The last couple weeks have been a bit heavy for several of us here at Overdrive, since learning of the passing of an operator we knew who took his own life. It's a difficult subject to know how to approach, to communicate, and one Overdrive Extra contributor/longtime hauler Clifford Petersen notes still comes with a stigma attached to it that make it all the more difficult. Namely, and more broadly, we're talking about mental health, and just how to be an effective means of support for all with whom we come into contact.

On this special-edition Monday podcast -- apologies for all who were expecting our usual Friday drop -- dive in with Petersen to talk through his own journey to where he is today, with a mission to be a lifeline of support specifically to those who, like him, work over-the-road and struggle with anxiety, depression, in his case PTSD, and/or a myriad other issues. Petersen's trained in substance-abuse counseling and life coaching broadly, likewise a variety of psychological diagnoses and techniques. Though as he emphasizes, he's not a licensed practicing psychologist himself.

As he's written in varying degrees of detail in Overdrive before, his journey to realizing the mission has been a long one, and to anyone who's ever felt like they were truly at the end of the the rope, as it were, as he's said many times before, "you are not alone ... Truckers need to know they're not alone. ... We are your community, and we are here, willing to help. You can always call me at 573-730-2370. I still truck, and I still work with truckers -- and I’ll never charge you a dime. I’m here to help.”

Catch Petersen's stories from the last several years for Overdrive here: https://www.overdriveonline.com/authors/contact/14865336/clifford-petersen

He’s written about a lot of topics, but most often on the techniques he himself uses in ongoing efforts to battle his own demons since the PTSD diagnosis sent him down the path of mental health education almost two decades ago now. A lot of what he’s written around the subject he thinks of as "tools that a person can put in their toolbox to help them out. ... The trucker knows what it means to have the right tool for the right job. If you're having an issue, get the right tool and use it. Life is the same thing. Get the right tool, and use it."

Petersen's story is one we hope anyone listening will see as, yes, though the road might well be a tough one looking ahead, there is hope, if we all do our best to truly support each other. Petersen’s still here, still trucking, and his mission is clear evidence of that.

In the podcast, Petersen also notes road chaplain organizations, staffed by people with willing ears and free of judgment, including Truckstop Ministries: https://www.truckstopministries.org/

And the organization he's a part of himself, Channel 21 Ministries: https://www.lonesomeroad.org/channel-21-ministries-home.html

You can also call or text the 988 national crisis hotline, 24/7.