Not Okay? Okay: A Roadmap Back from the Brink

Happiness is an instant, not a steady state of being.

From combat veteran and suicide survivor Sheridan Taylor, Not Okay? Okay challenges our perception of pain, grief, despair, empathy, compassion, and so much more.

While chronicling the anguish and rage Taylor experienced when he was at his lowest and darkest, Not Okay? Okay also breaks down what drives basic human instinct and reaction, such as attachment style, dissociation, our window of tolerance for stress, generational trauma, and displacement. Understanding our own mind allows us to have greater choice over our actions.

Taylor permits us a rare glimpse of someone who knows true suffering and what their path to healing can look like. Direct, raw, and vulnerable, Not Okay? Okay throws a life preserver to the drowning, while acknowledging and relating to the unbearable weight of trauma, PTSD, and depression.

In between easily digestible and educational chapters on the psychological underpinnings of our mental health, whatever state it might be in, and stories about his own process, Taylor also writes poignant letters to his two sons, encouraging them to eschew toxic masculinity and shame.

After a lifetime enduring pain and discovering love, Taylor shares his unique perspective on the power of hope and how to heal the mental health crisis plaguing our world.

This is a book about how an insecure, overcompensating, professional tough guy stopped hating the world—and stopped hating himself in the process. It will challenge you to do some of the hardest things out there: be brutally vulnerable with yourself and offer yourself the same kindness you offer others. Taylor will be with you every step of the way.

“Pain shared is pain divided. Joy shared is joy multiplied.” – Lt. Col. Dave Grossman PhD

If you or someone you love struggles with mental health, it is the book for you.