Vietnam Veteran PTSD
Marine Corps Combat Veteran
Burnout Recovery
Military Trauma
Faith After Trauma
Veteran Mental Health
Men’s Mental Health
Raw Minds Podcast

How does a man survive war and still carry the battle inside him for more than fifty years?

In this Raw Minds Podcast episode, Erick sits down with Keith A. Cole, a United States Marine Corps combat veteran, former CPA, author, husband, and father.

Keith served in Vietnam as an M60 machine gunner and was wounded three times.

He survived mortar fire, rocket shrapnel, jungle ambushes, and an incendiary round while riding on the side of a tank.

After Vietnam, Keith was assigned to inspector and instructor duty. Part of his job was notifying families that their son or husband had been killed or wounded in action.

Keith says that duty could feel harder than combat.

For decades, he carried grief, nightmares, alcohol use, trauma, burnout, and PTSD.

From the outside, he built a successful life.

Inside, he was still fighting.

After more than fifty years, Keith reached his breaking point.

He did not surrender to an enemy.

He surrendered to God.

Keith explains why surrender is not weakness, how faith became the foundation of his recovery, and how he found a new purpose helping people facing trauma, burnout, grief, and silent emotional pain.

He also shares the story behind his book:

Burnout: God’s Recovery Plan

This episode is for veterans, fathers, men taught to stay silent, and anyone dealing with PTSD, grief, burnout, trauma, addiction, faith struggles, or emotional exhaustion.

Recovery is possible.

Faith can rebuild what trauma tried to destroy.

GUEST LINKS

Official website:
https://www.RecoveryByFaith.com

About Keith:
https://recoverybyfaith.com/about

Book page:
https://recoverybyfaith.com/books/burnout-god-s-recovery-plan-a-marine-s-story-of-trauma-surrender-and-healing-through-faith-keith-cole/9798868528996

Amazon paperback:
https://www.amazon.com/Burnout-Recovery-Marines-Surrender-Healing/dp/B0FWH2LT32

Amazon Kindle:
https://www.amazon.com/Burnout-Recovery-Marines-Surrender-Healing-ebook/dp/B0FWLNRJNC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/kacolecpa

CHAPTERS

00:00 Erick returns
02:05 Introducing Keith
05:00 Book and website
06:19 Life before the Marines
09:38 Why he joined
11:54 Boot camp
17:34 Vietnam
20:17 First wound
30:43 Second wound
34:04 The ambush
35:00 Believing he died
38:35 Notifying families
42:22 Drinking to cope
47:49 PTSD
50:13 Breaking point
50:51 Surrendering to God
56:52 Writing the book
01:03:00 Closing

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT

Canada and United States:

Call or text 988

RAW MINDS LINKS

YouTube:
https://youtube.com/@RawMinds-cs3ci

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/rawmindspodcast

TikTok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@rawmindspodcast

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/share/1CRWJaV5qh/

Website:
https://www.rawminds.ca

Email:
rawmindspodcast@gmail.com

For the ones we’ll never meet.

Healing out loud.

Toxic relationships

Toxic love

Shame

Relationship trauma

Emotional healing

Men’s mental health

Trauma recovery

Self awareness

Dr. Stephen Paul Edwards

The Venus Fly Trap

Raw Minds Podcast

Why do people stay in toxic relationships even when they know they are losing themselves?

In this powerful episode of Raw Minds Podcast, Erick sits down with Dr. Stephen Paul Edwards, author, international speaker, spiritual counselor, and the creator behind The Venus Fly Trap, Sex, Lies, and Repercussions.

This raw conversation goes deep into toxic relationships, toxic love, shame, emotional wounds, relationship trauma, childhood trauma, self awareness, desire, control, attachment, identity, and rebuilding after chaos.

Dr. Stephen Paul Edwards opens up about growing up in Blackpool, England, carrying pain from childhood, being shaped by shame, building success, repeating painful relationship patterns, and learning how to stop running from the truth.

The Venus Fly Trap is not just a book about love.

It is a story about obsession, toxic patterns, desire, shame, emotional truth, and what happens when someone gets pulled into something that looks beautiful but slowly becomes destructive.

Erick and Stephen talk about why people ignore red flags, why toxic love can feel exciting at first, why shame keeps people silent, why men shut down emotionally, and why real healing starts when you finally look at your own patterns.

This episode is about toxic relationships.

It is about shame.

It is about emotional healing.

It is about self awareness.

It is about rebuilding after chaos.

It is about learning why the same patterns keep showing up in your life.

If you have ever stayed too long in a toxic relationship, ignored red flags, carried shame, chased chaos, lost yourself trying to save someone, or wondered why the same emotional patterns keep repeating, this episode is for you.

