive, so the whole piece of it, if I

19:06

could experience that much power and

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you know, live to tell the tale.

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And I said that, you know, I put that out there.

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So realizing that that was something that I had asked for, and I got it was, you know,

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kind of a huge revelation.

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And so, you know, moving forward, it's like, even in those dark times, it's like, you

19:31

know, there's a lot of pain and suffering and, you know, challenge.

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but that was something that I asked for and I got it.

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you know, learning that lesson of like, be careful what you wish for, be careful what you

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ask for.

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So now, you know, I only put out there positive things that I want to have happen.

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It's like, all right, if I'm gonna say something, it's gonna be intentional.

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It's gonna be, you know, for my good, my family's good, the greater good.

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So, and also kind of recognizing that that

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it is like an ability or a power that we have, you know, to create things and bring things

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into life and to reality.

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know, you know, people ask afterwards, you know, even in the hospital and days after, you

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know, whenever I talk to people about it, if they're, if I notice anything like a, like a

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superhero that, you know,

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things have changed.

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tried in the hospital touching my phone to finger to my phone to see if I could charge it

20:35

or have any kind of electrical changes but no physical know superpowers but I would say

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that realization of like this is the power that we have is kind of a superpower now so

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using words as a tool or a power.

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Yeah, I hear all this and I first of all, think I hope I haven't said anything to my wife

20:58

that I'm going to manifest upon myself.

21:07

That was like, I've been sitting here for a second.

21:10

Is there anything like I don't think there has been, but I never know because a lot of

21:10

times I say stuff out of sarcasm and stuff.

21:21

So I hope I haven't said anything that's going to.

21:24

Yeah, you got to realize the intention.

21:26

Yeah.

21:28

But then second thing that I was thinking about was I hear your story and I was like, I

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just think you're so lucky to

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to see.

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don't know if have so much less happen to you than what could it could have been.

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Like I don't want to minimize it at all because it's not what I'm trying to do.

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But I feel like it could have been so much worse.

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But you not not that I not that what you went through wasn't hard or challenging.

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But you're you're you're here and

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survivors and, you know, the physical effects, you know, that could be, you know,

22:02

lingering, you know, the emotional damage.

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Yeah, it's definitely for how bad it was.

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And, you know, it was traumatic.

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I'm it's weird to say I'm grateful that it happened and it happened the way that it did.

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you know, moving forward from it, I, I appreciate, you know, the things that led up to it

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and the moment and everything afterwards.

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So, yeah, it's weird to say, you know, being grateful that I got struck by lightning.

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It's, don't want it to happen again.

22:36

That's for sure.

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It's the one and done, you know, I, and I don't, you know, wish it upon anybody else.

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You know, I would not recommend, Hey, you know, this is an experience for everybody.

22:48

ah Definitely not.

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And I don't personally think it sounds weird when you say that you're grateful for it

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because it's our, to me, our most challenging times are the ones that teach us the most

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about ourselves.

23:00

So that moment though, that you were, you know, now exploring the idea of you manifesting

23:00

it yourself.

23:08

How did that shift your perspective on life and your own personal power?

23:15

Yeah, that's where things really started to turn for me because going through kind of that

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dark period that is, like you said, having those challenges and struggles kind of defines,

23:33

you know, okay, which way are you going to go, you know, succumb to, you know, all those

23:33

things and kind of let the darkness, you know, take over or, you know,

23:45

decide to do something different and make a change and learn from it, grow from it,

23:45

whatever it is.

23:52

And that's so much harder to make that decision and then to keep making that decision

23:52

every day and kind of moving down that path.

24:03

For some reason, I don't really know why or where it comes from, but I really enjoy the

24:03

struggle.

24:11

I've had other kind of...

24:15

big events and that's just one of them.

24:17

those times are what I, I don't enjoy it the most, because obviously the great times after

24:17

the struggle are amazing.

24:28

The ability to see the progress and all the fruits of your labor, I love that part of it.

24:33

But there's something about being challenged.

24:37

Am I able to rise to the occasion?

24:40

What about my skills and abilities and fortitude can I apply here?

24:47

And what can I learn from it?

24:50

It's always like the opportunity to evolve and grow in those times is something that I

24:50

enjoy.

25:02

And so I think...

25:05

and learning that about myself and also sharing that with others.

25:09

I don't think that's uh a typical response to challenging events and struggle.

