For twelve years, Mike Tenney carried other people's worst days as a law enforcement officer. Then his own arrived — first in a patrol car with a gun to his head, then three years later in a closet with a plan to end his life. In this conversation, Mike shares the voice that stopped him, the wife who took the wrong exit, and the long walk back to the man he was always meant to be.
Mike Tenney is a former law enforcement officer, medically retired with PTSD and major depression after twelve years on the job. He lives in Hawaii with his wife and family, where he is a soon-to-be grandfather and helps small businesses understand their financial potential. This is the first time Mike has publicly told this story.
0:00 Introduction - A Moment That Changes Everything
2:21 The Train Accident - October 15, 2015
3:05 Arriving First on Scene
6:54 The Breaking Point - Gun to His Head
9:14 The Voice That Saved His Life
10:15 Medically Retired - Identity in Crisis
12:20 The Red Flags He Missed
13:05 Skipping the Debriefs - How It All Piled Up
15:40 Hidden Addictions as Coping Mechanisms
16:59 Anger, Shame, and the Weight of It All
18:18 Psychache - When Everything Collapses
19:38 December 8, 2018 - The Second Crisis
21:34 Locked Out of His Own Safe
24:59 God Told Me To - Wife Saves His Life on the Freeway
28:44 Hope Returns - A Dream and a New Beginning
31:09 What He Was Hiding from His Wife
33:45 Why We Hide Our Hearts - The Fear of Vulnerability
36:37 The Shocking Truth About First Responder Suicide
45:15 You Are Not Alone - Message to Those Still Struggling
49:10 Being a Cop Is Not Who I Was, It's What I Did
50:26 Choosing a Life Around What Matters
51:34 Be There - The Whole Point of the Podcast
52:22 Gratitude and Closing Thoughts
52:56 Mike Calls Alan an Earth Angel
53:32 Final Message - You Are Not Alone, You Are Loved
54:53 Exalt - A Brotherhood for High Performers
West Coast Post-trauma Retreat (WCPR) — frsn.org/west-coast-post-trauma-retreat.html Warrior Heart — warriorsheart.com Wild at Heart by John Eldredge — Mike's #1 book The Shack by Wm. Paul Young Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor FranklIf You or Someone You Love is Struggling
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline — call or text 988 in the US, or visit 988lifeline.org.