I didn’t know how to live anymore. ~ Taylor Grieger

You chase everything you can in this world because you’re alive in it. 

~ Taylor Grieger

Hope and despair. While most of us have experienced great sadness or heartache, fortunately, not everyone experiences despair. But we all know hope, which can lift us from the depths, if we can only find it.

This episode of the Brilliantly Resilient podcast marks our 100th show, and we couldn’t think of a better way to offer hope and share Brilliance and Resilience than to bring you Taylor Grieger and Stephen O’Shea.

A veteran U.S. Navy rescue swimmer, Taylor Grieger found himself unable to adjust to civilian life after his term of service. After his gun didn’t fire when Taylor tried to take his own life, he knew he had to find out why he was still alive and draw attention to the terrible toll PTSD takes on veterans. 

Taylor recruited his high school swim team friend, writer Stephen O’Shea, to embark on a treacherous sailing journey to the waters of Cape Horn, known as the graveyard of ships. On the way, Taylor uncovered his own hidden Resilience and found his Brilliance while sharing the journey with other veterans to inspire hope. Their travels are documented in the film Hell or High Seas, and it’s mesmerizing. 

Have you ever experienced a painful event and wondered why? Or worse, that it was somehow your fault (as Taylor remarks in the film)? When big, tough sucker punches happen, it’s normal to look for a reason, even if that reason means blaming ourselves. But it’s rarely that simple, and often, the reason isn’t important, it’s how we choose to come out the other side. The quotes above reflect Taylor’s reckoning with both ends of this challenging spectrum.

Building a tribe, asking for help, controlling the control-ables, not being married to outcomes and taking action are all parts of being Brilliantly Resilient which Taylor and Stephen return to again and again in their journey. With every step, the final message is always: There is hope.

Tune into this 100th episode of the Brilliantly Resilient podcast to learn more about Taylor and Stephen, and be sure to watch the film Hell or High Seas. And check out https://www.amodsailing.org/ for more on adventure therapy and how it can help veterans build healthy lives after service. Thank you Taylor, for your service and thanks to you and Stephen for sharing your incredible journey and wisdom!

XO,

KS & MFB