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Breaking the Silence with Dr. Gregory Williams Surviving the Hagee Name: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and Recovery with Nat Hagee Author and survivor Nat Hagee, niece of megachurch pastor John Hagee, joins Dr. Gregory Williams on Breaking the Silence to discuss her debut memoir, Surviving Hagee, and the years of childhood sexual abuse by her father that it confronts. A Houston Evening and a Busy Week Ahead Dr. Gregory Williams opens the broadcast from his home near the Texas Medical Center in Houston, mentioning the Texans' win and the Longhorns' disappointing season before describing the week ahead. He is preparing to train probation officers and security staff in Angleton on vicarious trauma, following an earlier session there with convicted perpetrators themselves. Williams reminds listeners they can call 888-627-6008 or text him directly, and that the show streams live on the Shattered by the Darkness Facebook page before reaching more than one hundred fifty podcast platforms. He calls the program the network's top-rated show and thanks the audience. Rather than work through his usual prepared opening, Williams sets his notes aside, offering to email listeners a free PDF covering steps for handling depression and darkness of mind if they text him their address. He says he wants to move straight into tonight's conversation, calling the upcoming guest connection one of the more meaningful author relationships the show has had. Introducing Nat Hagee and Surviving Hagee Williams introduces Nat Hagee, a San Antonio-based author, survivor, and speaker whose debut memoir, Surviving Hagee, is releasing on Amazon Kindle immediately and in print on October 31st. He explains that her last name carries weight because her uncle is Pastor John Hagee, the nationally known megachurch leader whose books Williams has read since college. Hagee confirms she has Houston-area roots, having grown up in Baytown, Texas. Williams notes that the book opens by naming the Hagee connection rather than burying it, and Hagee explains that she spent years burdened by the name and controlled by its weight, and no longer wants to hide it. She agrees to answer any question Williams asks. Williams praises the memoir's raw, direct, dark-humored tone, free of the sanitized self-presentation he associates with social media, and says he read it cover to cover before inviting her on the show. A Father's Abuse Begins in Childhood Hagee describes the abuse by her father beginning around age four or five as a game that gradually escalated over years into repeated sexual abuse by the time she was about ten, continuing several times a week into her teenage years. She explains that her father, then a police officer who rose to captain and was heavily involved as a music minister at their Baytown church, groomed her slowly and deliberately, telling her the relationship was special and must stay secret. As the youngest child, she assumed for years that this was simply how fathers behaved with their children. She recalls wanting to please him, receiving money and treats afterward, and only gradually recognizing as she grew older that something was wrong, even as conflicting feelings complicated her understanding of what had happened to her. The abuse slowed only after her mother died of cancer. Other Abusers and the Cost of Trust Hagee tells Williams that her father was not the only person who abused her as a child; a corner-store clerk, visiting family friends, and, later, several older church acquaintances also victimized her, including an incident she says was filmed by older children connected to a church deacon's family when she was twelve or thirteen. She says she assumed at the time that such treatment from men was simply normal. Williams asks how the abuse affects her now, and Hagee says she trusts almost no one, constantly studying people's mannerisms even in friendly conversation, and that it took her years to distinguish consensual relationships from abuse and use. After her father's crimes became public, she learned some older cousins had also been abused by him decades earlier, which leads her to suspect her mother may have known more than she ever revealed. Church Silence, Public Exposure, and a Family Divided Hagee says church leaders in Baytown learned of the abuse at the time and suppressed it rather than intervening, and that when her father was eventually arrested, members of that congregation accused her of lying about a man they considered a pillar of the community. She recalls her uncle, Pastor John Hagee, learning of the abuse, confronting her father, and telling him he was no longer welcome in the family; Pastor Hagee and his wife subsequently paid for years of her mental health treatment, including therapy and ketamine sessions, support she says she never expected given her reputation within the family as its troubled member. That support ended abruptly, without warning, shortly after she married her wife, and she and her uncle's side of the family no longer speak. Hagee says the experience of institutional judgment damaged her relationship with Christianity more than the abuse itself did. Addiction, Survival, and a Message of Hope Hagee describes turning to alcohol, cocaine, and other drugs from around age twelve to numb her pain, and recounts three attempts to end her life as a teenager and young adult before beginning sustained therapy. She says she no longer identifies with organized religion, instead describing accountability to something larger than herself, though she credits years of therapy and psychiatric care with helping her reach a stable place. She is already writing a follow-up book, tentatively called Life After Survival, and hopes to build a career as a speaker under the banner of moving from surviving to thriving. Asked what she would tell someone in their darkest moment, Hagee urges people to believe in and love themselves first, to keep basic routines, and to seek therapy when ready. Williams closes the hour thanking her for her openness and reminding listeners that, in his view, there is always hope through faith.

Breaking the Silence with Dr. Gregory Williams A Life Shaped by Poetry: From Paris and India to the Smithsonian with Lee Woodman Poet Lee Woodman joins Dr. Gregory Williams for a full hour on Breaking the Silence, reading from her Heartscapes collection and tracing a global childhood in Paris and India through a long career at the Smithsonian into the healing craft of poetry. A Rescheduled Guest and a Full Hour Dr. Gregory Williams opens the broadcast from his home in Houston, Texas, overlooking the Texas Medical Center, and tells listeners the show survived a bit of technical difficulty before tonight's guest arrived. He explains that last week's scheduled guest had to cancel after her father and her husband's father both passed away in the same week, and he reassures listeners that he and the guest have already rescheduled her appearance for the middle of November. Williams calls out the station's number, 888-627-6008, reminding callers that BBS Radio and BBS TV can patch them straight through to him and his guest, and notes the program streams live on the Shattered by the Darkness Facebook page and will reach more than 150 podcast platforms within days. He decides to give tonight's guest the entire hour rather than working through a prepared list of questions, saying he wants the conversation to feel like coffee between friends rather than a rehearsed interview. Introducing Poet Lee Woodman Williams introduces Lee Woodman as the author of a series of poetry collections he calls the "Scapes" books: Heartscapes, Colorscapes, Soulscapes, Artscapes, Lifescapes, Homescapes, and Mindscapes, with Heartscapes released that August. He jokes that if he had written that many books the next one would be called Escape, and Woodman laughs along. Williams reads through a long list of honors, including the Indie Reader Discovery Award, the Independent Press Gold Award, the Nautilus Gold Award for Poetry, the William Meredith Prize for Poetry, the Atlanta Review International Poetry Competition Merit Award, and a first prize from Carve Magazine. Woodman thanks him and says she finds it interesting to talk with someone who mixes medical knowledge, mental health, and ministry, predicting a good conversation. Williams admits he saw her face for the first time only a minute before the broadcast began, since he prefers not to hold pre-interviews and wants their talk to come from the heart rather than from a publisher's prepared questions. What Makes Poetry Special Williams asks Woodman why people hesitate to give poetry a chance, and she says many were taught difficult poems too early without enough instruction in sound, rhythm, and rhyme, so the form feels scary rather than musical. She describes her own process as rooted in specific observation, staring for long stretches at nature, cities, architecture, or overheard conversation in a museum or marketplace, then jotting notes in a small notebook before researching the subject further, whether it is a peacock's mating habits or a culture's walk and speech patterns. Williams asks whether an exceptional poet simply sees past the surface of an object more deeply than most people do, and Woodman agrees, pointing to differences in gait, tone, and language across cultures as the kind of detail she chases. She calls the final stage of shaping a poem into free verse or a traditional form like a haiku or sonnet "puzzle fixing," something she finds genuinely fun. Poetry as Ancient Medicine Williams compares reading poetry to reading scripture, noting that the same verse can feel flat one week and strike with sudden truth the next, and asks whether good poetry works the same way. Woodman agrees and traces the idea back before written language, to shamans who used poems as prayers and to the biblical King David, who soothed King Saul's depression through poetry and reading. She says communities need that slowing down now more than ever, and cites studies showing that listening to or reading poetry lowers stress hormones in the body. Williams then asks her to read live, and after the show's single commercial break, featuring an advertisement for his own book, Embracing Your Scars, Woodman reads "A Mulch Pile Prayer," a poem about her father's garden and his quiet, humor-laced faith, built as a parody of the Lord's Prayer involving Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, and rutabagas. She also discusses "Recompose," a poem about returning a body to the earth through natural burial. A Childhood in Paris and India Woodman traces her path into poetry back to an unusual childhood. Her father, a World War II veteran who landed on Omaha Beach, became a Fulbright professor of psychology in Strasbourg, taking the family to Paris, where French became Woodman's first language. The State Department later sent them to India, first to Madras and then New Delhi, and Woodman and her sister did not move to the United States until their teens, growing up instead as global citizens surrounded by many languages, dances, and cultures. She studied art in college, danced seriously in her mother's international ballet school, and eventually built a long career in Washington, D.C., spending twenty years at the Smithsonian Institution and ten years running her own media company for clients including the Library of Congress and the World Bank. She later served as deputy director for American History at the Smithsonian before retiring at sixty-six to return to the creative passions of her childhood. Reading Hallelujah's Echo and Closing After retirement, Woodman took her first poetry classes since college and found herself "sublimely thrilled," spending the next twelve years studying with poets including Richard Blanco, President Obama's inaugural poet, while citing influences from William Carlos Williams and Elizabeth Bishop to Li-Young Lee. She reads "A Kind of Gospel," written during COVID and inspired by Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," prompting Williams to recall k.d. lang's performance of the song at the Olympics, and Woodman shares that Cohen himself praised lang's rendition backstage that night. She closes with "Strange Currency," a playful poem about falling in love after divorce. Woodman directs listeners to her website, poetleewoodman.com, where her books, an artist's statement, and audio recordings are available, and reveals that her eighth collection will be titled "Escapes." Williams thanks her for a joyful, unhurried hour and closes the broadcast with his standing reminder that no matter what listeners are facing, there is always hope, inviting them back next week.

