Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Whitney.
Hi Michael, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
During time of my own I desire to reflect my feelings by way of a counseling technique. In essence, I was acknowledging my own emotions and I began to express them by writing and transforming the intangibility of my emotions into something more. It was a place where the world makes more sense to me. It was a process of intellectual inquiry where I wanted to grasp the meaning of unsettled experiences. I wanted to preserve my memories, my knowledge and Life Experiences and I wanted to share my personal experience and perspectives on my life. During the time I was writing my book I was searching for deeper in sight into my own life experience and emotions by revisiting and analyzing past events. A huge part in inspire me to write the Memoir and that is Michael was because I wanted to reflect on life and express myself. It was essential for me to share my happy memories to allow myself to relive joyful experiences, but at the same time help me to process the heart emotion and gain relief from the bad spirits that I had suffered with during my adolescent years. I courageously wanted to share my personal story of surviving the unthinkable. Ed reveals the pain of my grief but also serves as a testament to my strong faith in God. With My Soul a bear, I share the heartache and Devastation of losing my mother and three siblings- all murdered- ripping my world apart. Through Vivid detail, I recount the emotional turmoil and inner bottles that followed these tragedies, exposing the strain that toward the fabric of my most charitable relationships- family. Love, once powerful and certain, became lace with resentment and grief. The profound cause of this phenomenal between me and my remaining siblings only deepened the wounds, as unresolved pain and desperate need for understanding class beneath the surface. Yet, amid my suffering, my unwavering devotion to God became my anchor. My journey, though treacherous, was marked by a fierce determination to trust in God’s greatness and power, holding on to faith as my only Lifeline in a society filled with uncertainty. It was my testimony to survival, faith, and the power of resilience when death changed everything.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There were internal challenges with stemmed from myself, such as having self doubt, for a failure, or procrastination. I knew life would be full of challenges growing up but I had no idea of the impact. The obstacles I had encountered would eventually shape who I knew i would become and how I viewed the world, never underestimating the love from God. One of my biggest challenges was not knowing how those challenges would affect my life and how to navigate them with strength and determination, such as being around unsupported people. Unsupported people presented a more subtle but equally dangerous obstacle. Having Inner Strength kept individuals from actively sabotaging me, but their presence in my life could have had a profound impact on my confidence If I Didn’t Have Faith or if I didn’t believe in myself. Understanding how systems of power, money and influence work was an obstacle and the challenge as well. I had to self educate, because I didn’t have to worry about these things as a kid but once I grew to understand, it gave me clarity and a little more control over the circumstances, which eventually were to come. I had to learn to navigate social, political, and economic environments effectively, it was the way of the world. As these experiences and the situations tested my endurance I was learning the ways of the world so that I could decide what was worthwhile. Even with my beliefs about morality were wrong and unacceptable, according to the rules, life was either getting imposed upon or have self-preservation and therefore I often tested my own limitations.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
An incompassing aspect to my physical wellness is the form to my early retirement, therefore my work is done as a motivational speaker and an entrepreneur. My steps are to motivate those who are experiencing all trauma and to take action toward their own inspiration by sharing their expenses and struggles I plan to change the phrase, at risk youth, to act promise. I want to motivate to propel individuals toward positive outcomes, to inspire those with PTSD that it’s okay to shed tears. Jesus wept and that alone teaches us that it’s okay to cry, but mostly to express God, the ultimate creator of everything and how he is not bound by time. I feel a big part of humanity haven’t experienced the true way of how God reveals himself, and I say that because of the reactions from people who ask me how in the world am I holding up from being a survivor of losing five family members to homicide in five consecutive years. Throughout my life I had to redefine the greatness of God’s mercy and I suggest that everyone allow God to influence their thoughts, their actions and their decisions even if there are self-righteous or not.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
The most important lesson along my journey is the importance of faith, trust, and a personal relationship with God. It motivated me to create a stronger desire to be better in all respects and to evolve into the best version of myself. Another lesson I learned was to create a strong desire for myself to relive the traumatic experience, but instead of avoiding situations that would trigger the memories leading to the strong emotions that were due from overwhelming events. I learned to gain control over my life by actively pursuing goals relating to personal agency, meaning having the ability to control my own actions and decisions rather than to feel dictated. I had experienced a positive shift after trauma and finding a new sense of purpose and appreciation for life was my motivation to help others. I was transformed a decade After experiencing trauma. I viewed situations from A New Perspective and with that, I could see improvements in my relationships, increased resilience to this very day, and I feel blessed.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @bookbrutha