Guest:

Dr. Stephen Paul Edwards

Author, international speaker, spiritual counselor, and founder of VFT23

Dr. Stephen Paul Edwards Links:

Website: https://vft23.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephen_sapereaude/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seemiracles/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@vft23_official?lang=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61575468609762

X: https://x.com/Stephen_Edwardz

Free first 3 chapters:

https://bit.ly/4aYmzP8

Coaching and counselling:

https://vft23.com/coaching-and-counselling/?utm_source=Erick&utm_medium=+Raw+Minds+Podcast&utm_campaign=Podcast+Interview+-+Erick

Discount Code:

VFT23!

Raw Minds Podcast:

Raw conversations about men’s mental health, trauma, addiction, grief, fatherhood, healing, recovery, discipline, and personal growth.

Follow Raw Minds:

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@rawminds-cs3ci?si=GyaUB-JNhmxF-tv1

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3I7hBJgYDdS8UQpbMl9bdt

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rawmindspodcast?igsh=MXI2cmh3cmUzcHNuMQ==

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rawmindspodcast?_t=8rM6xvJfjKZ&_r=1

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CRWJaV5qh/

Website: https://www.rawminds.ca

Email: rawmindspodcast@gmail.com

Mental Health Support:

If you are struggling or feel like you might hurt yourself, call or text 988 in Canada or the United States for immediate mental health crisis support. You are not alone.

Subscribe to Raw Minds for more real conversations that cut through the fake stuff and get into what people actually carry.

How does a man rebuild after war, homelessness, PTSD, and losing his sense of identity?In this powerful episode of Raw Minds, Erick sits down with Sean Martin, an Iraq veteran and the force behind The Quarantined, for a raw conversation about PTSD, survival, emotional healing, veteran mental health, music healing, and rebuilding life after rock bottom.Sean opens up about serving in Iraq, coming home with trauma he did not fully understand, hitting a breaking point, entering PTSD treatment, and learning how to rebuild through self awareness, therapy, mindfulness, self acceptance, and music.This conversation goes deep into war trauma, emotional health, trauma recovery, inner strength, self care, anger, shame, identity collapse, forgiveness, and what it takes for a man to find mental clarity after chaos.Through The Quarantined, Sean turns pain into sound. His music carries rage, grief, confrontation, forgiveness, and survival. Songs like Nemesis and the album Aversion to Normalcy are built from lived experience, war trauma, and the fight to keep going.This episode is about PTSD recovery.It is about veteran mental health.It is about music as survival.It is about rebuilding after rock bottom.It is about turning pain into purpose.If you are a man carrying PTSD, grief, trauma, shame, anger, or pain you never talk about, this episode is for you.Guest:Sean MartinLead singer, guitarist, songwriter, producer, and creative force behind The QuarantinedSean Martin and The Quarantined Links:Official Website: https://www.thequarantined.comMusic Page: https://thequarantined.com/musicBio: https://thequarantined.com/bioBandcamp: https://thequarantined.bandcamp.comSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5mBHj43S2kBEJxxfwHrOStYouTube: https://youtube.com/@thequarantinedInstagram: www.instagram.com/thequarantinedTikTok: www.tiktok.com/@thequarantineFacebook: www.facebook.com/TheQuarantinedLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sean-martin-42912361Featured Music:Aversion to Normalcy: Available on major streaming platformsNemesis Friend of Mine: https://open.spotify.com/track/00mvcDnIY7RJoDj27OaAiX?si=354582b24fc44082Raw Minds Podcast:Raw conversations about men’s mental health, trauma, addiction, grief, fatherhood, healing, recovery, discipline, and personal growth.Follow Raw Minds:YouTube: https://youtube.com/@rawminds-cs3ci?si=GyaUB-JNhmxF-tv1Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3I7hBJgYDdS8UQpbMl9bdtInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rawmindspodcast?igsh=MXI2cmh3cmUzcHNuMQ==TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rawmindspodcast?_t=8rM6xvJfjKZ&_r=1Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CRWJaV5qh/Website: https://www.rawminds.caEmail: rawmindspodcast@gmail.comChapters:00:00 Intro02:18 Sean Martin joins Raw Minds02:32 Where to find The Quarantined03:16 Sean’s merch and streetwear brand04:48 Aversion to Normalcy05:16 Bandcamp and unreleased music07:03 Who Sean was before the music09:06 Joining the military10:23 The body remembers stress12:09 Trauma, anger, and what men carry14:28 Finding your internal guiding light17:35 Critical thinking and mental health18:24 PTSD and deep sadness22:07 How trauma creates conditioning24:47 Shame after trauma26:47 Sean’s PTSD moment after Iraq29:32 Facing bias and accountability31:04 Mental health as redirection33:23 Forgiveness and self acceptance37:18 VA hospital and PTSD treatment39:18 Cognitive behavioral therapy40:19 Learning how to think51:30 How music became the message52:03 The sound of The Quarantined01:10:18 Why mental health conversations matter01:11:47 Perspective and gratitude01:13:47 Final thoughtsMental Health Support:If you are struggling or feel like you might hurt yourself, call or text 988 in Canada or the United States for immediate mental health crisis support. You are not alone.Subscribe to Raw Minds for more real conversations that cut through the fake stuff and get into what people actually carry.