JOINT BASE LEWIS- MCCHORD, Wash. - Capt. Abram Staten, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry, 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division, Chaplain, visited single parents and single Soldiers with the 17th Field Artillery Brigade during an open discussion and luncheon dinner at North Lewis Chapel.
During the visit, Staten talked to Soldiers about how he found confidence in himself after contemplating suicide. He discovered three ways to help him through his situation. He talked to someone, talked to himself, and made a good plan for his future.
Staten was married for approximately three years, until one day he received a phone call from his ex-wife asking for a divorce. He thought it was a joke because he knew his marriage was perfect. Once he realized she was serious, his life began to change. He began to lose everything he appreciated in his life such as his dog, his house, his job, and to top it all off, he even broke his arm and wrecked his car in that same month.
He knew he didn't have a place to go, and he only had enough money in his pocket for a motel room for one night. While he was sitting in his room, he began thinking of ways to commit suicide, but he didn't have a weapon.
Staten started thinking, "what if I attempt to kill myself, and I don't do well? I could have been in pain and suffering while trying to heal. I was nervous, I couldn't do it," he said.
In 2014, he found someone who could relate and who could guide him through his situation, he said. "I would write notes to myself every morning and place them on the mirror. My notes made me aware of who I really was and what I was looking for in life."
After he received help, he went back to that same motel he was once in, he walked past the room, broke down, looked up, and replied, "thank you for everything."
"I realize my life was more important to my family and others. My self-esteem level is higher now and I am somebody," he said. With a smile on his face, "my life is better now than it has ever been and I'm thankful."
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