MSI Press Blog

Excerpt: Lessons from Children Rule of the Road: Forge your armor out of resiliency Mile Markers : War Zone, Trauma, PTSD, Suicide, Dutch Levees, Bounce Back, Magical Thinking, Easy Temperament, Vulnerability, Consumer Nation, George Foreman, Mentoring, Open Communities, Persistence, Tree of Resiliency, Self-Evaluation, Exploitive Culture In the days and months after that game-changing ride home from Bob , I began to ponder how I might go about amending my own life to better reflect the principles first emphasized in my youth and latter reinvigorated by the example of this modest soul. As someone who had firsthand experience with poverty and minimal assets, I was surprised at how quickly I had bought into the desire to demonstrate to outsiders that here was a man who exceeded his humble beginnings. Now that I was equipped with a new self-awareness, would this knowledge translate into real and lasting change? Temptation to buy and consume in an attempt to feed the appeti

  Excerpt from Recovering from Domestic Violence, Abuse, and Stalking by Joanna Romer -  My Experience: Lauretta Avina              “I’m a huge believer in counseling, and I never used to be.”   When Lauretta Avina heard that her sister had been murdered by her boyfriend, she couldn’t believe it at first. “I felt disbelief,” she said. “I managed to walk next door to my neighbor’s house. I told him, ‘My sister’s dead!’” Lauretta said her sister, Franca Bars, who was 38 at the time of her death in 2006, had been going with her boyfriend David on and off for seven years. “I only met him once,” Lauretta told me. “He had an angry look. That was two months before the murder.” Despite the angry look, Lauretta said she would never have imagined David capable of murder. “My sister’s exact words were ‘He would never hurt me,’” Lauretta said. “A friend said later he was abusing her. I kick myself in the butt—why didn’t I question her? But my husband had been in Iraq and came home injured; I was

  Recently, I wrote an Amazon review of My Yellow Balloon , a very touchingly written and extremely insightful book for children who have experienced loss, written by Tiffany Papageorge, illustrated by Erwin Madrid, and published by Minoan Moon. It is an impressive book on all levels; the writing, the illustrations, and the quality of publication. Something that belongs in the room and hands of every child who has ever lost anyone or anything of importance to him/her. Noah's New Puppy , a book by Richard Rice and Geri Henderson, illustrated by Vincent Rice, that we published a couple of years ago, fulfills a similar purpose but for a different need. Tenderly written, including with guidance for parents on its use, and gorgeously illustrated, this book focuses on PTSD and indeed belongs in the hands of all children whose parents experience PTSD as well as with those who work with them. (Note: MSI Press, editor@msipress.com, will provide a complimentary copy to reviewers and special

Released today! Noah's New Puppy  was written from veteran Richard Rice's own experience  of post-war PTSD. The almost miraculous effects of his service dog, Abby, saved him and saved his  marriage, bringing him out of hiding. He shares this story with families of small children to help them understand the suffering of their parents  and the  healing effects a dog can bring to the whole family. The Parent's Guide encourages conversations between parents and their children about PTSD, post-deployment issues, or parents and children suffering from depression. Richard's brother, Vincent, another  veteran, is  the illustrator. Available online, at select retailers, and from the MSI Press webstore: www.msipress.com/shop. Use coupon code FF25 for a discount for blog followers.

  Release this week: hard cover edition of the popular Mental Health Mayday by Gregg Bagdade. Book description: From their swearing-in all to the way until retirement, even the most hardened firefighters can be affected by mental health concerns. A fascinating look behind the scenes of the career of a firefighter, this book explores the why and explains the how to better prepare these individuals for a healthy and productive career and life, based on the author's personal experience as a counselor, who also has 27 years as a firefighter and paramedic. Firefighters can learn how to acknowledge their mental health issues, such as PTSD, addiction, or anger issues while developing strategies to address these concerns with techniques and solutions throughout their career. This powerful book is part memoir and part call to action. Through the tales of his own journey from recruitment through his pending plans for retirement, Bagdade reveals the humanity behind the heroic archetype of t