Breaking the Silence with Dr. Gregory Williams Getting Back in the Game: Naming Pain, Calming Down, and Finding Rest Dr. Gregory Williams broadcasts alone on October 4 after a scheduled guest fails to log in, and uses a late Dallas Cowboys win over the Houston Texans to talk about getting back up after life's hits. He covers naming pain instead of saying fine, calming down, leaning on faith, and why he believes there is always hope. Waiting for a Late Guest Dr. Gregory Williams opens the October 4 broadcast from his studio in Houston, Texas, as the evening light fades outside his windows. He is waiting for a guest who has not yet logged in, and he fills the time by talking with listeners, inviting calls to 888-627-6008 and noting that the show is also running live on Facebook. Williams admits that live radio brings unpredictable nights, and he jokes that a guest from California may have misunderstood the time change. He then turns to the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans, whose game had ended with a late loss for his team, and uses it as a picture of life. Problems often hit like a linebacker from the side, and the real question is how a person gets back up. Williams asks listeners to take a quick inventory of how they face each day after health problems, relationship struggles, grief, or abuse. A Hard Room in a Group Program Williams recalls a group program where he spoke to a room of men who had been convicted of sexual abuse. He began by standing in silence and looking at each face, telling them he did not expect them to want to hear him, then walked the aisles touching shoulders as he went. He told his own story and the damage the abuse had done to his life, asking them to see him as someone not there to judge or re-convict. He then asked how many had been sexually abused themselves, and by his estimate most of the room raised a hand, somewhere between 85 and 90 percent. Some may have kept their hands down out of embarrassment. Williams says the silence he left after speaking was hard but powerful, and he hopes the message took root. He will likely never learn how the men were affected, though they had been asked to write notes for their counselors about the talk. The experience reminds him that the people who have lived through pain have the most to teach him. Naming What Happened Instead of Saying Fine Williams compares life to a football game, in which a team studies its opponent long before the kickoff. He says one of the first steps toward getting through a hit is to name what happened, rather than answering a caring friend's question with a quick 'I'm fine.' He admits that for thirty, thirty-five, perhaps forty years he never told anyone about the abuse he suffered as a child. He minimized it, pushed it away, and covered it up so that his life looked perfect from the outside. Eventually, he says, that silence began rusting out whatever solid foundation he had left. When he finally told a few friends, he apologized for keeping the truth hidden, and they answered that they understood and did not need an apology. Williams says that single conversation lifted a wall and a weight from him. He calls claiming, naming, and admitting what happened huge steps toward healing, and he notes with candor that he does not have many friends. Setting Down the Weight of Silence Williams describes carrying a secret as like hauling heavy shopping bags for decades instead of minutes. He says the weight disorganized his mental library, so that when a new hurt came he reached for an old answer that had nothing to do with the problem. Once he began to express and record what happened, the weight lifted and his thinking grew clearer. He keeps journals filled with his experiences, though some chapters of his life he may never reveal publicly. He draws a comparison to the NFL, where players are only now recognizing that repeated head impacts can have lasting effects decades after retirement. Williams argues that trauma works the same way, and that people who simply dust themselves off and insist they are fine may still be affected. He then imagines a listener whose loved one is slowly losing memory to illness, asking how that person could get through it. Calming Down and Rebuilding on the Sideline Williams explains that after being knocked down, a person first needs a safe place, both emotionally and physically, and safe people they trust. Like a player carried off the field, they need to calm their body before trying to solve the problem. He says he does this himself through prayer, reading scripture, sitting quietly, and journaling, which he compares to the debriefing that follows a crisis at a school or church. He then describes a rebuilding stage, in which a person stands, walks the sideline, and gets clear-headed enough to return to the game. Williams urges listeners to set boundaries, to tell the people around them what to keep away from, and to learn from what happened rather than turning away from life. He insists that resilience is greater than most people imagine, and he admits that he is not a strong person by nature. He says he endured by leaning on a stronger source than himself, which he describes as the Lord and Savior. Rest, Hope, and an Invitation Back Williams closes the hour with a message about rest, which he describes as emotional, mental, and spiritual rest rather than only physical rest. He invites listeners who have never turned to faith to consider it, asking what they have to lose, and promises that the Lord will be present during the storm, not only afterward. He repeats the program's core message that as long as a person has breath, there is hope, and he urges listeners to get back in the game. Williams then explains that his guest, whom he had hoped to interview that night, may be rescheduled for the following week if she reaches out to the station. The announcer reminds listeners that Dr. Williams can be reached by phone at 832-396-6525, and that the show airs each Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Central Time on BBS Radio. The broadcast ends with Williams wishing listeners a good week and saying never give up, and there is always hope.

Breaking the Silence with Dr. Gregory Williams Different Wounds, Same Healing: Childhood Abuse Survivors Speak Out with Dr. Peter Verdin and Sonny Von Cleveland Dr. Peter Verdin - Gold in the Cracks — A Memoir of Silence, Performance, and Repair Sonny Von Cleveland - Sonny Von Cleveland | Author, Speaker & Advocate | Palm Springs Dr. Gregory Williams welcomes two survivors of childhood sexual abuse, former college baseball player Dr. Peter Verdin and motivational speaker Sonny Von Cleveland, whose very different roads through trauma, prison, and healing led them to become close friends and co-authors of companion memoirs. Football, 9/11, and a Double Booking in Houston Dr. Gregory Williams opens the broadcast live from Houston, ribbing his beloved Texans for blowing an early lead in their season opener and checking on the Dallas Cowboys, who are about to kick off a tough road game against the New York Giants. He turns serious to mark the anniversary of September 11th, thanking veterans, active-duty service members including his own son in the Army, and firefighters and emergency responders, and says the tragedy pulled the country together with a resiliency he believes can never be broken. Williams gives out the call-in number, 888-627-6008, and his personal cell phone for anyone who needs someone to talk to, and notes the show is also streaming live on Facebook. He tells listeners tonight brings a rare double booking, a dynamic duo he promises will be nationally known soon, and explains he is skipping his usual intro segment to bring on Dr. Peter Verdin and Sonny Von Cleveland right away. Two Survivors Connect Through a Shared Network Verdin explains he emailed the show after searching podcasts in the trauma-and-healing space and finding Williams' book, Shattered by the Darkness, dovetailing with his own manuscript, Gold in the Cracks, written while he sat on the floor in pieces. He credits Detective Jeremy Henson, who caught his childhood abuser and has stayed a friend for seventeen years since the trial, with connecting him to Jim Cole, a thirty-year federal investigator who co-hosts a podcast with Sonny Von Cleveland. Verdin and Von Cleveland talked by FaceTime for two hours the first time they spoke, before either knew the other's full story, and later met in person in Nashville, where Von Cleveland wrote the foreword to Gold in the Cracks. Williams reads a line from that foreword aloud, noting how one man wore his pain where the world could see it while the other learned to hide behind a resume, different armor over the same wound. A Little League Coach's Years of Grooming Dr. Peter Verdin describes being chosen at age nine for an all-star Little League team in Northern Virginia, where the coach, John Hamilton, began giving him private hitting lessons, took him to an Orioles game, and embedded himself in the family, even earning a seat at Christmas dinner. Hamilton abused him almost daily from age nine until his fourteenth birthday, and Verdin says he told no one until a phone call from his mother during his freshman year of college prompted him to name what happened; Hamilton was later sentenced to fifty-five years in prison. Verdin went on to start for three and a half years at the University of Georgia and was drafted by the Washington Nationals before burning out. He kept the abuse buried for years while building what looked, from the outside, like a successful life, until being fired from a job and an abrupt breakup left him, four months before this broadcast, at what he calls rock bottom. Abuse, Prison, and Years in Solitary Sonny Von Cleveland says his abuse began at age three inside his own family and eventually involved seven men over nine years; when he disclosed his uncle's abuse at age ten and testified at trial, the uncle received fifteen years in prison, but much of Von Cleveland's family did not believe him and blamed him instead. Already caught up in the juvenile system after a felony break-in at age seven, he describes his mother trafficking him to men for drugs and money, a cycle that sent him to prison at sixteen, where he was raped by two men at knifepoint in his first week and later stabbed one of his attackers with pencils. He would spend eighteen of the next twenty years incarcerated, including five years in solitary confinement, a period he calls an absolute blessing because it forced him to sit with his own demons. A motorcycle wreck years later, after which he says he had to lose everything to gain a new life, became another turning point in his healing. Forgiveness, the Body, and the Real Numbers The two men compare how they manage triggers today. Von Cleveland says he has forgiven every abuser he has ever had, calling forgiveness the ultimate trigger lock that frees him rather than the person who hurt him, alongside meditation and remembering survivors who cannot yet speak for themselves. Verdin takes a different view, describing complex post-traumatic stress disorder as a physical brain injury stored in the nervous system rather than something a person can simply decide to release, and tracing a chronic back injury directly back to the exact age his abuse ended. Both men lean on movement, EMDR therapy, and journaling. When Williams raises the widely cited statistic that one in six men experience childhood sexual abuse, both guests call the number far too low, arguing it only counts men who report, leaving out boys in rural communities, cultural groups where the subject stays taboo, and the more than thirty children Verdin's abuser was found to have victimized beyond the five who came forward. Advice for Men Who Have Never Told Anyone Asked what he would say to a man who has never disclosed his abuse, Verdin urges people to speak before they hit rock bottom, describing how writing his own story forced buried memories to the surface and noting that friends who finally learned his history told him it made him make so much more sense. Von Cleveland adds that no one can help a person whose struggle stays hidden, quoting Viktor Frankl's line that suffering ceases to be suffering once it is given a purpose. Williams closes by pointing listeners to both books: Von Cleveland's Hey, White Boy: Conversations of Redemption, already available in print, on Kindle and as an AI-narrated audiobook, and Verdin's Gold in the Cracks, due out the third week of October and previewable at his website. He invites both men back on the show, thanks them for giving up their evening, and ends the broadcast with the program's long-standing promise that no matter how dark it gets, there is always hope.