25:15

So people are always kind of curious about that and want that for themselves.

25:21

And I think a lot of times there's the desire there and just the...

25:28

the understanding or the, I guess, guidance or skills needed to kind of go through that

25:28

process isn't always there.

25:36

So that's what I love, you know, sharing with people and then giving them those tools so

25:36

that they can go on and do it, you know, for themselves.

25:44

And the same thing, you know, then they can go on and do it for other people.

25:48

So it's kind of that pay it forward mentality and, you just keeps growing and...

25:53

spreading throughout people throughout the world.

25:57

Yeah, I love that.

25:58

And I admire your totally positive mindset through these struggles because being honest, I

25:58

don't always have that.

26:08

My wife always tells me I'm very pessimistic.

26:12

And I'm trying to overcome that because she's the more optimist in our relationship.

26:18

And so every time I go through something bad, she has to sit me down and be like,

26:22

Okay, don't be pessimistic about it.

26:24

Like things are going to be better.

26:27

Can't get any worse from here.

26:29

I'm like, well, can't they?

26:30

Like, are you sure?

26:31

So she keeps me on my toes, but I really love that positive mindset.

26:37

So somebody who's kind of struggling with that, what tools would you give them or advice

26:37

would you give them to start thinking like,

26:46

get their mind into a where they can think that way.

26:50

So definitely starting small is always the kind of basis for it.

26:58

So, you know, we do things every day, you know, every week, every month, sometimes without

26:58

even realizing, you know, that it's, we just, you know, overcame something or, you know,

27:09

did something challenging.

27:11

And so figuring out and identifying those things in your daily life.

27:20

is crucial to be like, you know, instead of overlooking it or just, you know, like

27:20

downplaying it, doing the opposite.

27:29

it's like, you know, identifying it, focusing on it, kind of like shedding light on, I do

27:29

things, I, you know, have overcome things or, you know, big events in the past.

27:40

So recognizing

27:42

those successes and then building on it moving forward is okay, whatever the next big

27:42

thing that comes up is again, starting small.

27:53

So I think what happens a lot is whatever the challenge at hand is seems daunting because

27:53

it's, you know.

28:03

complicated or lots of steps or you know might take a lot of time and once it's broken

28:03

down into you know manageable things like what is it how do you eat an elephant right one

28:18

bite at a time it's like yeah you're not gonna you know swallow a whole elephant you're

28:18

not gonna take on this huge project or you know events all at once so you take it

28:31

one bite at a time and you have that consistency is the greatest thing.

28:38

If you can do anything for a long period of time, then anything's possible.

28:44

And you hit on a word that I really like right there is consistency.

28:48

Cause I think when it comes to, and I'm not just saying mental health here, want to, think

28:48

physical is right there with it.

28:57

But if you're consistent in doing something, you can overcome anything.

29:00

And it's so much easier to stay focused.

29:06

So with your, this journey of uh self discovery and go through your recovery, how did that

29:06

experience evolve your relationships with maybe your wife or as a father?

29:22

Yeah, it was huge.

29:24

kind of my transformation was going from really just kind of existing and going through

29:24

the motions to a lot of people having experiences like this or other.

29:50

traumatic events, it's like a second chance at life.

29:54

I wouldn't say that was really the driving force or kind of sentiment for me, but just.

30:03

there's more to experience.

30:06

And I want to, I asked for this major experience and I got it.

30:11

So I was like, well, what else can I ask for?

30:13

once things started to improve kind of internally for me, how can I share that with

30:13

others?

30:21

starting with my wife and kids, building our relationship.

30:26

ah You know, my communication was something that I had always struggled with from, you

30:26

know, the way that I was raised, you know, being kind of more quiet, closed off, you know,

30:37

you don't share things, don't talk about a lot of things.

30:39

But just because, you know, your past or the way things were done doesn't mean it's, you

30:39

know, the best way.

30:46

And so changing that up.

30:48

myself and communicating with my wife and then seeing what it does and you know what it's

30:48

able to bring about and grow the connection and make things so much better.

31:03

You know wanting to do more of that and then with our kids you know they were young at the

31:03

time.

31:12

I was able to stay at home with them and

31:18

just experience everything, the good, the bad, the boring, the exciting.

31:23

But being able to kind of see them progress through everything kind of got me more in

31:23

touch with my own inner child and seeing everything through their eyes and wanting to give

31:40

them experiences and lessons and.

