Do You Know How to Survive by Laughing in the Face of Trauma?

On Aug. 23, 1987, 26-year-old Selonia Reed was found dead in the parking lot of a

gas station in Hammond, Louisiana. Nearly forty years after her death, on Jan. 30, 2023,

her husband Reginald Reed was sentenced to life in prison for her murder.

But that’s far from the entire story.

In this interview, Reggie Reed shares his tragic and unbelievable story that promises to keep you on the edge of your seat.

The events surrounding the unsolved murder of his mother and the subsequent indictment and trial of his father are heart-wrenching. He faced difficult situations several times and felt like there was no solution or way out. Personal struggles, failures, and challenging circumstances caused him to feel overwhelmed and powerless.

Reginald L. Reed Jr. is an author and an accomplished professional in the pharmaceutical industry. He holds a master’s degree in business and global marketing.

Reggie will show you that feeling helpless or hopeless is a normal part of the human experience, and it’s okay to seek support and help during those times. Sharing feelings with someone you trust or seeking professional help can make a big difference in overcoming those emotions. You must realize that it is okay not to have all the answers and ask for help when needed. 

Do not miss this amazing true story.

Reggie Reed when his mom was murdered 

Selonia Reed

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As featured in Newsweek and A&E's Cold Case Files

A Publishers Weekly Memoir and Autobiography Spotlight Read

A Goodreads "Great Reads About Mental Health" Top 50

"A Memoir that plays out more like a true crime story." — A Trauma Survivor Thriver’s Podcast

"My heart was pounding as I experienced what was happening in the courtroom. If you enjoy digging deeper into the fallout of true crime, consider picking up The Day My Mother Never Came Home. Reed has done a great job of sharing his deepest emotions." — Pick a Good Book

"More than a memoir. A life-changing masterpiece of one man’s ability to face multiple life traumas head on." — Reader Paula

Reed invites you into his journey of healing and the pursuit of justice.

With raw vulnerability, he delves into the depths of his trauma, offering glimpses into the psychological impact on his life while also offering a powerful message of hope and resilience. Reed’s story highlights the indomitable spirit that can arise from even the darkest of circumstances.

The Day My Mother Never Came Home is not simply a true crime tale; it is a testament to the power of the human spirit and the importance of shedding light on the truth. With each turn of the page, you will find yourself captivated by the narrative. Follow Reed’s journey as he grapples with raw emotions and questions the complexities of true justice. This book will leave an indelible mark on your heart and mind, compelling you to reflect on the fragility of life and the strength it takes to overcome tragedy.

If you seek a gripping story that will remain with you long after you have finished reading, The Day My Mother Never Came Home is a must-read. Join Reed on this transformative journey as he reclaims his voice and sheds light on the darkest corners of his life.

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How Do You Deal with Grief that Can Lift Your Skin Off the Bone?

Several times throughout Carrie Pierce’s life especially the last three years – there were moments of despair. Without any warning, as she and her mother were moving to Idaho to start a new life, her mom went into kidney failure overnight. She was diagnosed with a highly advanced multiple myeloma. 

You may be able to relate to the trauma and the strength it takes to push through, stay focused, and win like Carrie had to due to her being alone in a new community and devastated after losing her parents.

Carrie E. Pierce has written professionally for more than twenty years, most of them spent writing acclaimed health and wellness articles and books for midlife readers.

She attained her dream of working in the film, radio, and television industry. She has been published many times and co-hosted two acclaimed, internationally syndicated radio shows. She is the co-director of Morgan Pierce Media & Publishing.

During her writing career, Carrie discovered the need for quality children's literature that could be enjoyed by parents and grandparents as they read aloud to them.

Eager to fill this niche, she began crafting quality stories that contain important life lessons, written in a style that does not talk 'down' to children but, instead, encourages them to learn new words and ask questions as they gain important tools for overcoming fear, pushing past loss, and accepting themselves as they are.

Carrie speaks from experience with an honest voice that holds nothing back. 

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Tommy Tomlinson was a five-year-old boy with a small body, a big bedroom closet, and even bigger fears about just what, exactly, lived in that closet between the hours of midnight and five a.m. each night.