Breaking the Silence with Dr. Gregory Williams Suicide Awareness, Emotional Darkness, and the Courage to Ask for Help with Anthony Gurley Dr. Gregory Williams battles a technical meltdown to welcome author Anthony Gurley, whose memoir Deadly Dilemma traces a childhood abandonment, a lifelong fear of asking for help, and the suicidal thoughts he carried quietly into old age. Technical Difficulties and a Live Broadcast Dr. Gregory Williams opens the program from his home studio in Houston, apologizing upfront for technical problems that have knocked out video and left the broadcast running as audio only. He notes that an unrelated program has mistakenly appeared on the station's Facebook feed and clarifies that he has no connection to its content. Williams tells listeners the show is beginning its seventh year on BBS Radio and Television, reachable by phone at 888-627-6008 or by text, and promises the episode will reach podcast platforms later in the week even if the live stream falters. He stays calm about the glitches, saying live radio simply comes with unpredictable nights, and mentions hopes that the station will soon be available on Roku. He describes the sun setting behind the Texas Medical Center outside his window, using the fading light to introduce the evening's theme of emotional darkness before his guest joins the conversation. Understanding Emotional Darkness Before introducing his guest, Williams spends several minutes describing the varieties of darkness people experience, from a room with the lights turned off to caves like Carlsbad Cavern where no light reaches at all, and finally an emotional darkness that can hide behind a smiling face at work or church. He lists grief, rejection, disappointment, loneliness, trauma, betrayal, fear, anxiety, shame and exhaustion as doorways into that darkness, and offers a rule he asks listeners to write down: a person cannot always keep darkness from entering, but can keep it from becoming where they live. He then walks through the first steps for staying out of emotional darkness, comparing a low-fuel warning light on his dashboard that morning to the internal warning signs of sadness, anger and anxiety, and cautioning that, unlike a car's light, these signals rarely start flashing before real danger arrives, so paying attention early matters. Dont Believe the Darkness, Ask for Help Williams adds two more principles before bringing on his guest: darkness has a voice that insists a person is alone, unloved and a failure, and that voice should never be trusted to make permanent conclusions from a temporary state. He warns that isolation is one of the fastest routes into emotional darkness and urges listeners to say the three words many people, especially men, resist: I need help. Using the image of two people carrying a heavy table instead of one, he argues that burdens do not get lighter alone, only more bearable when shared with a trusted friend, pastor or counselor. He then introduces Anthony Gurley, author of Deadly Dilemma: Suicide, Faith, and the Search for Identity and Purpose, describing him, in the words of his own publicity materials, as an ordinary person rather than a celebrity or athlete, someone whose book grew out of enduring failure, self-esteem struggles and disappointment rather than fame. A Fathers Departure and a Lesson in Silence Gurley explains that the book began as a private project meant only to introduce himself fully to his children and grandchildren, until a friend who edits professionally urged him to publish it for strangers who might recognize themselves in it, imagining a plumber in Dubuque who has never found the courage to face his own story. He recounts coming home from being cut from his school basketball team at age eleven to find his father walking out the door with a suitcase, an image tied to two remembered phrases: being told to stay out of the way because he could not see through muddy water, and being warned, don't ask me for a damn thing. Gurley says he spent his career at a small college for thirty years never once asking for a raise, a promotion or help, a pattern he now traces directly back to that day, and he credits his wife of fifty-four years, whom he proposed to after four months, as something close to providence. Friends, Choices, and Consequences After the commercial break, the conversation turns to a mantra Gurley developed for the college students he mentored for decades: friends, choices, consequences. He tells Williams to choose friends carefully and cultivate a small trusted circle, to make choices wisely while accepting that even wise choices sometimes go wrong, and to embrace consequences graciously since a person controls the first two but not the third. Williams connects this to his own grandfather's warning about running with dogs and catching fleas. Gurley describes founding a mentoring program called Motivation Ministry that paired Christian student athletes and artists with adult mentors after he retired from thirty years in financial aid, and recalls repeatedly pointing students toward Philippians 4:8, urging them to post the verse where they would see it each morning as a quiet influence on daily decisions. He admits he never had many close friends himself, something he now regrets, tracing it back to the same childhood instinct to stay out of the way and avoid being noticed. Suicide Awareness and the Courage to Ask for Help With September marking Suicide Awareness Month, Williams asks Gurley directly about the suicidal thoughts he describes in the book's unsent letter. Gurley says the thought has flitted through his mind throughout adulthood without ever becoming an attempt, and he now believes far more people share that experience than he once imagined. He describes a recurring image from the book, a snow globe admired from outside but never entered, and asks listeners whether there is a similar adventure they have envied but lacked courage to try. He recalls a high school coach telling him, at a ninetieth birthday party two Saturdays earlier, that asking for help is not weakness but strength, a reframing Gurley says he had never considered. Williams closes by naming the book, Deadly Dilemma: Suicide, Faith, and the Search for Identity and Purpose, pointing listeners to Gurley's website for crisis resources, and repeating the program's closing promise that no matter how dark life gets, there is always hope.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Anniversary Special Seven Years of Breaking Silence: A Roadmap from Survival to Hope Summary Seven Years on the Air Dr. Gregory Williams marks the program's seventh anniversary after a scheduled guest is hospitalized and the planned suicide-awareness discussion is postponed. He reflects on entering the eighth year of broadcasting, thanks the BBS Radio TV team and the audience, and describes the show's expansion from audio-only programming to video and broad platform distribution. He also celebrates listeners in Australia and invites callers and viewers to share their favorite episodes. Memorable Guests and a Listening Platform The host recalls conversations with Dr. Bruce Perry, Lisa Jakub, Micah and Diana LeCert, the actor who played Little Ricky, Chief Matt, and other guests. He also names several people he still hopes to interview. These memories reinforce his goal of maintaining a noncritical, believing, and accepting environment where survivors and guests can tell their stories without fear of dismissal. Reading from Shattered by the Darkness Williams reads from Chapter Eight of Shattered by the Darkness, describing the period after he first refused further abuse by his father. Although the physical abuse stopped, he recalls insomnia, isolation, emotional neglect, a continuing desire for paternal affirmation, and the fear that nobody would believe him. He compares the aftermath of sexual abuse to a glass heart shattered by a sledgehammer and explains that recovery began one small piece at a time. Recognize, Find Safety, and Regulate The first three steps in the host's recovery road map are recognizing and naming what happened, determining whether the survivor is currently safe, and regulating the body's response before trying to solve larger problems. Williams discusses identifying triggers, unhealthy behaviors, intimidation, and perceived threats. He recommends breathing, tapping, walking, rest, and the five-four-three-two-one sensory exercise as ways to redirect attention and lower acute anxiety. Reach Out, Process, and Rebuild The next steps are reaching out to trusted people, processing the experience at a manageable pace, and rebuilding what trauma took away. Williams urges survivors to develop a support system, reject self-blame, examine their triggers and losses, and restore routines, confidence, goals, decision-making, and personal control. He distinguishes healthy boundaries, which protect a person, from walls, which keep everyone out. Growing from Survival Toward Hope The final step is growth: moving from merely surviving toward living with strength, purpose, and a renewed sense of personal worth. Williams introduces the SAFE reminder - stop, assess, find support, and engage the next step - while distinguishing stress, anxiety, trauma, and abuse. He closes by emphasizing journaling, Christian faith, service to others, and the message he has repeated throughout the program's history: there is always hope.