31:43

you all the things that I didn't have.

31:46

And so being able to have that awareness for myself and then being able to share it with

31:46

them was huge.

31:53

That's really cool.

31:54

It sounds like being able to stay home with your kids, it helps shape your healing.

32:03

That's really cool.

32:06

And I love this stuff.

32:08

I love every piece of what you're saying.

32:10

it's, it just makes me like think of my own life and what I can change going forward.

32:19

And that's, that's a big reason why I do this is for everybody else to, my listeners first

32:19

to hear the stories, but also like it gives me motivation as well.

32:31

Yeah.

32:35

So in the very beginning, as I was telling people who you were, one of the words that

32:35

popped up was author.

32:45

Can you tell us a little bit about that?

32:48

Yeah, that actually kind of came about right after the lightning strike.

32:55

So not something that I ever would have thought about or, as a kid, you know, it was like

32:55

no desire to write even, you know, in in school and high school, any kind of English

33:16

assignment writing assignment, you know, is like

33:18

begrudgingly like, okay, I just have to get this done for a grade.

33:21

wasn't taking joy in writing.

33:25

So it was an interesting realization that it was something that I wanted to do when it

33:25

came about.

33:37

So I had the idea.

33:43

Not sure when exactly after, you know, being at home and recovering and you know, like I

33:43

said, at home with two kids and a lot of time on my hands and not the most engaging

33:53

conversations with a newborn and a young kid.

33:56

But, you know, seeing movies was always really big for me, you know, taking them to the

33:56

theater, you know, for the first time when they were young and...

34:06

I feel like it's been this way for a while where movies versus when we were younger now is

34:06

more spin-offs, recreations, sequels.

34:18

There's not a lot of original things, new stories coming out in movies.

34:26

And a big favorite genre of mine has always been sci-fi.

34:30

and seeing different things that come out.

34:35

I would say every couple of years there's a great sci-fi movie, but what else could be

34:35

done?

34:46

What kind of new ideas haven't been explored in that genre?

34:52

And not really sure how I would get a movie made.

34:58

You know, it's not something that I could control even if I did, you know, write a

34:58

screenplay.

35:03

You know, the chances of it being made into a movie are very small.

35:10

But what I do have control over is writing something, you know, that I could put out

35:10

there.

35:15

So switching from kind of the movie realm to book realm, where it's like if I tell the

35:15

story, you know, like a movie.

35:26

It's uh something that I can put out there in terms of a book series.

35:30

So then, you know, opened up the computer and fired up a Word document and started putting

35:30

ideas down and it was such a process, you know, I've talked to other people that have

35:44

gotten books out, you know, some people are able to

35:47

crank it out in a few months.

35:49

Some people take years.

35:51

So mine was on the longer end.

35:52

And I would say from start to finish of the first book was about six years.

35:58

And there's a lot of things that come up during that time and a lot of hesitation.

36:03

At a point it was just done and I was kind of just sitting on it, hesitant to publish it.

36:10

But yeah, it's been, you know, another journey learning process challenge, you know, all

36:10

the all those things to, you know, come to a point where I just published the second book

36:23

in the series a couple months ago.

36:25

And, you know, working on the third book in the series, like I said, it's not something

36:25

that I ever thought that I would kind of

36:33

have, you know, be a part of my life, my bio.

36:37

But now that it's out there, you know, I talk to people, you know, people read it and ask

36:37

questions.

36:43

And that's like, my favorite thing is discussing it, you know, how it affected people,

36:43

what they thought of it, you know, I've had these ideas and things going around my mind

36:53

for years now.

36:55

So that's been

36:57

I think my favorite part.

36:59

That's really cool.

37:01

Even though you said you sat on it for a bit, now it's out there.

37:05

You did it.

37:05

So kudos for you.

37:07

I can't tell you how many times that I've had an idea and just didn't even do anything

37:07

about it.

37:14

And I see somebody else, create something that's like it.

37:18

And I'm like, why didn't I just do that when I said I was going to do it?

37:22

Yeah, that's what the interesting thing I've seen with like creativity and ideas is, you

37:22

know, it's almost like it comes to you, right?

37:33

Like you are presented with this idea and you don't really know, you know, kind of the

37:33

catalyst or the uh inspiration behind it.

37:42

It's just that like you have it.

