In this testimonial, Jason, a former Army soldier and mental health provider, recounts his journey with PTSD, depression, and anxiety that were triggered by his work treating active‑duty soldiers. After two stints on the VA inpatient ward, he discovered Dr. John King’s book Deal With It. Jason describes the book as a comprehensive roadmap that combined practical day‑to‑day coping strategies with scientific explanations of how trauma reshapes the brain. He says reading it felt like a year of therapy, helped him escape a “dark hole,” and restored his ability to lead a productive life. Jason strongly recommends the book to anyone suffering from PTSD, to their loved ones, and to clinicians, urging that the VA and the Army adopt it as a guideline for better care.
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Hey everyone, Jason here. I just wanted to kind of share how this book, Deal With It by Dr. John King, changed my life. I did 2 stints at the inpatient ward at the VA hospital, and I discovered this book, and it really helped me out. It pretty much saved my life because I was in that dark hole, and this book kind of brought me out of it. It gave me a good roadmap on On what I needed to do to kind of modify some of the things that I had going on in my life to be able to have a productive life again. My story, did 4 years in the Army, didn't deploy with the Army. I was working in a mental health clinic as a mental health provider. PTSD was my bread and butter with active duty soldiers. I mean, I did it all day long every day and that actually triggered my own PTSD and depression and anxiety and all that stuff. Before the Army, I used to work security overseas with the State Department, and the job that I did in the Army kind of brought up a bunch of stuff from my past that I never would have thought would have affected me the way that it has this past year. So this book, it is, it's great. Reminds me of like some of the sessions that I used to provide with some of my soldiers and stuff like that. And I I can't recommend it enough to everybody. It's got everything from, you know, just dealing with your day-to-day to the real scientific BS that like not most of us understand of, you know, how it actually changes the brain and all that stuff. It's great. So I'd recommend it for those who are dealing with their PTSD. If you have a loved one that doesn't really understand what you're going through, this is also a good book for them to read. And even If you're seeking treatment, recommend it to the people that you're getting treatment from, just so that they're better educated. Because in my, I'd say, 6, 7 years of research on PTSD for my patients and for myself, this book, it covers it all. I couldn't put it down. I finished it like in a couple hours on that first day that I started reading it. It's life-saving. And yeah, definitely recommend it. It's— you got to check it out. It's definitely going to save your life, or at least make things better for you so that you're not having like this, uh, whole victim mentality that, oh man, I have PTSD, that means that I can't have a normal life again. You can have a normal life. And seeing some of the struggles that, uh, John went through, and it's just a great learning experience, and it really Kind of was like a year's worth of therapy just reading the book. So definitely check it out. Recommend it to all those that you know because it's a lifesaver. It's a game changer. If only the VA and the Army, you know, could use this book as kind of like a guideline for the things that they need to be doing and implementing to better help everybody out. So have a great day, everybody, and learn to deal with it.