This tale of rollicking adventure takes the reader on a life-changing journey through the process of overcoming fear and conveys many important and heartfelt lessons along the way.

Storytime is a time to create special memories with the children in your life; however, many adults find it challenging to discover appropriate children's literature that's well-written and enjoyable for adults and children alike. Carrie Pierce believes you should be able to feel confident the book you're reading to your children is free from agendas or inappropriate themes, which is why she prayerfully crafted The Tale of Tommy Tomlinson's Tennis Shoes, a superbly written children's chapter book filled with wholesome adventures, higher-level vocabulary that sparks conversation, 15 original and beautiful illustrations as well as time-honored values so your story times can help you create the shared memories you desire.

When read aloud to children, the age range for this book grows to accommodate ages 6-12. Great for boys and girls alike, and makes the perfect bedtime story, spread out over many nights. Beautifully written and extremely poignant, The Tale of Tommy Tomlinson's Tennis Shoes is a must-read if you have young ones struggling with fears, insecurities, or feelings of not belonging.

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High atop Mt. Ellinor, in a thicket not too far below the great Pacific Northwest timberline, lived a small apple tree, a mere sapling. Her name was Abby.

And so, this journey of bravery, blossoming, and overcoming begins...

Abby Apple Tree is written in the style of children’s books of long ago and at times uses larger words and adult grammar to get children engaged deeply, asking questions and learning- not only about language but about the processes of overcoming fear, challenge, and heartbreak as well.

This is a relatively short book and can be read in 2 or 3 segments. Great for naptime, bedtime, or story hour.

If your child or grandchild has fears, insecurities, and/or feels out of place, this is a MUST-READ story!

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You Can Be the Change You Wish to See in Your Relationships

Jeanell Greene's experience with tragedy, and emotional and sexual abuse as a child made her passionate about bringing love and healing to couples as a Life and Relationship coach. 

Jeanell's unbelievable story will inspire you to have hope, and faith, and to never give up on your dreams. 

She will teach you how to turn unhappiness into happiness and how to stay focused when you are up against roadblocks and failures.

With her own experience with tragedy, emotional and sexual abuse as a child, to meeting the Queen of England, winning 2 all-expense trips, and finding her faith again in her 40s, Jeanell’s unbelievable story will inspire you to have hope, faith, and to never give up on your dreams.

In her interview, she shares the tools to help you get to the other side of 'mindset hacks.' She shares her story of forgiveness after her dad had an affair with her mom's best friend, had a baby, left the family, and then returned years later. She shares what unconditional love is and how we can learn to forgive.

Click here for a free copy of

5 Building Blocks for an Unshakable Relationship

Jeanell will show you how to help yourself move through all the steps necessary to get on the other side of mindset hacks and become aware of your thoughts/emotions by realizing there is a divine order/timing to everything.

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Decide That You Want To Be More Than What You Are Now and Watch What Happens!

David Richman was overweight, a smoker, married to an abusive alcoholic, and stressed out unbelievably. At his lowest point, he heard the words from a friend that he needed to hear. These words allowed him to start a journey of discovery, transformation, and self-belief.

Today he helps empower people to start hard conversations around the emotional aspects of trauma, and to help them transform into their best selves.

David is an author, public speaker, and endurance athlete whose mission is to form more meaningful human connections through storytelling. 

By the time he was in his late thirties, David was a sedentary, overweight smoker who was stuck in an abusive and unhealthy marriage. It was clear that if he was going to enjoy any kind of life satisfaction, he had to stop focusing on what others wanted out of him, and zero in on what he wanted for himself.

He began to set measurable, attainable, and meaningful goals—to become healthy, to raise his young twins in a safe home environment, to become a top performer at work, and to seek out his own physical, mental, and emotional limits.

Through lessons learned in business, sports, and life, David introduces the concept of “winning in the middle of the pack” and discusses how we all can get more out of ourselves than we ever imagined.