37:44

And if

37:48

You know, it's hard to say like does it that same idea kind of come to a bunch of people?

37:54

You know, because there are stories like that where it's like, you know, this person is

37:54

creating this thing or this person is, you know, writing this thing or whatever it is and

38:05

it's like, how do you so many people have, you know, kind of similar things and and what's

38:05

your interpretation of it, you know, because like whatever you thought of and

38:16

creative might be different from somebody else.

38:19

Yeah, it's crazy.

38:20

I want to say it was my therapist.

38:23

I was talking to him and I honestly think it was about the idea of my podcast and having a

38:23

place for the speak about mental health for people.

38:33

And he said, because I started seeing him like really a lot before I started this.

38:39

started this back in January and he mentioned to me, said, no, just, just, do you have

38:39

this idea?

38:46

I think it's great.

38:47

You just need to push forward and do it.

38:50

Otherwise, somebody else is going to get the same idea and do exactly, almost probably to

38:50

take it from you as if it wasn't yours anymore.

39:02

So it's up to you to take what the universe is giving you and act upon it.

39:09

Yeah.

39:10

And you did.

39:12

Yeah, I'm here, it's going good.

39:15

m

39:19

absolutely how I felt.

39:21

So the reason that I kind of got over the fear of, you know, putting something out there

39:21

for people to experience with the book was that idea if I didn't and if I waited and

39:36

something came out just like it, I would have like, it's, know.

39:41

heart breaking because yeah, it's like something, you're so passionate and like, you

39:41

created something and then watching somebody else do it, yeah, would be.

39:55

Yeah, couldn't come back from that, I feel like.

39:59

Yeah, it's I could imagine the one thing that the one idea that I had right before it came

39:59

out was I don't believe to this day that I have the skill set to do or know the correct

40:12

knew the correct way to do it.

40:14

But I remember going to a restaurant.

40:17

It was super, super busy.

40:20

And this was before they had any app or phone system to link it directly to your site.

40:28

mobile numbers like to text you.

40:31

So I told my wife, I was like, how cool would it be if I could create an app that I could,

40:31

we could just enter in our phone information and it would just text me back and tell me

40:46

how long the wait was for specific restaurants, the ones that are busy.

40:50

She said, that would be really cool.

40:52

A year later, guess what popped up?

40:55

Yeah.

40:58

I was like, man, we could be living a totally different lifestyle at this point if I would

40:58

have done this.

41:03

But the great part about that is you know your ideas are, you know, worthwhile.

41:09

So then whenever the next one comes around, you're like, okay.

41:13

Can I pick that up faster and act upon it?

41:15

Yeah, awesome.

41:19

Well, just a couple, honestly, like little follow up questions here.

41:24

And this one, I got us on kind of a sidetrack there, but I love books, so I had to ask.

41:35

But I asked this question, it's pretty general.

41:39

But I like to hear the response that I get from everyone because they're all so different.

41:44

What would you say is the biggest stigma in regards to mental health?

41:53

feel like it's changed so much over time.

42:01

You know, it used to be not talking about it.

42:04

And I love the fact that it's that has changed to where people are more comfortable

42:04

talking about it.

42:14

I guess.

42:18

Maybe not necessarily a stigma or just misinformation or misunderstanding, I guess, but

42:18

just how much it affects the daily lives of people.

42:30

where you, I guess the difference between physical health and mental health, where if you,

42:39

say to somebody, you have a physical issue or disability or whatever it is, people

42:39

instantly recognize, okay, I understand that you are struggling, right?

42:54

Like if it's, you had a leg amputated or you have multiple sclerosis or whatever issue

42:54

that people...

43:05

Accept it easier, I guess and just kind of know that's what you're struggling with Versus

43:05

when you know people bring up whatever their mental health issue is That there isn't the

43:19

same I you know understanding or Empathy that comes along with okay, you're struggling,

43:19

you know every day

43:30

just like somebody who has a physical issue that, I think just like the acceptance of

43:30

things weren't talked about in the past and they're talked about more now, I look forward

43:44

to the day that, like I said, when people have a handicap parking pass and they park a

43:44

little bit closer because it's harder for them to get into the grocery store.

43:54

you know, in the same way that, you know, people talk about, okay, well, you know, I have

43:54

bipolar disorder and I can't get out of bed some days and people are like, okay, yeah,

44:04

absolutely.

