The world is run on fear and shame. And I don't feel like we
can begin to overcome these things until we speak about them
openly and stop being scared of what happens as a result.
Lily Allen
I’ve read, seen and listened to many stories over the years that have affected me and inspired me to stand up for myself and share my story.
Many have made me cry and gasp in horror. Some have made me laugh and all of them have made me rejoice at the survival skills of true heroes. Those that have recovered their soul and realized that the truth you tell yourself sets you free and allows you to soar. Here are some that I love.
Books
This memoir has it all, a family on the wrong side of history, a mother’s mental health issues, alcoholism, constant loss, death, relocating, and a vivid picture of the land.
I Forgot to Die is an incredible true story of pain, suffering, addiction and redemption and how one man ultimately conquered his demons and wrote himself a new life story.
This is not a story for the faint hearted. But one of the best you will ever read if you can handle the incest, abuse, mental illness and gun violence…
If there was ever a book that describes the shame connected to sexual abuse and how it can destroy a man, this is the one.
The most disastrous family reunion in the history of fiction.
By some is considered one of the greatest books of all time, it is also very controversial. It has been banned or challenged in many schools throughout the United States, for its profanity and alcohol abuse but is still taught at many others as a classic.
Films/TV
The story of a basketball team at a Catholic high school, and a damaged alcoholic coach who finds a way to force them into being winners, into being better people, even. But the coach is a mess. He works construction and spends his nights at a dive bar, where he is a regular…
A musical fantasy about the fantastical human story of Elton John's breakthrough years, and his struggles with addiction.
A father’s struggle to understand his son’s addiction and find ways to be supportive, without supporting the drug abuse.
A musician helps a young singer find fame as age and alcoholism send his own career into a downward spiral.
A drug addicted teenage boy shows up unexpectedly at his family's home on Christmas Eve.
Young female-to-male transgender Brandon Teena leaves his hometown under threat when his ex-girlfriend's brother discovers that he's biologically female.