Obstacles

Okay, anyone who has visited my blog at any time over the last few months probably noticed that it has not changed very much at all. I haven’t posted any new interviews or guest posts or book blurbs. All the regular activity that had been going on for over six consecutive months just sort of died off. Well, for the few of you who have asked, I am doing fine, and I appreciate your concern! Rather than responding to everyone separately I decided to just post an update here and leave it at that.

A couple of months ago both of my kids who are still at home started back to school. My son is a freshman and my daughter is a senior in high school. Both of my kids have struggled with a number of issues associated with their Tourette’s, and this school year has proven to be the most difficult of all for each of them. My daughter has struggled with senioritis, along with some ongoing anxiety over her post-graduation plans. My son has always struggled with any new situation, and you can’t get more extreme than starting high school! Anyway, it’s been a bit of a challenege to get them both on track and settled in, but I feel like we’re pretty close.

In addition to that, my oldest daughter, who is 22, just got married in September. That was a wonderful weekend and it was so nice to be able to share that beautiful event with her. I have always been very close to my oldest daughter, so that was a very emotional weekend to say the least! I’ll be posting a few pictures to my Facebook account soon, so stop by if you get the chance!

Over the summer, my ex-wife, the mother of my two youngest children, was diagnosed with cancer. She spent a couple of months undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatments, and up until the last couple of weeks she hasn’t been able to spend much time with the kids. Don’t get me wrong, I deeply love my kids, but their weekends with their mom have been opportunities for me to write and blog and do my gardening and spend time with my new wife. Since the kids were with me pretty much full time for the past five months, that meant a couple of other things had to be put on the back burner, so I chose my writing along with the promoting and marketing that goes along with it. No regrets or complaints, just simply stating the facts!

During this time, I myself went through a pretty deep bout of depression. I had some issues going on at the day job, and then there were the stresses of handling two special needs children on a pretty full-time basis. There were other things going on in my life as well, but when you mix them all together, it resulted in a bit more than I could handle. Thankfully, I knew that I needed help and I knew where to get it. I have a great psychiatrist who has helped me get the right medications, and a great counselor who has helped me to talk through these issues. Most importantly, I feel the power of prayer has helped me to cope with and handle all the obstacles that life has placed in my way.

As I look back on these things, I see them now as opportunities that were presented to me, and each one allowed me to grow and strengthen. I feel more confident in my ability to confront the issues in my life. I feel that everything is starting to get back on track, and most importantly, I feel that I am able to manage things better. My new wife has been instrumental in helping me to get where I am today, and I am so grateful to her for her support and for staying beside me. We have had our own issues to deal with, but together we have grown stronger. I feel more motivated and energized than I have felt in a long time.

Over the last two weeks, I have been able to start making more time to get back to my writing. A lot of the self-doubt I had been experiencing is gone. There is still a little that lingers on, but I can handle it. I have started back on the novella I had been writing and am now almost half way done with it. In addition to that, I have completed the full outline and character details for two more. I have also moved my blog to this new location and revamped my personal web site to focus more on my writing. I’ve been busy, and now I’m ready to get back to sharing with my friends and fans who have been encouraging me and inquiring about me. Thank you for your support!

If you ever find yourself experiencing overwhelming feelings of sadness, frustration, and despair, please take the time to seek help. As a man, I know that most men are raised to believe that you should “man up” and work through it on your own, but that is such a bad idea! There is help available, and there is no shame in seeking out that help. It won’t happen overnight, and it may not help to the degree that you would like, but with time and patience, you will see yourself improving. There is no shame in getting the help you need, and I can guarantee you will find yourself getting back on track a whole lot sooner than you would if you tried to do it on your own.

Now, if you will excuse me, I have some writing to do!

© 2011, Steven R. Drennon. All rights reserved.