His most recent adventure was a 5,000-mile solo bike ride across the country in which he visited most of the participants for his upcoming book chronicling fifteen remarkable and unique emotional journeys of people with cancer.

David is a businessman, corporate and motivational speaker, personal consultant,
and author of CYCLE OF LIVES and WINNING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK.

Amazon bestseller in "Brain Cancer" 

Have you ever been forced to consider the fact of your mortality? If confronted with cancer, how would you feel? What would you say to the people you love? What would they say to you? No two people have the same answers to these questions, a lesson I learned well during a solo six-week, 5,000-mile cross-country bike ride I called Cycle of Lives. 

The trip started as a fundraiser in honor of my sister, June, who died of brain cancer. But long before I even set out on my endurance ride from LA to Florida to NY, I exhaustively interviewed fifteen people across the country whose lives had also been irrevocably changed by cancer - either as patients, survivors, loved ones, or caregivers. 

Hearing their moving stories, which were influenced by many different forms of past and present trauma, transformed my cycling odyssey into a journey of emotional self-discovery as I relived the chaos and emotional upheaval of cancer through them: from the man who found true love after losing his soulmate to cancer, to the elite athlete who had to reckon with his all-star body finally letting him down, to the medical oncologist who cares as much about her patients as she cares for them. 

Whether you or someone you care about is going through cancer or some other major trauma, I hope this thought-provoking collection of astonishing stories can help you, too.

CONNECT WITH DAVID HERE

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Are You Thick-skinned and Independent But Need Help?

Tez Brooks is a multiple award-winning filmmaker, screenwriter, journalist, and author who understands the pain of sexual abuse, bullying in middle school, and then unfaithfulness and divorce.

As a former law enforcement officer and police chaplain Tez knows that the stressful position of first responders is often scary, unpredictable, and infuriating. Where do you go to refresh and refocus when the world expects you to be thick-skinned and independent?

As a multiple award-winning author, filmmaker, and international speaker, Tez Brooks’ work appears in Guideposts, Power for Living, The Upper Room, CBN.com, Clubhouse, Focus on the Family, Cru.org and more. His editorials are featured regularly and seen by over 30k readers each month. He is the president of two chapters for Word Weavers International.

First responders have one of the highest percentages of addiction, divorce, and suicide. As a police chaplain, Tez experienced the trauma of first responders and the need for hope. Tez' story is an encouragement for anyone and especially those who work as first responders. 

Debriefing: Meditations of Hope for Those Who Protect and Serve is a collection of real-life experiences helping cops, correction officers, chaplains, and others to see God’s hand in all they do, so they can better understand His loving care for those working the challenging and dangerous job of first responder.

It’s time to debrief.

The stressful position of first responders is often scary, unpredictable, and infuriating. Where do you go to refresh and refocus when the world expects you to be thick-skinned and independent? It can be difficult to balance your physical, emotional, and spiritual health, along with your social and family life, as you focus on your role to protect the public. It’s easy to forget the bigger purpose God has for you.

Conventional wisdom holds that fathers have few parenting skills and that mothers always know best. The single father is often considered a mythical creature, found only in sitcoms as an object of humor or pity. Where does that leave real single dads? Too often, it makes them susceptible to overcompensation or apathy. 

Tez Brooks knows those feelings all too well. He's traveled that road with his own children after an unexpected divorce. The Single Dad Detour is the result of his journey and the lessons he learned along the way. It is a guidebook for the rocky road of single fatherhood, extending encouragement, confidence, and challenges, using specific examples from dads who have survived parenting and have hope to offer. 

There are no unreachable requirements for perfect fatherhood here and no twisty theological mysteries - just authentic, down-to-earth wisdom from one dad to another.

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CONNECT WITH TEZ HERE

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How Do You Overcome Trauma, Betrayal, and Brokenness and Achieve Success?

What do you do when life sends trauma and pain where you hoped for love and kindness?  Have you felt broken? Betrayed? Traumatized? Rena Groot endured years of abuse that could have destroyed her. But she realized she had a choice to allow it to make or break her spirit. 

