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Empowering Children Through Knowledge of Mental...
I come from a long line of alcoholics, which is now known as substance use disorder (SUD). I say this with complete love and respect for my loved ones, and...
Empowering Children Through Knowledge of Mental...
I come from a long line of alcoholics, which is now known as substance use disorder (SUD). I say this with complete love and respect for my loved ones, and...
The Importance of Discussing Mental Illness & A...
Jodee Prouse is a Sylvan Laker & CEO of the beauty company Seriously Shea who recently released her memoir The Sun is Gone. The book is a candid telling of her family’s struggle through her brother Brett Tisdale’s mental illness and alcohol addiction. Jode sat down with the Sylvan Lake News to discuss her memoir and the importance of speaking the truth-without shame. Q: What was your impetus to write this memoir? A: Alcoholism has been on so many branches of our family tree. I have seen it my wholelife, and in 2005 it became so crazy with my brother that I didn’t think that anyone would believe that alcohol could do this. I didn’t even believe it at the time. I had told him I was going to write a movie about his life, so I think what gave me the courage to continue writing was the fact that he knew I was writing it and encouraged me to do so. Q: You were very open about your family’s lives in this memoir. How difficult was that? A: I am not ashamed of anything that has happened. I believe that addiction and mental illness are diseases, so I feel comfortable talking about it. No one would even ask me that question if it was the progression of cancer. That is the reality. Q: How do you think your experience can help others? A: I think there is so much to learn about our story. With families, their loved one is sick;their loved one is mentally ill. You are so focused with helping them that you don’t realize that things may be going on that you need help with. That is what I hope they get out of these pages. A lot of times we are sick in our own way. Q: What did you learn from the journey of writing this memoir? A: I learned that I don’t think it was my brother’s story. I think that maybe it’s mine. I thought at first that it was a story about alcoholism. Now I feel it is a story about the progression of alcoholism but also about denial, roles in families and maybe even childhood trauma. I learned more about myself. I was so focused on him that I didn’t realize that some of those stories from childhood affected who I was and my behaviours. I have felt responsible for my little brother since I was five years old and it wasn’t until I was 48 years old that I was able to let that go. I think that was a gift from him. Q: You had a family secret that you chose to reveal near the end of the book. What led you to eventually wanting to reveal this? A: My husband and I do not drink. We haven’t had a drink of alcohol in 25 years.Something happened between us and I will say it involved a 9-1-1 call and an orange jumpsuit. We changed and we made a better life for ourselves. I always knew I was going to put that in the book. First of all,because I believe it is a powerful story about change,love and forgiveness, but I am certainly not going to tell the story of our journey without being 100 per cent honest about mine. Q: Can you describe what it is like to live with someone who has addiction issues? A: The first word that comes to my mind is torture. The biggest thing is that I would tell families to find help for themselves first. Themselves, not the person that is struggling.Listen to the advice of the professionals. I followed my heart for the longest time. At the time, enabling feels like love – but it isn’t love. It is hell for all involved....
The Importance of Discussing Mental Illness & A...
Jodee Prouse is a Sylvan Laker & CEO of the beauty company Seriously Shea who recently released her memoir The Sun is Gone. The book is a candid telling of her family’s struggle through her brother Brett Tisdale’s mental illness and alcohol addiction. Jode sat down with the Sylvan Lake News to discuss her memoir and the importance of speaking the truth-without shame. Q: What was your impetus to write this memoir? A: Alcoholism has been on so many branches of our family tree. I have seen it my wholelife, and in 2005 it became so crazy with my brother that I didn’t think that anyone would believe that alcohol could do this. I didn’t even believe it at the time. I had told him I was going to write a movie about his life, so I think what gave me the courage to continue writing was the fact that he knew I was writing it and encouraged me to do so. Q: You were very open about your family’s lives in this memoir. How difficult was that? A: I am not ashamed of anything that has happened. I believe that addiction and mental illness are diseases, so I feel comfortable talking about it. No one would even ask me that question if it was the progression of cancer. That is the reality. Q: How do you think your experience can help others? A: I think there is so much to learn about our story. With families, their loved one is sick;their loved one is mentally ill. You are so focused with helping them that you don’t realize that things may be going on that you need help with. That is what I hope they get out of these pages. A lot of times we are sick in our own way. Q: What did you learn from the journey of writing this memoir? A: I learned that I don’t think it was my brother’s story. I think that maybe it’s mine. I thought at first that it was a story about alcoholism. Now I feel it is a story about the progression of alcoholism but also about denial, roles in families and maybe even childhood trauma. I learned more about myself. I was so focused on him that I didn’t realize that some of those stories from childhood affected who I was and my behaviours. I have felt responsible for my little brother since I was five years old and it wasn’t until I was 48 years old that I was able to let that go. I think that was a gift from him. Q: You had a family secret that you chose to reveal near the end of the book. What led you to eventually wanting to reveal this? A: My husband and I do not drink. We haven’t had a drink of alcohol in 25 years.Something happened between us and I will say it involved a 9-1-1 call and an orange jumpsuit. We changed and we made a better life for ourselves. I always knew I was going to put that in the book. First of all,because I believe it is a powerful story about change,love and forgiveness, but I am certainly not going to tell the story of our journey without being 100 per cent honest about mine. Q: Can you describe what it is like to live with someone who has addiction issues? A: The first word that comes to my mind is torture. The biggest thing is that I would tell families to find help for themselves first. Themselves, not the person that is struggling.Listen to the advice of the professionals. I followed my heart for the longest time. At the time, enabling feels like love – but it isn’t love. It is hell for all involved....