44:05

so, you know, people going out with friends or going to work or, know, whatever the

44:05

situation is, there's that immediate kind of understanding and acceptance.

44:14

Like it is so hard some days, you know, just to function.

44:22

I love it.

44:24

And if your story could help just one person, what is the one thing you'd want them to

44:24

take away from it?

44:36

So recently I've been kind of focusing on this for myself and for other people and the

44:36

idea that, you know, things get better and they can just keep getting better.

44:48

So.

44:51

I guess, not being limited by circumstances or situations or all the things that kind of

44:51

tend to overwhelm you.

44:58

That looking at small things, small victories, small success, it just builds.

45:06

And that idea that whatever you think the best situation or best scenario possible.

45:13

is possible that it can be better than that.

45:16

And it's like, and then you get to that point and you didn't think it could get better.

45:19

And then it keeps getting better.

45:21

so it's always surprising.

45:24

And I love hearing from people, you know, that I've talked to and worked with that it's

45:24

just so surprising and it's so motivating and uplifting and you know, it's just a

45:37

Yeah, that simple idea is one of the best things out there.

45:42

That's awesome.

45:44

I love it.

45:44

And you've mentioned it a couple times, but I want to emphasize on it is cell breeding for

45:44

small stuff.

45:55

So what is next for you, for your journey?

46:00

Where do see yourself in five years?

46:05

So right now, like I said, is working on the third and final book of this series that I've

46:05

been, you know, 10 years now in the making after the lightning strike and having the

46:20

trilogy, you know, done and out there and people experiencing it.

46:25

If it ever was, you know, able to be made into a movie, you know, book adaptation into a

46:25

movie, I would love that.

46:32

That's something that I would want to create and be a part of and have people go to the

46:32

theaters and be excited about a movie trilogy that's new and different.

46:43

Spending time with my wife and kids has been, always has been, and it's just...

46:50

continues to amaze me.

46:52

uh You know, our kids are older now moving into teenage years and I guess experiencing all

46:52

of the different stages with them, you people talk about, you know, being worried about

47:05

different parts, you know, the terrible twos or, you know, kids going into, you know,

47:05

becoming teenagers and all the drama and things that come along with that, you know.

47:15

but instead of looking at the negative things, like I said, I'm always trying to look at

47:15

the positive things.

47:24

And so I know there's gonna be drama.

47:28

I live in a house with three women, so, and they're coming into their own and I'm sure

47:28

puberty is gonna be a wild ride and I'm here for it.

47:44

It's something that I have no experience with myself, you know, for them, but their mom

47:44

does and we get to do it together and, you know, raise kids, you know, to become adults.

47:56

And it's really such an interesting period.

47:59

You know, people talk about having kids, they're really only kids for a short while and

47:59

then they're adults forever, you know, it's so.

48:08

Yeah, the time, you know, the next few years before they are adults and, you know, go out

48:08

on their own, you know, this is what we have with them.

48:15

So I'm excited about that.

48:19

Awesome.

48:19

love it.

48:20

And I have a daughter, two sons, and my daughter is five years old now.

48:25

She's my oldest.

48:27

And I am completely petrified of those teenage years, just because she's really, the best

48:27

way to describe her, she's a Spitfire.

48:35

She's really sweet and sassy, but I'm totally petrified because I don't know what the

48:35

future holds with this.

48:43

Yeah.

48:44

Yeah, she's going to be a strong woman.

48:47

Yeah, that's what I'm hoping for.

48:51

but, and also the last thing is, is there anything that we did not discuss today that you

48:51

would like to bring up?

49:02

I don't think so.

49:03

I that's, I feel like we covered a lot and yeah, that was excellent questions to get me

49:03

thinking about, you know, my own stuff and yeah, introspective and being able to share

49:18

everything.

49:19

That was excellent.

49:21

Awesome.

49:21

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed our time here.

49:24

I admire the work you're doing and I'm absolutely glad that you survived and that you're

49:24

using your story to help people out and push through their own struggles.

49:34

That's a lot.

49:35

So thank you again for coming on the show.

49:38

Definitely, thank you.

49:40

Thank you to all the listeners out there.

49:42

Thanks for spending this hour with us.

49:44

Please share, please follow us, like our stuff, share it, and subscribe.

49:49

That's the best thing you can do for us right now.

49:52

Just get our name out there.

49:53

Thanks again for listening.

49:54

Until next time.