Rena was abandoned, rejected, and unloved during her entire childhood while being tossed into horrific foster care homes repeatedly. By the time she was 21 years old, she did not know if she wanted to live another day and then a miracle sprung into her life. 

As a little girl walking into her first-grade classroom, she was awestruck and knew she wanted to be a teacher. She was able to realize that dream and earned a Bachelor of Education and a Master of Religious Education. She taught in Canada and China where she wrote her memoir under a mosquito net and became addicted to writing. 

Rena became an ambassador with "The Department of Eternal Affairs" for Haiti, Belize, the Ghetto in New York City, behind the Iron Curtain in Poland and Romania, in Israel, China, Thailand, Mexico, Africa, and Greece. 

During her interview, she shares a remarkable story of survival against all odds with a surprise outcome that will encourage you.  

A Life Set Free is a moving testimony of the liberating power of God's love to bring healing to broken lives. Rena's personal story, simply told in both humility and triumph, will convince you that nothing is impossible when you surrender to God.

Her many colorful adventures are a catalog of miracles that most of us dream about. Let them touch your heart!

Rena's journal and course, Broken to Beautiful - Transformed by God has helped countless numbers of broken women to experience unconditional love and a major life change. Here is a free gift to help you rise above the overwhelm and silence the lies. 

FREE GIFT and SNEAK PEAK

It is 1881. Anne is 19, a widow on the Oregon Trail. She has no option, but to travel with her husband’s murderer. As she struggles to survive on the unforgiving trail, Anne must confront her own doubts and fears. Will she succumb to the darkness in her heart and seek vengeance at any cost? Or will she find the strength to forgive, and discover a path to redemption and healing? With each step she takes, Anne must face the harsh realities of life on the frontier and the deep mysteries of faith and grace. She dreams of revenge…but God has other plans.

Click here to buy Rena's Latest release

Mommy & Baby's Journal is for you to write about your precious unborn baby and will give you information about your baby's monthly development. A perfect gift for an expectant mom. 

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Discover what happens when Bubs Bunny, an adorable but neurotic bunny goes to camp. What will his wild imagination tell him next? Will he be safe from hippos, polar bears, alligators, and more?

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The Beauty of Discovering You Are NOT Alone Can be Life-changing

"You will never conceive naturally." Those words are harsh, painful, and heard too often by women who want nothing more than to be a mom. It can leave a woman feeling helpless and ashamed.

Christina McClelland is an Atlanta-based author and supporter of women's health advocacy. Christina grew up in Alabama, attended the University of Alabama with a B.A. in English Literature, and became one of the youngest art gallery directors in Atlanta at age 28 before committing to her writing career full-time in 2014. 

Christina shares her story as an encouragement to women everywhere. Feeling alone is the worst feeling that exists. It is isolating, and depressing, and lends itself to hopelessness. The beauty of discovering that you are NOT alone can be life-changing. 

Christina introduced an exciting and effective method to help you and your family (especially teens) express their core feelings in a safe place. She shares the Core Feelings Board in her interview. 

And...she shares TWO important words that will help you put any problem into the proper perspective. Here is her story:

                        WATCH BOOK TRAILER HERE

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Couched in fiction, A Circle of Chalk is like group therapy for any person who has never dealt with infertility and insightful (and entertaining) to those who have not. 

The main character is a composite of dozens of women's stories. The storyline follows real legal cases from the past 30 years enhanced by interviews with fertility doctors, scientists, and bioethicists.

In Christina's experience, group therapy with other women who have survived trauma was a game changer. Women are blown away by the truth that while individual experiences can be different, the pain that every woman feels is eerily the same, accompanied by the same visceral responses to triggers.

Acknowledgment that the IVF process can be traumatic is important. Naming it is the first step. A Circle of Chalk gets the discussion started and helps women want to live again. 

Christina wanted to give women the opportunity to openly discuss IVF and embryo adoption and the extraordinary emotional toll of infertility. This book provides a peek behind the curtain. 

Connect with Christina here:

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How to Finally Lose that Weight and Keep It Off for Good

Have you ever been at such a low point in your life that you begged your partner to leave you? Have you felt helpless with the ongoing struggle of trying to lose weight? And what about anxiety and depression that becomes overwhelming?

