After I Pulled the Trigger: A Journey from Suicide to Life Collection

On the evening of January 24th 1986, within an hour of stepping off a school bus, I found myself dying from a self-inflicted gun-shot wound. At the time, I was 16 years old. I was alone in the woods and there was little hope of anyone finding me. I actually planned it that way. Looking back, I recognize it was a journey that led me from life to suicide’s final resolute moment. I understand the second chance I got at life started with an equally resolute moment and an intervention from heaven. I knew life was a gift, and I wanted to live. I decided it would be better to die fighting for my life, instead of lying helplessly waiting for what seemed like the inevitable. In an effort to save lives and bring the conversation of suicide out from the hushed stigma and faceless statistics, I shared my story. After I Pulled the Trigger: A Journey from Suicide to Life is a collection of my writings. “When an Angel Intervenes” is a historical fiction and a story of second chances. This book was written to enter a short story contest in our local library and it was the first time I dared to publicly share: “Yes. I am a survivor of a self-inflicted gun-shot wound.” “After I Pulled the Trigger: Surviving Suicide’s Lie’s by Clinging to Hope’s Truth” is an autobiography. I titled this book exactly how I felt about life and suicide the moment after the rifle went off. The book answers the most frequently asked question of me, “Why? Why did you shoot yourself?” It addresses how that decision impacted my life, the suicidal symptoms I presented in my life prior to the shooting, insight into Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as well as my personal experience with a near-death experience. “A Change of Heart from Suicide to Life” is a self-help book. It has been nearly 30 years since I came within a fraction of an inch and a few minutes of losing my life to suicide. Over the years, I have had many conversations with people about suicide and suicide prevention. It’s been my experience these conversations run about thirty minutes. I wanted to write a book in the spirit of these conversations. If I had 30 minutes to sit with someone contemplating suicide and I had to speak directly to their heart, this is exactly what I would say.