It’s not often I interview two people at the same time for the show, but I was introduced to Pat and Kerry and had to share their story of friendship and love through the good and the worst of times.
Pat is a former head teacher who has dedicated herself to raising awareness and understanding of mental health since the loss of her son, Dom, to suicide at seventeen. She is a keynote speaker and trainer in mental health first aid and represents carers on suicide prevention advisory groups. Pat is also passionate about spending time with those she loves and appreciating the precious moments that every day offers if you look for them .
Kerry fisher is an internationally bestselling author of eight novels, selling more than a million books worldwide. She describes her books as ‘witty contemporary fiction for women who’ve lived long enough not to expect the fairytale’
Together they have co-written a heartbreakingly, but beautiful book called “Take My Hand” about both of their sons’ struggle with life threatening illnesses.
Some key points from our interview:
· How Pat describes the factors in Dom’s life of everything building up inside of him, a bit like the game Buckaroo
· How Pat looks back and realises that she didn’t understand the scale of Dom’s issues as he was so good at covering it all up
· How Pat has learnt how important it is to ask someone if they are feeling suicidal
· How Kerry has learnt that unless you’ve been though something similar that it’s not your place to have a view of how someone is handling it
· How Kerry was so stressed but found a way to get through it all
· How important it is for both of them to notice nature and take time to step away
· How together they wrote the book they felt would have helped them to navigate their own trauma
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KerryandPat
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KerryandPat
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"Unbroken: Healing Through Storytelling" features individuals who have all triumphed after adversity and have not just bounced back in life, but forward and are now making a difference for others.
Hosted by Madeleine Black, the show will share stories of all the amazing people Madeleine has met on her own journey as an author/speaker and these stories will heal, motivate, inspire and bring hope when they share their wisdom and knowledge with her.
She really believes in the power that comes when we share our stories, that in fact we are not story tellers but story healers. Tune in to discover what helped them to stay unbroken and together we will discover that none of us are broken beyond repair.
You can find out more about Madeleine, her story and her memoir, Unbroken, from her website: https://madeleineblack.co.uk/
Watch edited highlights on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/c/MadeleineBlackUnbroken
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