We recently connected with John Martin and have shared our conversation below.
John, we are so appreciative of you taking the time to open up about the extremely important, albeit personal, topic of mental health. Can you talk to us about your journey and how you were able to overcome the challenges related to mental issues? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.
As a childhood trauma survivor, I have been challenged by mental health issues my entire life. I lost my mother due to cancerous tumors at 3 years old and then my father to drug use and HIV/AIDS at 6 years old. Following that I was raised in an environment filled with abuse, neglect, violence, alcohol, and drug use.
At 16 years old, I was a teenage father and 9th grade dropout. I took a chance at a better life by joining the US Army. I served for 8 years but was plagued by the issues resulting from my past trauma’s for the entire time. Drinking, anger, violence, and other toxic behaviors were something I could not seem to escape though I knew I wanted to be a better person at heart.
My first experience with mental health care was it’s own traumatic event and almost turned me away from help for good. However, I never stopped trying every avenue I could. Every therapy, drug, and treatment I could think of to try and heal to become the man I wanted to be. 10+ years of trial and error.
Eventually, and recently, I found my own answers and path. Accountability and responsibility being key. Now I lead a project around Men’s Mental Health to try and help other men like me who may be out there looking and not finding the answers they need.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
My name is John and I’m a men’s mental health advocate, United States Army veteran, father of three, and childhood trauma survivor. I’ve begun a platform to talk mental health, healing, and life in general.
My mission is to help improve the conversation surrounding mental health with a particular focus on connecting with men like myself who I believe are lacking enough of a voice and resources in our current situation.
I hope to achieve this by sharing about my own ongoing journey of healing and becoming the kind of person I’ve always wished I could be. As I get closer to my goals I hope to be an example to those out there like myself who may feel unheard. If that’s you, I’m here and I hear you.
Please consider following and supporting Black Mage John below:
Follow:
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@BlackMageJohn
Instagram: www.instagram.com/blackmage_john
Facebook: www.facebook.com/john.martin.7505
Support:
Patreon: patreon.com/BlackMageJohn
Venmo: @John-Martin-948
CashApp: @BlackMage85
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Persistence – Never giving up on the drive to be a better person than I was yesterday. This means learning to adapt, forgive yourself, and recognize how hard you’re trying even when no one else will.
Resilience – Understanding that for all your effort you will fail and have setbacks. Some major. Be prepared for the hard times and keep faith that better days are coming.
Empathy – Seek to understand and forgive others and it can help in understanding and forgiving yourself as well.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
A very large part of my men’s mental health project is interviewing inspiring people from a range of backgrounds. I would love to continue to elevate and share voices on the topic of mental health. If anyone is interested in joining me for an interview please feel free to reach out and I’d love to have you on for a discussion.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/blackmage_john
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/john.martin.7505?mibextid=ZbWKwL
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbmmartin
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@BlackMageJohn