This week's guest is Chief Matt Antkowiak. Chief Matt is the Co-Founder of Team Unconquerable and the Invictus Foundation. U.S. Army veteran, firefighter, career law enforcement leader. He is the author of, "Unconquerable." From Pain to Purpose: Faith, Trauma, Training, and the Courage to Speak Faith at the Center of Recovery The episode begins with Dr. Gregory Williams celebrating nearly seven years on the air and introducing a returning guest he addresses as Chief Matt. Rather than following a prepared interview sheet, Williams chooses objects around his room to spark conversation, beginning with a cross. Matt describes his Christian faith as the central organizing force in his life and explains that he views his recovery from childhood abuse through the lens of Jesus, free will, redemption, and purpose. He says he spent years angry with God but eventually came to believe that his pain could be transformed into a platform for helping others. Turning Pain Into Purpose Matt recounts how disclosing his own abuse has encouraged other survivors to speak. He describes an 18-year-old former martial arts student who told him that hearing Matt share his story gave him the courage to disclose his own sexual abuse publicly. That encounter becomes a vivid example of what Matt calls the transformation of pain into purpose, purpose into platform, and platform into legacy. He credits Williams as a mentor who has encouraged him spiritually and professionally while he develops his own survivor-advocacy work and forthcoming memoir. Breathing, Truth, and Crisis Training Using an oxygen bottle as the next conversational prompt, Williams asks how Matt handles anxiety, physiological stress, and dangerous situations. Matt describes breathing as his first response and says he follows it by asking himself what is actually true in the immediate moment rather than what fear is telling him. Drawing on military, firefighting, law-enforcement, SWAT, and martial arts experience, he argues that people do not “rise to the occasion” in crisis but fall back on their training. He emphasizes repeated preparation, mindset, and the idea that courage requires fear rather than the absence of it. Forgiveness, Justice, and Difficult Encounters The conversation moves into forgiveness and evangelism when Williams asks what Matt would say to a condemned man he once pursued as a police officer. Matt says he would speak to him about Jesus and pray for his soul, and he describes wanting a similar face-to-face encounter with the man who abused him. He says he wants his abuser to see that he is no longer broken and that he also wants to speak to him about Christ. For Matt, forgiveness does not erase justice or minimize harm; instead, he frames it as a way to refuse continued emotional poisoning while still recognizing accountability. Writing Trauma Into Order A Bible and journal become the next prompts, leading to an extended discussion of writing as a tool for trauma recovery. Matt says journaling and writing his book help him bring “order to disorder” by placing painful memories into words that he can revisit and understand. Williams describes giving trauma survivors a writing exercise focused on sensory details such as colors, fabrics, smells, sounds, time of day, and surroundings. Both men say that putting memories into language can uncover details, clarify patterns, and provide a way to process experiences that had remained buried or disconnected for years. Therapy, Communication, and Hope The final portion of the episode centers on counseling, honest communication, and ending the stigma around therapy. Matt says therapy has helped him understand anger, shutdown responses, family relationships, abuse-related guilt, and the difference between responsibility and blame. He describes deliberately seeking a male Christian therapist with experience in PTSD and sexual trauma and encourages other survivors to enter therapy and tell the truth about what they are experiencing. Williams closes by urging listeners to write, talk to someone, lean into faith, and remember that even in the darkest moments there is still hope. SEO Keywords / Key Phrases faith-based trauma healing, child sexual abuse recovery, survivor advocacy, Christian counseling, PTSD therapy, journaling for trauma, forgiveness after abuse, crisis mindset training, trauma survivor testimony, purpose after pain

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams ASL Picture Books and the Power of Accessible Communication Dr. Gregory Williams hosts Breaking the Silence with guest Kathleen Marcath for a heartfelt conversation about American Sign Language, deaf and hard-of-hearing children, inclusive picture books, My Monster Truck Goes Everywhere With Me, ASL classifiers, deaf representation, brain benefits, classroom learning, family communication, and the hope that sign language can become more visible, normal, and accessible for everyone. This week's guest is Kathleen Marcath. She is an award-winning author and Amazon best-seller who is celebrated for her engaging children's book. "My Monster Truck Goes Everywhere with Me" This book teaches children 32 signs in American Sign Language. Guest Spotlight: Kathleen Marcath This episode of Breaking the Silence, hosted by Dr. Gregory Williams and dated August 9, 2026, features guest Kathleen Marcath is the author of My Monster Truck Goes Everywhere With Me and related ASL learning resources. Dr. Gregory Williams Opens With Gratitude, Housekeeping, and Hope Dr. Gregory Williams opens from Houston, Texas, welcoming listeners, noting the approaching back-to-school season, and sharing updates about his own writing projects. He mentions the upcoming seventh anniversary of Breaking the Silence, gives call-in and text information, praises the BBS Radio team, and introduces the evening’s guest as a subject he has never quite had on the show before. His personal connection is immediate: he recalls having deaf family members, watching relatives communicate through sign language, and wishing he had learned more himself. Kathleen Marcath’s Path Into American Sign Language Kathleen explains that her interest in sign language began at a retreat where a group learned to sign the song “Our God Is an Awesome God.” That experience stayed with her, eventually leading her to study sign language at Madonna University. While taking a class that required her to choose and sign a picture book, she looked for children’s books that naturally included signing children but could not find what she wanted. Years later, after working in schools and spending time with her grandson, she entered a writing contest and realized her story could become the kind of ASL picture book she had once searched for. Why Representation and Natural ASL Learning Matter The conversation highlights the importance of representing deaf and hard-of-hearing children in books and classrooms. Kathleen says American Sign Language is a full language, even though it is not spoken, and describes how children become excited when they learn it. She shares a classroom story about a child she calls Jonathan, who began to smile and participate more after using sign language activities to tell simple stories. Dr. Williams connects this to his own awe at watching deaf relatives communicate, emphasizing how powerful and overlooked this form of communication can be. My Monster Truck Goes Everywhere With Me and the 32 Signs Kathleen describes My Monster Truck Goes Everywhere With Me as a fun, natural way to introduce ASL. Each page includes at least one sign, and the book teaches 32 signs. To support readers, the back of the book includes QR codes linking to videos with deaf storytellers signing the story and teaching the signs with variations. Dr. Williams praises the book’s layout, illustrations, and accessibility, noting that even someone unfamiliar with ASL can begin to understand what is being shown. Kathleen explains that babies can learn sign language from birth and emphasizes that it is not “baby sign language,” but sign language that babies learn. Deaf Illustration, Purple Monster Trucks, and ASL Classifiers Kathleen explains that it was important to her to work with a deaf illustrator, and she found Isaac Ling in Singapore, who created the storyboard and drawings, while Perdi Mira handled the coloring. Dr. Williams praises the book’s bright color and asks about the purple monster truck, which Kathleen says emerged after the original red did not feel right. The discussion also explores ASL classifiers, especially the vehicle classifier used for the monster truck. Kathleen explains that after a signer identifies an object, a classifier can represent it throughout the story, making it a powerful storytelling tool. Activity Books, Schools, Seniors, and Untapped ASL Potential Kathleen discusses the companion coloring and activity book, which includes 77 pages of coloring, math, writing, clocks, handshapes, and activities meant to work for younger children as well as first-, second-, and third-grade students. Dr. Williams asks why ASL is not taught more widely in schools, and Kathleen points to deaf history, oralism, signing debates, teacher preparation, and the need for even small daily exposure when deaf children are present. She describes ASL as an untapped resource with unlimited potential, useful not only for children but also for seniors, couples, underwater communication, space, baseball signs, and everyday across-the-room communication. Website Resources, Freebies, and the Call for Broader Awareness Kathleen directs listeners to ASLPictureBooks.com, where people can find her books, blog, favorite-book resources, free charts, coloring pages, and information about classifiers, signer space, and sign selection. Dr. Williams repeatedly frames the book as a valuable gift for children, grandchildren, families, and anyone who wants a gentle introduction to ASL. Kathleen also mentions other authors and books connected with deaf representation, including stories about deaf and deaf-blind children and families learning to communicate. Together, they present ASL as not only practical, but normal, fun, brain-engaging, and deeply human. Closing Encouragement: Hope, Resilience, and Never Giving Up After saying goodbye to Kathleen, Dr. Williams closes with a message for children and families heading into the school year. He reminds listeners that no matter what they are facing, there is always a better day and always hope. Using the image of the sun setting behind him over the Texas Medical Center, he says that no matter how dark things get outside or inside, the sun will rise again tomorrow. He encourages children and adults to hold on, stay resilient, discover the resilience already inside them, and return next week for Chief Matt’s appearance.