As I come up on the first anniversary of the release of my book, The Road To Mental Wellness, I find myself reflecting. So, with that, I want to offer a message of hope.
What lies most dominant on my mind is one repetitive statement. “Man, I did that. I wrote an entire book!”
If you’ve never authored a book before, I can tell you it’s quite a daunting process. But it was, nonetheless, a perfect project for me. Given that I had gone off work because of PTSD, I needed some therapeutic release. The beauty about writing a book is that the entire project was on my terms.
In other words, when my mood was low, I could take a week off. Alternatively, when I was feeling better, I could sit down and write for a day. No pressure, no deadlines, just me and a passion keeping me alive – literally.
While I felt safe in this creative space, my end goal wasn’t simply to “keep me busy.” It had a purpose. What was my motive, you ask? Well, simply put, it was to get back to living. Even though I knew that I would never return to working in long-term care, I wasn’t about to let PTSD keep me down.
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Of course, looking back on it now, I realize I was a bit naive. I had this Idea that, “if I can sell enough books, then I can live off the royalties.” Man, what a dream!
As it turns out, having a mental illness and being a published author are a horrible combination, at least from a marketing point of view. Sadly, the same troubles that took me off the job, were the exact same thing that prevented me from selling.
As it turns out, selling books is the same as selling a movie and or selling music. One has to be constantly booked to promote it or it’s like: “Jonathan Arenburg who?” and “What is The Road To Mental Wellness about?” PTSD and the depression that accompanies it, sank my book into obscurity. As of writing this, it sits at 501,213 in the self-help category.
I know, at face value, it’s disheartening. And I could be very disappointed. But being bummed would mean that I am missing some pretty important facts. Not the least of them is – authoring a book is REALLY Hard! Thankfully, I have a healthy dose of gratitude to go along with those less-than-stellar sales. Why? Because I Fu&*$%@ did it.
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I, Jonathan Arenburg, wrote and published a book that people could actually buy and read! I mean, how amazing is that?
So, while the book hasn’t hit Stephen King-level sales, I have sold more than the Amazon average, so that’s good, right? Actually, I find it amazing.
But what cements my gratitude for the book rather than hating the ride, is the reviews, all eight of them.
- The Road To Mental Wellness
- The Mental-Health Work Injury
- My PTSD Earned With DISTINCTION
- Our Mental Illness Is Real
- Path to Mental Healing
- Who’s taking care of you?
While you might say, “You only have eight reviews?” I say, “Hell, ya, and I love them!” See, Surface-Level Thinking will promote one to produce such responses. However, underneath it is a huge sea of amazing. So, for example, if you read just one of those reviews, you will see that they carry a lot of weight. When I read them, the hair on my head tingles with pride.
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Read those reviews here:
The response:
Those few hundred people who have bought the book – at least the ones I’ve heard from – have thankfully been inspired. And really, if that’s the case, then the book is a huge success. Remember, it’s all about how you define success.
For me, my definition of success in this case is being able to write a book, while being drugged up and mostly bedridden. I don’t know about you, but I think that’s pretty darn good.
So, if you’re going through something similar, please know that you can have your own version of success. Besides, if it saves your life, like authoring a book saved mine, how can it not be a success? I will end by saying this:
Your success will always depend on the actions you take. It will not come running to you. In fact, misuse of drugs and alcohol will be action’s replacement. Trust me, you have it in you to go in the direction of empowerment.
Jonathan Arenburg – author of The Road To Mental Wellness
Jonathan Arenburg – author of The Road To Mental Wellness.
In the end, you need to define what makes you move forward. Not only that, but you also need to make each success, no matter how seemingly small, a huge deal. Once you do, you’ll find that you start to heal. I’m rooting for you.
Perhaps my book, The Road To Mental Wellness can help you find your way? See below for book details.
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A message of hope – copyright, 2022
