Army chaplain shares powerful story of losing assistant to suicide
Melinda Russell sheds light on the effects of military suicide in ‘Unvalidated Pain’
EL PASO, Texas – “A majority of the American population, while not part of the military, have heard about the staggeringly high rate of suicide in the military, yet have not been personally affected by it, nor understood it,” author and pastor Melinda Russell explains.
In her new book, “Unvalidated Pain: A Chaplain’s Journey to Iraq and Back” (published by AuthorHouse), Russell shares with readers her firsthand account of losing someone to suicide during her time as a military chaplain.
CH (CPT) Russell, Ret., details her tour to Iraq and her relationship with her assistant, SPC Green. She shares how his suicide effected her and takes readers through her journey of recovery.
“Unvalidated Pain” was penned as a way for Russell to continue her process of healing from the events that changed her life forever and as a means of helping others who have been through similar events, “but felt alone without others who understood the pain,” she adds.
“Unvalidated Pain”
By Melinda Russell
Softcover | 6 x 9 in | 156 pages | ISBN 9781481704496
E-Book | 156 pages | ISBN 9781481704489
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
About the Author
Melinda Russell is a Lutheran pastor who served as a U.S. Army chaplain in Iraq from 2007 to 2008. She was medically retired in 2010, served the Ft. Bliss Warrior Transition Battalion as a civilian and then became a student and homeschooling mother. She founded Hope & Healing Horse Therapy Ranch to help PTSD and TBI suffers.