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Unconquerable: One Trusted Adult Can Change Everything Dr. Gregory Williams welcomes Chief Matt Antkowiak for a powerful conversation about child-abuse prevention, grooming awareness, survivor shame, institutional accountability, school safety, and the urgent need for trusted adults who are willing to listen, believe, and act. This week's guest is Chief Matt Antkowiak. Chief Matt is the Co-Founder of Team Unconquerable and the Invictus Foundation. U.S. Army veteran, firefighter, career law enforcement leader. He is the author of, "Unconquerable." Guest Spotlight: Chief Matt Antkowiak Chief Matt Antkowiak is the guest on this episode of Breaking the Silence and is introduced as the author of Unconquerable, as well as a police chief, investigator, U.S. Army veteran, firefighter, and child-protection advocate. Drawing from both professional experience and his own survivor story, Matt speaks with unusual directness about childhood sexual abuse, grooming, law enforcement, school accountability, faith, therapy, and the mission of helping other survivors — especially men — understand that the shame belongs to the abuser, not the abused. Dr. Gregory Williams Opens With Urgency and Purpose Dr. Gregory Williams opens the episode from Houston, explaining that he has just returned from church and vacation Bible school but is setting aside his planned notes to give Chief Matt Antkowiak the full hour. He frames the conversation as immediate and practical, stressing that the issues being discussed are not distant or outdated but could be happening in communities right now. Gregory urges listeners not to “hit the snooze button” emotionally or intellectually, warning that ignoring abuse, grooming, and trafficking can allow harm to continue. He also gives listeners ways to participate live through Facebook, phone, and text. Introducing Unconquerable and Matt’s Mission The conversation turns to Matt’s forthcoming book, Unconquerable, which Gregory shows on screen and describes as a book expected to make a lasting impact. Matt discusses the legal-review process, planned author copies, a hoped-for launch around September 1st, and a future companion workbook titled around “12 conversations” parents need to have with their children. Gregory reads from the book’s back-cover description, identifying Matt as a co-founder of Team Unconquerable and the Invictus Foundation, and as someone dedicated to protecting the vulnerable, exposing darkness, and building protectors. Matt also describes his daily educational posts about grooming, education spaces, trafficking, and child-protection awareness. Survivor Shame, Silence, and the Call to Be Heard Matt explains that Unconquerable is rooted not only in his career but also in his own childhood sexual and physical abuse. He speaks directly to survivors, especially men, saying there is no shame or guilt in having been sexually abused and that the abuser owns that burden. Matt says he carried shame in silence for 40 years, and only later began connecting how much of his life, behavior, law-enforcement mission, and trauma response were tied to what happened to him. He describes moments by a pool that became turning points, including a childhood promise to protect another boy and a later realization after a tornado in Oklahoma City that led him toward law enforcement. Faith, Therapy, Writing, and Healing Through the Story Matt describes how therapy, journaling, and writing helped him begin to understand the connections between abuse, first-responder trauma, sex-crimes investigations, and his faith. He says the title Unconquerable ultimately points to Jesus, not to himself, because he sees Christ as the unconquerable one who helped him survive and heal. He explains that sharing his story has no personal upside in terms of comfort or ease, but that he wrote the book so other men would not feel alone or ashamed. The discussion also touches on emotional vulnerability, crying, therapy, spiritual groaning, and the hope that the book will help readers face trauma with honesty instead of silence. Grooming, Trusted Adults, and Predator Propaganda A central theme of the episode is Matt’s explanation of grooming and the importance of “one trusted adult.” He says a trusted adult is not a superhero but someone willing to listen, see, and act. Matt emphasizes that if a child discloses abuse, adults should believe the child because there is no advantage for a child in making that kind of disclosure. He distinguishes surprises from secrets, saying surprises have expiration dates but secrets do not, and warns that predators often build trust first by becoming beloved, dependable, and valued in the community. He calls this “predator propaganda,” explaining that respected roles such as teacher, coach, pastor, police officer, or firefighter can be used to shield abusers from suspicion. Institutional Accountability and School Safety Matt and Gregory then focus heavily on schools, child protection, and institutional responsibility. Matt argues that abuse can happen in districts of every size and says parents must learn what questions to ask, what policies to demand, and what red flags to watch. He recommends asking whether educators are allowed to be one-on-one with students behind closed doors and strongly opposes private one-on-one electronic communication between staff and students through social media, gaming platforms, messaging apps, or even unexpected channels such as Spotify. He also discusses allegations and investigations involving school districts, Title IX, Texas education oversight, the Texas educator inspector general, and his belief that institutions must place children above reputation, convenience, and self-protection. Acting on Intuition and Refusing to Hit Snooze In the closing portion, Gregory and Matt urge parents, educators, churches, and communities to act when something feels wrong. Matt explains that adults should ask children better questions, create safety through belief and nonjudgment, and never dismiss intuition when behavior feels off. He says he would rather investigate gray-area concerns early than wait until abuse occurs, and Gregory closes by reinforcing that hope remains possible no matter how long someone has carried trauma. The episode ends with information about Matt’s website and resources, an invitation to continue the interview series in two weeks, and Gregory’s reminder that a troubling feeling may be a “divine alarm” calling someone to protect a child.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Fault Lines, Family Trauma, and the Courage to Still Stand Dr. Gregory Williams speaks with author Tim Smith about childhood kidnapping, neglect, shame, therapy, memory, identity, and how telling the truth can turn trauma into hope, healing, and personal power. This week's guest is Tim Smith. Tim grew up in the rural South in an environment shaped by addiction, instability and neglect--experiences that would later form the emotional backbone of his writing. His book, "Faultline" was released recently. Guest Spotlight: Tim Smith Tim Smith is the author of Fault Line: Still Standing, a memoir rooted in his childhood experiences of family instability, neglect, trauma, and the long process of naming what happened to him. In this episode, he discusses being taken from his father by his mother at age six, the emotional “fault line” that shaped his life, the role of therapy in recovering memory and meaning, and the hard-won belief that a person’s past can shape them without defining them. Opening From Houston With a Message About Trauma and Truth In this episode of Breaking the Silence, Dr. Gregory Williams opens from Houston, Texas, reflecting on birthdays, memories, and how significant moments can bring both good and painful emotions to the surface. Before introducing his guest, he continues a series of practical reflections on healing from abuse and trauma. His first point is to tell yourself the truth: admit what happened, acknowledge that it was not your fault, and stop hiding the reality of the pain. He also reminds listeners that trauma may affect behavior, triggers, and responses, but it is not the whole of a person’s identity. Separating Identity From Experience Dr. Williams emphasizes that what happened to someone is not the same as who they are. He tells listeners that abuse, domestic violence, neglect, human trafficking, and other traumatic experiences may shape a person’s reactions, but they do not define the person’s worth or future. He uses his own life as an example, saying that aspects of how he showers, dresses, and responds to certain situations were shaped by childhood abuse, yet those experiences are not his identity. He frames this as a key part of healing: replacing “what’s wrong with me?” with “what happened to me, and what support do I need?” Breaking the Silence Safely Another key lesson Dr. Williams shares is the importance of breaking silence carefully and safely. He encourages survivors to find someone trustworthy before sharing painful truths, whether that person is a spouse, counselor, pastor, teacher, friend, or another safe support. He recommends journaling as a first step, then sharing only a small portion when the time feels right. For Dr. Williams, secrets can become a prison, but safe disclosure can bring relief, healing, and resilience when the listener believes the survivor and does not push them away. Tim Smith and the Fault Line of His Life After apologizing for a scheduling mistake the previous week, Dr. Williams welcomes Tim Smith, author of Fault Line: Still Standing. Tim explains that the story had been inside him for years, but therapy helped him realize that what he had treated as mere facts were actually emotionally loaded experiences. The central “fault line” of his life, he says, was when his mother took him from his father at age six. He had not originally used the word “kidnapping” for the experience until his husband, who has a background in social work, pointed out that being taken against his will and hidden from his father for a year fit that description. Memory, Music, and the Body’s Record of Trauma Tim describes how therapy reopened memories he had not revisited for decades, almost like a dam breaking. As he began writing, sensory details returned through images, sounds, smells, songs, and scenes from childhood. He explains that, as a photographer and visual person, the pictures in his mind contain “all of the data”: emotion, sound, smell, and memory. One song, Meat Loaf’s “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” instantly pulls him back to a specific childhood scene. The conversation shows how trauma is stored not only as narrative memory, but also through the body, the senses, and emotional association. Kidnapping, Silence, and Dissociation Tim recounts the morning his mother took him, describing how she woke him, had him kiss his father goodbye, and led him toward a car driven by his soon-to-be stepfather. He remembers becoming immediately frightened, crying in the back seat, and later being threatened that he would be left on the side of the interstate if he did not stop. Afterward, he lived in trailer parks and became nonverbal at home for about a year, using silence as the only weapon available to him as a small child. He also describes staring out windows and mentally leaving situations he could not control, a pattern of dissociation that continued as a survival tool. Shame, Neglect, and Reclaiming Worth The middle section of the interview explores Tim’s childhood neglect, poverty, and shame. He remembers not being fed breakfast, being placed on free breakfast and lunch programs, and being mocked at home for his body and perceived effeminacy. He says that abuse, neglect, and homophobic shaming made him fearful and ashamed for decades. Later in life, even while working in private equity in Beverly Hills, he still had to challenge the internal belief that he was somehow less than everyone else. Through therapy, reflection, and the writing of his memoir, Tim came to see that the darkness of his past was not who he was. Therapy, Meaning, and the Ingredients of Peace Tim and Dr. Williams discuss therapy, trust, medication, shutdown, suicidal despair, and the search for meaning after Tim’s mother died, September 11 happened, and he lost his job in quick succession. Tim says writing the book became therapeutic, though it also brought intense PTSD moments and painful memories. When Dr. Williams asks him to imagine cooking up “peace” on a Waffle House grill, Tim names ingredients such as believing in yourself, knowing who you are, stability, routine, love, a safe relationship, dogs, and the feeling of taking a nap on a rainy Sunday afternoon. His definition of peace is simple, embodied, safe, and deeply earned. Taking Back Power and Choosing Hope Near the end, Dr. Williams asks Tim what he would say to listeners who have carried trauma for decades. Tim tells them to be brave, to understand that healing may require burning like a phoenix, and to remember that pain may be part of them but does not control them. He urges people to take back power from the false narratives in their heads, from abusive or neglectful parental voices, and from a past that is not their identity. The episode closes with Dr. Williams recommending Fault Line: Still Standing, sharing Tim’s website faultlinememoir.com and Instagram Tim.Smith.writes, and reminding listeners that there is always hope, no matter what happened to them.