You are not your past When you are asked to describe yourself, you probably do what most of us do and describe your history of experiences, roles, and accomplishments. Those are the things through which we build a self-concept. As a child, perhaps you were a fast runner, or maybe you were the last kid picked. Whichever was the case, your mind made up a story about the meaning of those things. You identified as a certain gender (or perhaps as none). You were good at math and sciences or maybe hated writing. The list goes on. These experiences eventually built up into an icon of who you see as yourself. It is how you know yourself. But that is not who you are—not in the least. Most of what we think is our past are not the events of our lives but the memories we have about them. A friend of ours (we’ll call her Rachel) was physically and sexually abused by an adult neighbor as a thirteen-year-old girl. It was a horrible and degrading set of experiences that no one should ever have to

  Excerpt from Noah's New Puppy .  One day the father had to leave Noah and his mother.   THIS BOOK WAS AWARDED THE KOPS-FETHERLING INTERNATIONAL BOOK AWARD HONORABLE MENTION FOR CHILDREN'S PICTURE BOOKS. For more posts about this book, click  HERE . For more posts about Richard Rice, click HERE . For more posts about Geri Henderson, click HERE . For more posts about PTSD, click HERE . For more posts about military families, people, and issues, click HERE . Currently on half-price sale at www.msipress.com/shop.  Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .

  Congratulations to Victor Montgomery for a nice review of his book, Heart to Heart Resuscitation: My Journal , which is a companion to Heart to Heart Resuscitation: A Memoir , from MidWest Book Review:  Especially recommended for anyone having to deal with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), or the emotional stresses arising out of a suicide or the unexpected death of a friend or family member, "Heart to Heart Resuscitation: My Journal" will prove to be of effective and practical help in coping with and working through depression, sorrow, and grief. Read the whole review HERE . For more posts about Vic and his book, click  HERE . AWARD FOR THE MEMOIR-JOURNAL  Literary Titan Gold Award Purchase the paperback at discount from the  MSI Press webstore . Use Coupon Code FF25 for 25% off. Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to submit a

Dr. Geri Henderson considers herself, first and foremost, a teacher and mentor but loves her roles as sister, aunt, and friend.  Geri has taught in a number of places such as the Caribbean, Jordan, Bahrain, LIthuania, Lebanon, Japan, Korea, and the US.  Her interests include a passion for music which she studied and subsequently taught for 30 years before beginning her second professional career in higher education. She is probably teaching literature and writing somewhere in the world right now. Her first book with MSI Press,   Thoughts without a Title , was edited while she was teaching in the Middle East and contains the stories and essays of Middle Eastern college students and their views of the world. Her second book, co-authored with Seanne Emerton,   Healing from Incest: Intimate Conversations with My Therapist , is gathering 5-star reviews and was selected as a 2015 Book of the Year Award Finalist. Her most recent book was written together with Richard Rice, author

  New to the MSI Press family is Victor Montgomery III, whose books, Heart to Heart Resuscitation: A Memoir and Heart to Heart to Heart Resuscitation: My Journal were recently released. They are available online and in bookstores.  (Use coupon code FF25 at the MSI Press webstore for a 25% discount.) Want to know a little something about the books, watch the trailer HERE . As a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, serving with 1st Marine Air Wing, Iwakuni, Japan and Da Nang, Vietnam Air Base, the author has experienced first-hand, an inside view of what it takes to survive the challenges and trials of deployment and reintegration back into society and family, which gives him strong credibility in counseling veterans. Vic, himself a recovering alcoholic with 43 years clean and sober “a day at a time”, and a PTSD diagnosis, writes about the sheer power and honesty he experienced while meeting weekly, face to face with the 12 combat veterans in Group Room #2. Vic puts into action reaching out to