Coach Jon shares his incredible story of how he won the battle and lost 100 pounds. He is now a weight loss coach and emotional eating expert, a nanotechnology researcher,  a Navy Marine engineer,, and a globetrotting nomad. 

Coach Jon has found his calling -- and it is to help you lose weight for good and leave the bogus diets in the rearview mirror. 

With Freedom Nutrition Coaching he marries the Science of Metabolism with the Psychology of Behavior Change and the compassion of human connection to create life-changing transformations for each of us.

Coach Jon struggled with PTSD, trauma, obesity and mental health issues spending years on diets, methods, coaching, etc. that were entirely ineffective as a long-term strategy for creating health.

In his interview, Coach Jon shares his incredible story of how you can win the battle using the concept of 'brain-driven' transformation as it connects to health, wellness, and weight loss.  

SECRET: It is not thinking less of yourself -- but thinking of yourself less!

Coach Jon's flagship program, Lifestyle-180, is a lifestyle transformation program that helps people to reverse engineer their healthy lifestyle, working with their brains instead of trying to fight against them. 

DOWNLOAD THE FREE GUIDE TO

CRUSH YOUR CRAVINGS 

CONNECT WITH JON HERE:

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Improve 1% Everyday and you Will Be a Better version of You

On the fast track to startup success, a car speeding through a crosswalk jeopardized everything she’d built in a split second.

 

Constantly battling life-altering trauma, PTSD, a traumatic brain injury, and the cutthroat fashion industry, Just Bones Boardwear founder Jennifer Berk Weisman refused to let the accident define her and steal her identity. She had to do more than reinvent the boardshort. She had to reinvent herself.

Jennifer Berk Weisman is the owner of Just Bones Boardwear, a swim apparel company featuring her patented adjustable waist design. She never set out to build a fashion empire. But Jennifer realized there was a void in the market for boys' boardshorts during a frustrating shopping excursion. A creative problem solver, she designed innovative boardshorts that offered the “perfect fit” for boys in-between sizes and didn’t fit traditional fixed-waist boardshorts. Soon after, the brand expanded to include swimwear for toddlers, men, and women.

 

A standout in the swimwear industry, Just Bones Boardwear’s technology won Jennifer two patents and TasteTV’s Best Swimwear of 2016 Award for special functionality. Just Bones Boardwear has been featured in ELLE, InStyle, Vogue, and Fashion Week Online, as well as other major press. 

 

Jennifer’s boardshorts were worn throughout Ghost Shark, an original SyFy movie that premiered in 2013 during Shark Week.

Jennifer was a frustrated mom shopping for swimwear every year for her two sons who were lanky and didn’t fit traditional boardshorts or swim volley shorts. She knew there had to be a better way to make more comfortable fitting swimwear for boys who needed an adjustable waist – not one size fits all at that growing age.

During her interview, she shares her incredible story of survival against terrible circumstances. Then she shows you how your idea can possibly be a million-dollar one :

On her journey from stay-at-home mom to an innovative entrepreneur surviving unexpected adversity, Jennifer conquered every obstacle with a fierce determination to succeed. More than fluff, fabric, and fashion, Sink or Swimwear shares the powerful true story of recovery, hope, and resilience that will inspire you to channel your own inner strength to overcome trauma or chase your entrepreneur dreams. 

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A powerful true story of recovery, hope, and resilience, Sink or Swimwear will inspire you to channel your inner strength to overcome trauma or chase your entrepreneurial dreams.

 

Discover:

• How unexpected events can spark million-dollar ideas.
• Complications in the apparel business: trademark battles, wire fraud, and production pitfalls.
• A tell-all of photo shoots, fashion shows, and industry parties.
• Coping strategies after a traumatic brain injury.
• Dealing with PTSD triggers and symptoms. 

More than fluff and fashion, this memoir will empower you with a fierce determination to succeed so you can reach for the stars, even when facing the greatest adversity.

CONNECT WITH JENNIFER HERE:

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