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Breaking Shame and Building a Mission of Healing Guests, Diana and Micah LaCerte, Owners of HitchFit and Co-Authors of The Breaker This week's guests are back by popular demand. Micah and Diana will be discussing not only their book: "The Breaker." but the movement that this couple and their message is starting across the country. Do not miss this inspirational program! Don't forget to check out the guest's book, "The Breaker: How Men Can Overcome Shame and Live in True Freedom" Find it at all major book retailers and Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1637634889?tag=simonsayscom Check out The Breaker Below: https://thebreakermission.com/ The Hidden Weight Survivors Carry Dr. Gregory Williams opens the program by introducing a new multiweek discussion focused especially on men who have survived childhood sexual abuse, while noting that the principles also apply to women. He describes how survivors may appear successful, strong, disciplined, professionally accomplished, or outwardly composed while privately carrying shame, fear, anger, confusion, nightmares, relationship difficulties, and the belief that something inside them has been permanently damaged. Williams shares that he remained silent about his own abuse for thirty-seven years and explains how fear of disbelief, judgment, and altered relationships can prevent disclosure. He emphasizes that the abuse was not the survivor’s fault and does not define identity. He explains that once healing begins, the wound can become a scar that no longer defines the survivor and may instead be used to encourage and empower others facing similar pain. The Breaker Becomes a Platform for Vulnerability Williams welcomes Micah and Diana LaCerte, co-authors of The Breaker, and presents the book as a resource for trauma disclosure, courage, healing, faith, and personal transformation. Micah explains that since the book’s release, he and Diana have heard from many people who felt safe enough to reveal deeply personal experiences after encountering their story. He describes the work as both a blessing and a source of heartbreak because every testimony carries pain, yet he believes vulnerability can help others find courage and begin healing. Diana adds that the book has created opportunities to hold difficult stories with compassion while helping people move toward the identity they believe God intended for them rather than remaining defined by trauma. Both describe the work as ministry rather than promotion. Carrying Other People’s Stories Without Being Consumed Williams asks how the couple emotionally handles the painful accounts people bring to them. Diana says their relationship with Jesus has become essential because they need the capacity to listen while also surrendering burdens that are not theirs to carry permanently. She describes beginning her mornings in prayer and asking for the words and strength needed to sustain weary people. She says their background in fitness has also helped them understand the importance of physically and emotionally processing difficult experiences rather than allowing those burdens to remain stored within them. Some stories stay with her and bring genuine grief, but she also feels gratitude when survivors or spouses explain that the book gave them courage to disclose abuse, offer support, or enter a healing process. Success Measured by Individual Breakthroughs The guests explain that traditional bestseller rankings were never their primary goal. Diana says they measure success through individual stories of breakthrough, disclosure, and healing, believing that each person reached confirms the book is fulfilling its intended purpose. Micah adds that although they are normally highly competitive and accustomed to pursuing championships, visible accomplishments, and measurable success, they felt led not to treat the book as another contest. Their hope is that The Breaker will remain useful ten, twenty, or thirty years from now and continue helping people long after the initial release period. Williams agrees that trauma-related books often gain influence slowly through trust, testimony, sustained ministry, and repeated personal recommendation. From Shame to a Voice for Other Survivors When Williams asks what “the breaker” means, Micah explains that the most painful and shame-filled part of his life has become the subject he now most wants to discuss. He recalls how difficult it was to disclose the abuse even to close family members and contrasts that with the freedom he now experiences speaking openly. Diana observes that the hesitation and shame that remained even a year earlier are no longer controlling him. Micah says that when he shares his experience, strangers frequently respond with stories involving themselves, a child, a parent, or another loved one. He describes healing as a difficult process requiring courage, time, persistence, and the willingness to keep moving after setbacks. Once survivors reach greater freedom, he believes their lived understanding can become a powerful source of hope for those still trapped in secrecy. Forgiveness as a Process, Not Permission A major part of the conversation focuses on forgiveness. Micah says his most difficult forgiveness was not directed only toward the abuser, but also toward the people who should have protected him and did not. He describes a seven-year healing process in which he addressed major and smaller traumas before becoming capable of authentic forgiveness. Micah recounts a spiritual turning point during a walk, when reflecting on Jesus’s words of forgiveness helped him begin releasing the anger he still held toward the abuser and those who failed to protect him. Diana stresses that forgiveness does not mean saying the abuse was acceptable, restoring access to the offender, or abandoning necessary boundaries. Williams agrees from his own experience, explaining that although he worked toward forgiveness, he never allowed his children to be alone with his father. The Breaker Mission and Restoring Men, Families, and Faith Micah describes The Breaker Mission as an evolving ministry that he expects to work alongside other aligned organizations rather than compete with them. Its developing focus includes protecting children, helping men heal, strengthening families, and guiding survivors toward a renewed relationship with Christ, especially when church-related wounds have complicated faith. He says he feels called to be a strong male voice for men who have not yet found their own voice and believes healing fathers can positively affect wives, children, and entire households. He also discusses speaking to young people in a juvenile detention center and observing that none reported having a father consistently present in the home. The closing highlights Soul Fit TV, the couple’s upcoming fifteenth anniversary, Williams’s hope for future events and collaborations, and his blessing over their marriage, ministry, and expanding impact.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Outcry, Healing, and the Courage to Face What Fear Has Hidden Guest, JoDee Neil, Owner of Neil Now Legal, Prosecutor, Attorney and Author of "Outcry Witness: A Former Prosecutor's Guide to Healing and Justice After Sexual Violence" This week's guest is back by popular demand. JoDee Neil is an acclaimed trail attorney and author of the new book: "Outcry Witness." She owns Neil Now Legal, PLLC. She has served as a prosecutor of sexual abuse cases and specializes in Crimes Against Children cases. Interested in our guest? Visit their Website at: https://www.jodeeneil.com/ Don't forget to check out her book: "Outcry Witness: A Former Prosecutor's Guide to Healing and Justice After Sexual Violence" on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1965766196/ Opening From Houston With Gratitude and Hope In this episode of Breaking the Silence, host Dr. Gregory Williams welcomes listeners from his home in Houston, Texas, and reflects on the city, the Texas Medical Center, the approaching Fourth of July weekend, and gratitude for military service members and veterans. He then introduces the evening’s guest, JoDee Neil, attorney, author, advocate, and returning guest. The episode centers on trauma, anxiety, disclosure, recovery, workplace harm, and JoDee’s book Outcry, Witness. A Practical Game Plan for Anxiety and Triggers Before bringing JoDee into the conversation, Dr. Williams shares a practical ten-step approach for dealing with anxiety when a traumatic trigger appears. He encourages listeners to recognize and name the trigger, breathe slowly, ground themselves through the five senses, challenge fearful thoughts, relax the body, replace fear with truth, take one small action, reduce outside stimulation, practice gratitude, and, for those who believe, turn to God in prayer. He explains that these steps can help move the brain out of panic and into a more rational, grounded state. JoDee Neil on Becoming Unfrozen JoDee responds by describing anxiety and trauma response as a kind of frozen state, where a person may feel unable to move, think clearly, or act. She affirms Dr. Williams’ grounding tools and adds that writing can also help people come out of that frozen condition. She speaks candidly about her own past reliance on pills and other numbing methods, explaining that many people try to avoid discomfort rather than face the pain underneath. For JoDee, healing required learning to feel, endure, and move through the truth rather than continually medicating it away. Disclosure, Truth, and the Possibility of Joy The conversation turns to disclosure, which JoDee defines as first admitting the truth to oneself and then saying it aloud to someone else. She explains that healing begins when a person recognizes that present pain may be connected to something that happened long ago, and that a joyful life requires facing that reality. Dr. Williams asks whether she once believed she was worthy of happiness, and JoDee says happiness felt distant and almost imaginary until she began accepting the truth and healing from it. From Courthouse Healing to a Wider Calling JoDee reflects on her career as a trial attorney, particularly her work with sexual abuse cases and crimes against children. She describes how helping others in court once made her feel whole and purposeful, but after writing Outcry, Witness, she no longer feels the same need to keep healing inside courthouses. Instead, she now sees a broader calling to bring her experience, communication skills, and trauma-informed understanding into businesses, schools, boards, leadership groups, and public speaking settings where she can reach more people at once. Workplace Trauma, Retaliation, and Better Leadership A major part of the interview focuses on how JoDee’s legal and survivor experience can help organizations. She discusses workplace sexual harassment, retaliation, human resources failures, and the need for better reporting protocols. JoDee says retaliation often causes additional harm and liability, and she argues that organizations should create clearer, safer processes before matters escalate into legal battles. She also discusses de-escalation, communication, chain of command, listening, smiling, reducing tension, and creating healthier workplace cultures that protect both people and organizations. Facing Fear and Choosing Life As the interview closes, JoDee describes her dream of speaking widely, including a future TED Talk, and says she wants people to hear her and decide that life is worth truly living. She encourages listeners who are trapped in despair, addiction, or avoidance to take the first step toward healing, saying that the fear of facing pain is often worse than the act of beginning. Dr. Williams and JoDee also discuss a possible future Houston event connected to their books and nonprofit fundraising. The episode ends with Dr. Williams reminding listeners that both he and JoDee have survived deep pain, that help begins with a first step, and that as long as there is breath, there is hope.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Unconquerable: Chief Matt Antkowiak on Trauma, Resilience, Faith, and Becoming a Protector Guest, Chief Matt Antkowiak, Former Police Chief, Detective, Author and Survivor This week's guest is Chief Matt Antkowiak, Author and Survivor Scoop was conducting an interview with Chief Matt, when something amazing happened. You Will NOT want to miss this life-changing program! A Father’s Day Conversation About Resilience and Hope In this Father’s Day episode of Breaking the Silence, host Dr. Gregory Williams welcomes Chief Matt Antkowiak for a deeply personal conversation about childhood abuse, trauma, resilience, law enforcement, faith, and the mission to protect vulnerable children. Dr. Williams opens by reflecting on his recent visit to a juvenile detention center, where many young people had experienced abuse, trafficking, foster care, fatherlessness, and serious criminal charges. He uses that experience to introduce the theme of resilience, stressing that children need adults who teach them how to recover, adapt, keep moving forward, learn from failure, and believe that there is always hope. Learning Resilience the Hard Way Chief Antkowiak explains that resilience is not simply something people are born with; it must be taught, modeled, and practiced. He says he did not learn healthy resilience as a child, but later encountered it in the military through drill sergeants who taught him that each step forward is a choice. He describes how, as a young person, he dealt with trauma through hiding, shame, drinking, fighting, and suppressing pain. Looking back, he says he was leaving “breadcrumbs” and wanted someone to notice, ask the right questions, and help stop what was happening, but the adults around him did not respond in the way he needed. Abuse, Silence, and the Need for Protectors Much of the conversation centers on the silence that surrounds childhood abuse and the urgent need to equip parents, teachers, pastors, coaches, and other adults to recognize warning signs. Chief Antkowiak says most abusers are known to the child, often occupying trusted roles within families, schools, churches, sports, or community circles. He argues that society must shift from merely responding after abuse happens to building protectors on the front end. For him, breaking the silence means removing shame from survivors, asking better questions, teaching children what trusted adults look like, and understanding that the shame belongs to the abuser, not the victim. Law Enforcement, Human Trafficking, and Searching for Justice Chief Antkowiak reflects on his long career in law enforcement, including military service and decades as a police officer and chief. He explains that working sex crimes, child abuse, and human trafficking cases gave him a way to pursue justice for others, even while he had not yet publicly spoken about his own abuse. He discusses major investigations, including the Blakemore human-trafficking case, and says that catching offenders did not fully heal him because he was still searching for justice for himself. Over time, he came to understand that his pain had become part of his purpose and that his experience helped him connect with survivors while also understanding the behavior of predators. The Moment the Silence Broke One of the most powerful parts of the interview comes when Chief Antkowiak describes publicly revealing his own abuse during a media interview connected to a school-related abuse investigation. He says an investigative reporter recognized that the case seemed deeply personal, and Antkowiak unexpectedly disclosed that he had been abused as a child. Moments later, he repeated that disclosure in a press conference, realizing only afterward that he had broken a silence he had carried for decades. Rather than stopping, he returned to the work, but the moment forced him to begin processing what he had long buried. Faith, Healing, and Taking Back What Was Stolen Chief Antkowiak also speaks openly about faith, therapy, forgiveness, and his belief that God was present with him even in the darkest moments of his life. He recounts a life-threatening incident as a Dallas police officer in 2000, when he survived being dragged by a car and badly injured, and says his young son’s comment that “God went to work with my dad” changed the way he understood God’s presence. He connects that experience to his later healing, saying he has come to believe that God did not create the abuse but was with him through it. He also shares how a trafficking survivor once told him about Jesus and reminded him that God loved him, a moment that deeply affected him. Team Unconquerable and the Call to Expose the Darkness The episode closes with Chief Antkowiak describing his developing movement, Team Unconquerable, and his upcoming book, Unconquerable, which he says is planned for a Black Friday release tied to reclaiming the anniversary of one of the hardest moments in his own story. His mission is to expose darkness, speak up, and build protectors who can recognize abuse, support survivors, and prevent harm. Dr. Williams thanks him for the conversation and says he wants to bring him back for another episode. He closes with the show’s recurring message: survivors are not alone, healing is possible, the silence can be broken, and there is always hope.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Scars, Service, and Built-to-Lead Resilience: Turning Struggle Into Strength Guest, Keith Grounsell, a 28-year law enforcement veteran, two-time Chief of Police, former DEA Special Agent, international police advisor, entrepreneur, speaker, and multi-book author Back by popular demand, this week's guest will be Keith Grounsell. Keith is a veteran law enforcement leader with nearly 30 years at the city, county, federal and international levels. A former deep undercover narcotics officer and 2-time Chief of Police. He is the author of more than 12 books. You can find all of Keith's book at his author page on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Keith-P.-Grounsell/author/B08J456MMW?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1773710088&sr=1-1&shoppingPortalEnabled=true A Night of Hope After Hurt In this episode of Breaking the Silence, host Dr. Gregory Williams opens from his home near the Texas Medical Center in Houston, welcoming listeners to a Sunday evening conversation about trauma, healing, and perseverance. He reminds the audience that the show’s purpose is to give people something useful they can carry into the week, whether for themselves or someone they care about. He also notes that the program is approaching seven years on the air, making the episode part of a long-running effort to help people break the silence around personal pain. The Value That Trauma Cannot Destroy Before introducing his guest, Dr. Williams offers two illustrations about value after damage. First, he uses a $100 bill to show that even when something is crumpled, stepped on, or dirtied, its value remains unchanged. Then he tells the story of a broken antique vase repaired with gold, making the cracks visible but even more beautiful and valuable. He applies both images to survivors of sexual abuse, domestic violence, trafficking, emotional abuse, verbal abuse, and other forms of trauma, emphasizing that their worth has not been diminished by what was done to them. Scars as Testimonies of Healing Dr. Williams connects the broken-vase image to spiritual healing, saying God does not pretend that wounds never happened but instead binds broken pieces together in a way that turns scars into testimonies. He cites Psalm 147:3, which says God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. His message is that survivors may still carry visible cracks, but those scars can become signs of victory rather than defeat. He also acknowledges his own ongoing healing process, describing progress as sometimes taking two steps forward and one step back. Keith Grounsell Returns by Popular Demand Dr. Williams welcomes Keith Grounsell, a veteran law enforcement leader, former deep undercover narcotics officer, two-time police chief, international law enforcement professional, and author of more than a dozen books. Dr. Williams says Keith is returning for a third appearance by popular demand and highlights both his leadership experience and writing career. Keith responds to the opening message by saying that struggles and scars have made him stronger, more empathetic, and more committed to helping others. Failure, Work Ethic, and the Drive to Help Others Keith explains that his own life has included failures, struggles, and setbacks, but he does not allow those failures to define him. Instead, he says the way a person rebounds from failure is what reveals their character, especially in leadership. He also discusses being diagnosed with a learning disability early in life and how that challenge forced him to work harder, memorize more intentionally, and develop a strong work ethic. Keith says that what first seemed like a handicap later became fuel for his drive, education, writing, and leadership. Teen Takeovers, Social Media, and Personal Responsibility Dr. Williams asks Keith about recent incidents involving large groups of youth taking over public areas, including one in downtown Houston. Keith frames these “teen takeovers” as criminal activity tied to declining personal responsibility, social media influence, weak accountability, and breakdowns in family structure. He argues that parents and caregivers must be held responsible when minors participate in destructive behavior, while adults involved should face serious consequences. He also points to the role of viral attention, influencer culture, and online reward systems that encourage shocking or chaotic behavior. Leadership, Iran, and Peace Through Strength Dr. Williams also asks Keith to comment on breaking news about a reported peace agreement involving Iran. Keith says effective leadership requires conviction, courage, and the ability to ignore constant criticism. He praises Donald Trump’s approach as “peace through strength,” saying Trump showed restraint while still demonstrating power. Keith argues that the prevention of a broader regional war and the limiting of Iran’s nuclear ambitions required unusually difficult negotiation and strong leadership, though he notes the agreement still needed to be signed. Writing, Discipline, and the System Behind Many Books After the break, the conversation shifts to Keith’s writing process. Keith explains that he now devotes around sixty hours a week to writing and has developed a system that allows him to complete books efficiently. Instead of trying to perfect each chapter immediately, he focuses on getting the story down first, often using dictation in Microsoft Word and then editing afterward. He also discusses the value of self-publishing, retaining creative rights, and transforming his books into scenario-driven online leadership courses through the Institute of Global Integrity and Leadership. Books on Policing, Leadership, and Character Keith describes several upcoming or recent books, including a leadership book on community policing, a book for frontline law enforcement supervisors, and a book about field training officers. He also discusses his children’s books in the Kids’ Character and Confidence series, which he created to help families have deeper conversations about values, boundaries, kindness, and personal growth. One book focuses on inappropriate touching and the importance of children being able to say no when something feels wrong. Keith also shares plans for a future book inspired by his adopted son, who was born drug-addicted and later faced developmental challenges. Built to Lead and the Daily Standard of Discipline Dr. Williams closes the interview by focusing on Keith’s book Built to Lead, especially the chapter “Discipline Is the Leader’s Daily Standard.” Keith says discipline begins with self-discipline, because people are always watching how leaders live. He describes daily routines involving health, exercise, focus, goal-setting, and protecting one’s most productive time of day. Dr. Williams and Keith discuss the importance of knowing one’s peak mental hours, reducing distractions, and using that time for the most important work. The episode closes with Dr. Williams reminding listeners that storms eventually pass, hope remains, and no one should ever say they are worthless.

Breaking The Silence with Dr Gregory Williams Breaking the Silence and Building Resilience: Dr. Gregory Williams and JoDee Neil on Abuse Disclosure, Justice, and Outcry Witness Guest, JoDee Neil, Owner of Neil Now Legal, Prosecutor, Attorney and Author of "Outcry Witness: A Former Prosecutor's Guide to Healing and Justice After Sexual Violence" This Week's Guest will be JoDee Neil. She is an acclaimed trail attorney and author of then ew book: "Outcry Witness." She owns Neil Now Legal, PLLC. She has served as a prosecutor of sexual abuse cases and specializes in Crimes Against Children cases. Interested in our guest? Visit their Website at: https://www.jodeeneil.com/ Don't forget to check out our guests book: "Outcry Witness: A Former Prosecutor's Guide to Healing and Justice After Sexual Violence" on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1965766196/ Dr. Gregory Williams Opens with Concern, Resilience, and Public Awareness In this episode of Breaking the Silence, host Dr. Gregory Williams opens from Houston by reflecting on the coming World Cup activity and the dangers that large events can create for children, including increased risks of trafficking, prostitution, and abuse. He urges listeners to stay alert and watchful in communities that may host large crowds. Before introducing his guest, Dr. Williams also shares a brief teaching on resilience, encouraging survivors to acknowledge their feelings, seek trusted support, learn about trauma, set healthy boundaries, develop coping strategies, practice self-compassion, and allow healing to unfold over time rather than trying to force it. He frames resilience not as something to buy or imitate from someone else, but as something already present inside a person that can be uncovered and strengthened. JoDee Neil and the Purpose of Outcry Witness Dr. Williams then welcomes JoDee Neil, an attorney who has spent more than two decades working with survivors and prosecuting or handling cases involving sexual abuse and crimes against children. He praises her recently released book, Outcry Witness, and strongly recommends it to parents, counselors, teachers, attorneys, judges, and police officers. JoDee explains that the title comes from a Texas legal term describing the first adult to whom a child discloses abuse. That adult, the outcry witness, may later testify in court about what the child said. She says she intentionally wrote the book in a concise, practical format that people could carry easily, read privately, and use as a helpful guide rather than an overwhelming legal text. The Scale of Abuse and the Hidden Reality Survivors Carry A major theme of the conversation is the widespread prevalence of sexual violence. JoDee cites statistics showing that one in four girls may be sexually assaulted before age 18 and that significant numbers of women and men live with the effects of contact sexual violence. She says these numbers likely remain underreported, especially for boys and men. The two discuss how abuse is often far more common than people want to admit and how many survivors carry silence, shame, and isolation for years or even decades. JoDee says some of the hardest cases for her to emotionally process involve abuse within biological families, and she also warns about the growing horror of AI-generated child sexual abuse material and the many ways new technology can exploit children. Shame, Disclosure, and the Need to Be Believed JoDee and Dr. Williams spend significant time discussing shame and disclosure. JoDee explains that many survivors remain frozen and unable to speak because trauma creates paralysis, fear, and deep internalized shame. She says that when a child or adult finally discloses abuse and is not believed, that response can be even more damaging than the original abuse. Both stress that a child usually has nothing to gain by making such a disclosure and that the details children share often reveal knowledge and experience they could not easily fabricate. JoDee says adults must listen carefully, believe children, and understand that disclosure is often a slow and painful process. Dr. Williams adds that survivors can spend decades suppressing trauma, only to have it damage their relationships, bodies, and emotional lives over time. Parents, Predators, and the Failure to Take Warning Signs Seriously The discussion then turns to what parents and adults miss or ignore. JoDee says one of the most basic failures is simply refusing to believe a child who says someone is creepy or that something bad happened. She urges adults to stop automatically giving suspicious people the benefit of the doubt when warning signs are already present. The conversation also explores predator behavior more broadly, with JoDee explaining that predators often do not resemble the stereotypical stranger in a van. Instead, they may appear respectable, trusted, polished, and safe. She argues that adults now need evidence-based self-protection and far greater vigilance in everyday life, including around sports teams, sleepovers, schools, public bathrooms, phones, social media, and internet-connected devices. Both speakers say parents must know the adults around their children, supervise access to technology, and stop assuming that danger only comes from obvious outsiders. Technology, Sextortion, and the Limits of Legal Protection Another major section of the interview focuses on technology and the legal difficulties surrounding online exploitation. JoDee warns about AI, deepfakes, image scraping, online grooming, and the permanence of harmful digital content once it is created or circulated. She says schools and parents are often not doing enough to lock down devices and online access. When Dr. Williams asks about sextortion and app-based exploitation, JoDee responds that large technology companies remain difficult to challenge because federal legal protections shield them from much civil liability. She explains that this leaves many survivors with little recourse even when harm began through apps, platforms, or online tools. Her frustration with those systemic barriers is part of why she says she is moving more toward consulting and broader public education rather than relying only on courtroom-based solutions. A Justice System That Often Re-Traumatizes Survivors JoDee also speaks candidly about the legal system itself, arguing that survivors often receive very few protections while defendants receive numerous constitutional safeguards. She describes child sexual abuse cases that drag on for years and says survivors are too often treated as though they are presumptively lying. She expresses frustration about the lack of structural protections for children and about the emotional toll of watching vulnerable people repeatedly retraumatized by court processes. When asked what kind of change is needed, she says she has a long list of reforms in mind and points especially to the need for a system that treats child survivors with greater dignity, urgency, and care. Even while acknowledging tools like forensic interviews and closed-circuit testimony, she says the broader justice framework still fails many of the people it is supposed to protect. JoDee Neil’s Own Healing Journey and a Closing Message of Hope Near the end of the program, JoDee shares some of her own experience as a survivor, explaining that it took her many years to meaningfully speak the truth about what happened to her. She says she survived for a long time by compartmentalizing pain, avoiding it, and using unhealthy coping strategies, but eventually began to release it through writing and truth-telling. She describes healing as a non-linear, deeply spiritual process and says holding her published book in her hands felt like reclaiming authorship over part of her life and purpose. She also mentions future writing projects, including books on how mothers are treated in family courts and how perpetrator behavior affects workplaces. Dr. Williams closes by praising Outcry Witness, encouraging listeners to buy and review the book, and reminding survivors that no matter how painful their experiences have been, there is always hope and healing remains possible.